Graduation Requirements
and Commencement Policies

Average Time to Graduate | Tuition Surcharge | Graduation | Academic Requirements | Residence Requirements | Time Requirements | AULER Requirements | Major Requirements | Application for Graduation | Graduation with Honors |  Commencement Participation

Average Time to Graduation

Many factors affect both the length of time and the number of credit hours an individual student will require to complete the baccalaureate degree. At UNCG the median number of months to graduation for full time students is 46. The median number of credit hours completed is 125.

Full time undergraduate students are expected to complete at least 15 credit hours per semester and failure to do so may lengthen the student's time to graduation. Some majors do require formal admission beyond that required for admission to the University in general.

Students should meet with their academic advisors regularly to plan their academic schedules. To graduate, students must complete specific University requirements as well as requirements within the major. Students who change majors may find that additional requirements must be fulfilled. Changing majors excessively, or after the third or fourth semester of study, may also lengthen the time to graduation.

Criteria for admission to a specific major (outlined in this Bulletin) and continuation in that major may include a University grade point average exceeding that required for continuation within the University as a whole. Students considering such majors should become familiar with the guidelines, and work with an academic advisor, as soon as possible to ensure that they meet the criteria.

The General Assembly has instituted a twenty-five percent (25%) tuition surcharge (Section 89 (b), Senate Bill 27, 1993 Session) which became effective Fall semester 1994 and applies to all new undergraduates seeking a baccalaureate degree. Specifically, it states:

"The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina shall ensure that procedures are established that are necessary to impose a twenty-five percent (25%) tuition surcharge on students who take more than 140 degree credit hours to complete a baccalaureate degree in a four-year program or more than one hundred ten percent (110%) of the credit hours necessary to complete a baccalaureate degree in any program officially designated by the Board of Governors as a five-year program. The calculation of these credit hours taken at a constituent institution or accepted for transfer shall exclude hours earned through the College Board's Advanced Placement or CLEP examinations, through institutional advanced placement or course validation, or through summer term or extension programs."

Students Subject to the Surcharge
The tuition surcharge will be applied to new undergraduate students enrolled for the first time in Fall 1994 and thereafter in a degree program at UNCG as follows:

1. For students earning a first baccalaureate degree in a program that requires no more than 128 credit hours, the surcharge shall be applied to all hours in excess of 140.
2. For students earning a first baccalaureate degree in a UNC Board of Governors Board-approved program that requires more than 128 credit hours, the surcharge shall be applied to all hours that exceed 110 percent of the credit hours required for the degree. Such programs include those that have been officially designated by the Board of Governors as five-year programs as well as those involving double majors, or combined bachelor's/master's degrees.
3. For students earning a baccalaureate degree other than their first, the surcharge shall be applied to all hours that exceed 110 percent of the minimum additional credit hours needed to earn the additional baccalaureate degree. The minimum additional credit hours will be determined by the degree audit during the first semester a student is enrolled in the second or other baccalaureate degree.

Students seeking a second baccalaureate degree are required to take 31 credit hours of residency at UNCG.

The surcharge will be imposed in the fall or spring semester and in all subsequent semesters where a student's cumulative credit hour total exceeds the threshold. The surcharge does not apply to required fees.

Hours INCLUDED in Tuition Surcharge Hours:
The undergraduate credit hours to be counted in the calculation of the tuition surcharge include:

1. all semester (fall and spring semester) academic credit hours attempted (includes repeated coursework, failed coursework, and course withdrawals); and
2. all transfer credit hours accepted by UNCG.

Hours EXCLUDED from Tuition Surcharge Hours:

1. College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) credit;
2. College Level Examination Program (CLEP) or similar programs' credits;
3. credit earned through any UNCG advanced placement, course validation or similar procedure;
4. credit earned in summer sessions at UNCG or another UNC institution; and
5. credit earned from an extension division of any UNC institution, including UNCG.

Students will be informed of the Tuition Surcharge Hours earned each semester and cumulatively in their tuition billing.

Students may contact the Office of Student Academic Services to obtain current information on their credit hours.

