Degree Requirements

Degrees Awarded

Degrees are awarded at the end of the term in which the student completes all requirements; a formal commencement program is held only at the end of the Winter Term. The College awards the following degrees which require total credits as listed:

• Bachelor of Arts, 136 credits
• Bachelor of Science, 136 credits (68 of the total credits must be in Science and Mathematics)
• Bachelor of Fine Arts, 148 credits
• Bachelor of Music, 136-156 credits

Specific requirements for the B.F.A. and B.M. degrees are listed in the Art and Design and Music sections of the catalog.

Earning an Additional Bachelor's Degree

A student may earn more than one bachelor's degree if:

1. The degrees are different.
2. The student completes 168 credits.
3. The student completes all requirements for both degrees.

Students who desire multiple degrees must make application to the Registrar's Office during the week of registration of the term prior to graduation. All degrees for which a student qualifies will be awarded as completed.

Alma College Credit

An Alma College credit is equivalent to 0.9 semester hours or 1.33 quarter hours.

Cumulative Point Average

The Cumulative Point Average (CPA) must be at least 2.0 for all degrees. This average is based only on grades achieved at Alma College or in its programs. Grades earned at other institutions will not be incorporated into this evaluation. Credits earned with a grade of "C" (2.0) or better at other institutions and accepted for transfer by Alma College will count toward the 136-156 credits required for the degree.

Area of Concentration

Each student must declare an area of concentration before the end of the sophomore year by filing the approved form with the Registrar's Office. This area of concentration may be a Departmental Major (36 credits as prescribed by the Department), an Interdepartmental Major (56 credits in courses approved by two or more departments and the Educational Policy Committee), or a Program of Emphasis [POE] (56-68 credits in courses selected by the student to meet a specific educational goal as approved by the POE Committee no later than November 15 of the junior year).

The CPA in the area of concentration must be at least 2.0 ("C") for the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Music degrees. For the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, a 3.0 CPA in the major is required. For teacher certification purposes, a 2.5 CPA is required for all coursework and for all majors and minors. (For students entering Alma Fall 1994 or after, a 2.75 CPA is required.)

Courses outside the area of concentration must total 68 credits.

Comprehensive Evaluation

All seniors at Alma College will complete a Comprehensive Evaluation in their major fields or POEs as a requirement for graduation. This evaluation will be graded and the results recorded on each student's transcript in one of three categories:

1. Passed comprehensive evaluation in (Department) with distinction.
2. Passed comprehensive evaluation in (Department).
3. Failed comprehensive evaluation in (Department).

Failure of the comprehensive evaluation will not affect degree status unless a department specifies that successful completion is necessary to satisfy major requirements. Students may retake the comprehensive evaluation only with the permission of the department (or in the case of a POE, the POE Subcommittee of the Educational Policy Committee of the faculty). Only the results of the most recent effort will be recorded.

The form of the comprehensive evaluation of any department will be determined by the department. Departments may require students to take a nationally normed test, such as the Graduate Record Examination, off campus. Regardless of the form of the evaluation, the department shall determine the minimum criteria for passing with distinction, passing and failing.

Advanced Level Courses

Advanced Level Courses, identified by an asterisk before the number, must total at least 44 credits. Students with Interdepartmental Majors must earn 56 credits in advanced level courses.

Spring Term Requirements

Two Spring Term courses must be successfully completed (except by transfer students of sophomore standing or above who must complete just one). One of the two Spring Term courses taken must be a designated "S" course. "S" courses take advantage of the unique format of Spring Term by crossing geographical, cultural or disciplinary boundaries. The "S" course requirement applies to classes entering Fall 1995 and after.

Residency Requirement

Seniors are required to enroll in classes offered on the Alma campus or through Alma College programs during the Fall and Winter terms immediately prior to graduation.

Limitations

Of the 136-148 credits required for a degree, students may apply up to the following number of credits from the classes listed below:

Credit earned by enrollment in English as a Second Language or in Mathematics 099 does not count toward the 136-156 credits required for graduation.

General Education (Distributive) Requirements

Candidates for all degrees must complete courses which meet the General Education Objectives of the College. A summary of the requirements follows.

Composition Requirements

1. Rhetoric Courses. Freshmen and transfer students in their first year shall enroll in English 100 in the Fall Term. After passing English 100 with a grade of "C" (2.0) or better, students will enroll in English 101. Completion of English 101 with a grade of "C" (2.0) or better shall be re-quired for graduation. The English Department may exempt a student from all or part of these requirements if an assessment of his or her writing skills indicates equivalent proficiency has been attained. Students exempted from English 101 are strongly encouraged to complete English 200.

2. Quill Courses. Completion with a passing grade of at least four courses other than English 100 and 101 that require significant writing shall be required for graduation. At least one of these courses will be in the student's major and at least two will be outside the major. Courses that can be elected to fulfill this requirement will be designated as Quill courses in the course catalog description and in the schedule of classes. No transfer course meets a Quill requirement without approval from the department under which credit is received. In this catalog, Quill courses are marked with a "Quill 1" or a "Quill 2".

   Quill 1 courses integrate composition experiences with coursework which meets Alma's Writing Across the Curriculum requirement. At least 25 percent of the course's grade is based upon the evaluation of quality in such written products as papers, reports, journals or examinations. Syllabi and instructions for these courses specify the writing requirement and indicate its influence on evaluation standards.

   Quill 2 courses are courses within the requirements for a major which base 25 percent of the course's evaluation on out-of-class writing assignments. Each department provides at least one Quill 2 Course. Instruction in these courses includes corrective and evaluative comments from instructors and opportunities for student improvement by revision and resubmission of a written assignment or by preparation of a series of written assignments.

3. Remanding Process. If the quality of the writing done by a student for a credit-bearing course is judged inadequate, the instructor of the course shall remand the student to the English Department for evaluation and/or remediation.

Statute of Limitation for Degree Requirements

If candidates are unable to fulfill all requirements by August 30 of the year for graduation, a five-year grace period is allowed for completion of deficiencies. After the five-year period, the student must re-apply for candidacy and have his/her record re-evaluated under the requirements then in force. If those requirements are significantly different, the candidate may be required to complete additional work for the degree.

Student Profile

Martin Kuustik
Graduation: 2010
Major: Business Administration
From: Saku Harju, Estonia
Interests: Greek Life, Cultural Awareness

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