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Degree Requirements

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DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Both the Bachelor of Arts degree and the Bachelor of Science degree combine liberal studies with advanced studies. To earn the BA or BS degree, a student must successfully complete at least one hundred and twenty-four credit hours in approved academic courses plus two credit hours in physical education and a one credit hour personal health course.

The undergraduate education in Emory College comprises three overlapping components:

  • general education requirements that provide a common core of substance and methodology;

  • more intensive and advanced study in a major field; and

  • free-ranging exploration by means of elective courses.

General Education Requirements

These courses provide for a common core of academic experience for Emory College students. Faculty and advisors work closely with students, especially in the first two years, in choosing the specific courses used to fulfill these requirements. The faculty's principal objective in establishing these requirements is to encourage students to familiarize themselves with the knowledge and the methodologies that characterize the arts and humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences and mathematics; to increase their ability to express ideas effectively in English and in another language; to extend their capacities for making informed judgments of value; to expand their knowledge and understanding of themselves, of their own and other cultures, and of the natural world; and to develop their awareness of the ways in which the various academic disciplines may complement one another in solving the world's problems.

Requirements for Majors and Minors

As part of the degree requirements, students must complete a major in one academic field. Minors are also available in several academic fields, but they are not required to complete the degree. Students must earn at least a C (2.0) average in any major or minor they complete.

Students may choose a second area of concentration (a major or minor) in addition to their primary major. An Emory College student may graduate with a single major, two majors, or a major and a minor. Students in the BBA program may graduate with one concentration (either a major or a minor) in Emory College. Emory College does not recognize additional majors or minors beyond these limits.

Students who enter Emory College as first-year students may not declare a major or minor until after their first semester. This policy provides first-year students time to explore, and it eases pressure they may feel to know their precise academic path when they start college. 

Students who entered Emory College as first-year students must declare a major by the end of their fourth regular (fall or spring) semester. Oxford graduates must declare a major by the end of their first regular (fall or spring) semester in Emory College. Transfer students must declare a major by the end of their second regular (fall or spring) semester. Declaring a major by these deadlines helps to ensure that students are connected to their academic departments and have access to advising from faculty in their program.

Students may change their major or declare a new major or minor until they have earned 90 credit hours. After students reach 90 credit hours, they may not add or change a major or minor without approval from the Office for Undergraduate Education and the department that houses the new major or minor. Petitions to change or add a major/minor will only be approved if the student can graduate within eight semesters or if there are extraordinary circumstances. There is one additional exception to this policy. A student may switch from the BS version of a program to the BA version without approval from OUE.

Students will normally be required to complete the major or minor requirements that are in place at the time they declare the program. When the requirements for a major or minor have changed, students may petition to complete the program under the old or new requirements, and departments have the discretion to approve or reject these requests.