At the beginning of the semester or summer session in which graduation is expected, undergraduates must officially apply for graduation to the University Registrar. Fulfillment of all requirements for the degree applied for, as well as official application for the degree, are the student's responsibilities.

Academic Requirements
Candidates for a degree must satisfy all of the specific requirements of UNCG and of the School/College and department in which they major. They must present for graduation the specific number of hours required for the degree with a minimum cumulative overall grade point average of at least 2.0 on all hours undertaken.

At least 36 of the total semester hours for the degree must be at the 300-level or above.

Residence Requirements
All students are expected to take their last year in residence at UNCG, except those students in programs offered in cooperation with another institution and approved by the faculty. With the approval of the Director of Student Academic Services, students may take 15 of their last 60 hours at another approved institution.

All students must complete at least 31 semester hours in residence at UNCG for the degree, 12 of which must be in the major field and 9 of which must be in the minor if a minor is sought. After enrollment, Extension credit and Correspondence courses offered by UNCG are considered residence credit. However, credit earned by special examination is not considered residence credit.

Time Requirements
The following policies regarding time allowed for completion of AULER/CLER and major requirements became effective Fall 1996.

AULER Requirements
Students must meet the University (AULER/College of Arts and Sciences-CLER) Liberal Education Requirements for graduation as stated in the UNCG Undergraduate Bulletin in effect at the time of original enrollment at UNCG. If the student fails to graduate within seven years, however, the University* has the option of enforcing

1. the original requirements, or
2. the AULER/CLER requirements which were in effect at the time the seven year period expired, or
3. the AULER/CLER requirements in effect at the time of re-enrollment if the student withdrew.

*Typically, the UNCG Office of Student Academic Services will make the choice among these options in consultation with the department in which the student chooses to major.

Major Requirements
Students must meet the departmental major requirements in effect when the student declares or, if required by the department, is formally admitted to a school/college major. If the student fails to graduate within seven years, however, the University* has the option of enforcing

1. the original requirements,
2. the major requirements which were in effect at the time the seven year period expired, or
3. the major requirements in effect at the time of re-enrollment if the student withdrew.

*Typically, the department in which the student chooses to major will make the choice among these options in consultation with the UNCG Office of Student Academic Services.

Students who do not graduate in the semester for which they file a graduation application must re-file for the next term in which they expect to complete their degrees, and will be charged a fee for this additional application.

The graduation application deadlines for undergraduates filing for the 2000-2001 academic year are:

• Friday, September 8, 2000, for those graduating in December 2000
• Friday, January 12, 2001, for those graduating in May 2001
• Thursday, May 31, 2001, for those graduating in Summer (August) 2001

Undergraduates who do not file applications for graduation by the published deadlines may petition to the Director of Student Academic Services for an exemption. Only extremely unusual circumstances warrant exceptions to these deadlines, however, as notification of the candidates for graduation must be submitted to the Board of Trustees for official action shortly after the deadline dates for filing each term.

Graduation with Honors
The designation of graduation with honors is based on all courses (including the last semester's work) for which grades and grade points are given. Any senior is eligible for honors who, at the end of the senior year, has completed at least 45 hours of work in residence at UNCG. This does not include hours for which credit and grade points have been received by special examinations.

Honors are awarded to graduating seniors as follows:

Second Degree Honors
Any second degree candidate is eligible for graduation with honors who, at the end of the final year, has completed toward the second degree, at least 45 hours of work in residence at UNCG and has earned the requisite grade point average.

Students completing all degree requirements by the end of the spring semester are encouraged to participate in May Commencement. Students completing degree requirements by the end of the Summer Session or by the end of the fall semester are encouraged to participate in the December Commencement.

Students who have three (3) credit hours remaining to graduate in August or who are completing a required internship or practicum experience to graduate in August, and who have applied to complete their degree, may, with the approval of their department and Student Academic Services or the Graduate School, petition the University Registrar's Office or the Graduate School to participate in May commencement ceremonies.

Students who do not apply for May graduation before the published deadline, or who do not complete degree requirements before the date designated in the University Calendar for final clearance, may apply for graduation in August or December and may participate in the December Commencement.

Degrees are conferred only after all requirements are completed and the Board of Trustees has taken official action.