2012–2013 Undergraduate Catalog

Degree Requirements 

This catalog spells out degree requirements, but the best way for students to track their specific progress is through the degree audit on VitNet and through consultation with their advisors.
 

Students must follow the catalog requirements in effect when they enter Viterbo University. Students who enter in the Viterbo in the summer session are consider new students, per federal guidelines, for the fall semester and are assigned the catalog in existence for the fall semester. These requirements remain in effect as long as the student attends Viterbo University on an uninterrupted basis and completes a degree within a period of six years. If students change their major, then they may need to follow a different catalog.
 

Baccalaureate Degree Requirements 

Candidates for the bachelor’s degree must accomplish the following:

• fulfill the core curriculum requirements
• complete all courses required for the major(s) and minor(s), if applicable
• earn a minimum of 128 credits
• earn a minimum of 43 upper division credits (300 and 400 numbered courses)
• achieve a minimum grade point average of 2.0
• earn a minimum of the last 30 consecutive credits at Viterbo not including alternative credits (see Alternative Credit section of the Academic Regulations and Policies section) or transfer credit
   

Bachelor of Arts 

All students seeking the Bachelor of Arts degree must complete (earn) 14 credits of the same modern world language. See the world languages section of this catalog for information about earning retroactive language credit.
 

Bachelor of Science 

All students seeking the Bachelor of Science degree must complete seven credits of natural science and/or mathematics in addition to the four credits of natural science in the general education requirements, for a total of 11 credits.
 

Second Major 

A student may receive a double major provided he or she has the baccalaureate degree requirements listed above and has met the requirements for each respective major. A student may receive a double major when one of the majors is an interdisciplinary major, however, only if a minimum of 18 credits not included in the interdisciplinary major are completed in the other major.
 

Students completing a bachelor degree offered through the Center for Adult Learning may not concurrently double major or double degree in a major offered in another school.
 

Minor 

Students may also choose to complete one or more minors. Requirements for a minor may be satisfied using courses taken to fulfill general education requirements, major support courses and electives. At least 75 percent of the credits for the minor must come from courses not required for the student’s major. Students may declare a minor by completing a form obtained from the Academic Resource Center. This form must be on file in the Office of the Registrar at least six months prior to graduation.
 

Second Degree 

A student may receive two degrees simultaneously provided the following conditions are met:

• All specified requirements for both degrees are met.
• The curriculum offered for the second degree includes at least 30 credits which are not counted towards the first degree. This means a minimum of 158 credits is required.
• The degrees are truly different; a student may not receive two B.A. degrees or two B.F.A. degrees simultaneously.
• Nor can a student receive a major or minor earned in one degree in a second degree; a student may not receive a B.A. with a major and B.S. with the same major.
   

Graduation and Commencement 

All students must be enrolled for a minimum of at least one course in the semester in which they plan to finish their requirments. Because of the preparation involved with commencement and federal reporting requirements related to earning a degree, students must participate in the ceremony in the term they complete requirements. Students completing requirements in the summer must attend the preceding May ceremony.
 

Students must file an application for degree form in the Office of the Registrar no later than Oct. 1 for December graduates and Jan. 15 for May/summer graduates. This form indicates the intent to graduate and is used to provide information to students concerning commencement events, as well as provide Viterbo University with information to order diplomas and caps and gowns.
 

Degrees are official after the registrar checks that students have met all graduation requirements. The date listed on the diploma/transcript will be the term in which the requirements were met. If students earn credit for prior learning after they have completed other graduation requirements, their diplomas will list the term in which the credit was granted.
 

Honors 

Honor cords, for the commencement ceremony, are given to bachelor degree candidates who have applied for graduation by the deadline date and who have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.50 as of Sep. 1 for the winter ceremony and Jan. 1 for the spring ceremony (spring and summer graduates.) The candidate must also have or be projected to have a minimum of 45 letter graded credits earned at Viterbo University upon degree completion. That is, if the candidate does not have a minimum of 45 credits as of the dates above but the credits earned as of the dates above plus registered credits equal a minimum of 45 credits, the candidate will be given an honor cord. The student must be registered for credits in the graduation term, no later than Sep. 1, for winter commencement, and March 1 for spring commencement, which includes those completing requirements in the summer.
 

Final honors are determined and confirmed after all grades have been issued and credit checks are completed. These honors are noted on the diploma and the transcript. Students are eligible for honors upon degree completion if they have earned the required number of semester hours on a letter grade basis and have met the required grade point average.
 

Diplomas 

Diplomas earned by graduates will be sent approximately eight weeks after the grades for the semester are due, to the address listed on the application for degree form. All indebtedness to the university must be cleared before a diploma and official transcripts will be released. The transcript, not the diploma, is proof of an earned degree. Only one diploma is ever issued.