Graduation Requirements 

To receive an undergraduate degree, you must complete all graduation requirements.   Appropriate variations may be made for transfer students reflecting existing articulation agreements. Professional & Online Studies students are exempt from ACES requirements, first-year seminar, and interim.

Graduation requirements include all of the following: 

•    Credit and Honor Point specifications: A minimum of 128 semester hours of credit with a cumulative grade point average of not less than 2.0
•    Completion of a major
•    Completion of the General Education requirements , both Intellectual Foundations and Intellectual Explorations
•    First-Year Seminar
•    Academic and Cultural Events Series (ACES)
•    Designated Writing Courses (DWC)
•    Interim (Freshman Year)

The academic catalog is designed to assist your and your academic advisor in planning and scheduling a degree program. You should keep in mind, however, that you are ultimately responsible for understanding and fulfilling all degree requirements. You are responsible for your own degree plans and for the completion of all requirements for the degrees that you seek.

Credits and Honor Points

You must complete a minimum of 128 hours for graduation. Sixty of these hours must be earned at a four-year baccalaureate institution. The final 30 hours must be completed at BVU. All transfer students must complete 12 hours of upper division courses in the major from BVU.

All students must meet the University's General Education Program Requirements; however, an associate of arts degree from a regionally accredited institution satisfies the general education foundation and exploration requirements.

An overall cumulative grade point average of 2.0 is necessary for graduation. Some programs require a higher cumulative grade point average. For example, teacher licensure requires a grade point average of 2.5 for the total program, as well as each major, minor, and area of concentration. A minimum of six hours in each certification area must be taken at BVU. Check with the specific academic major for specific GPA requirements.

Majors

To earn an undergraduate degree you must complete at least one major, which typically ranges from 32-64 hours. For a complete listing of majors and minors, see Programs of Study.

General Education Program

You must complete all general education requirements to graduate, including:

•    Intellectual Foundations studies in Writing, Oral Communication, Technology, and Mathematics
•    Intellectual Explorations studies in Humanities, Science, Social Science, and the Fine Arts

Residency

A student who is registered for courses at Buena Vista University is considered to be "in residence." A minimum of 30 semester hours must be completed in residence, of which a minimum of 12 semester hours in the declared major must be 300-level or above. Students must spend their senior year in residence unless otherwise approved by the academic advisor, the appropriate School Dean, and the Academic Dean. Advanced written approval must be secured by students desiring to enroll off-campus with the intent of applying credits earned to a Buena Vista University degree program through summer study at a different BVU site, extension courses, other institutions, correspondence study, or study abroad.