Graduation Requirements

General Requirements:

Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees must meet all College and University requirements for graduation.

1. complete a minimum of 120 credit hours, at least 40 of which must be earned in courses numbered 100 and above.
2. complete a major offered in the College of Arts and Sciences.
3. complete the Drake Curriculum general education requirements, outcomes or areas of inquiry
4. complete their last 30 credit hours in residence at Drake University, except in the case of certain combined degree programs.
5. have at least a 2.00 cumulative grade point average overall, in their major and in related areas combined.

Major Field:

As part of the 120 credit hours required for graduation, all students in the College of Arts & Sciences must establish academic competence in a major field. Through this mastery of a core of courses in a single discipline or in closely related disciplines, arts and sciences graduates achieve the depth that is characteristic of educated persons.

It is possible to satisfy the requirements for more than one major. With early and careful planning, students may complete double majors within the 120-credit hour program. Students who anticipate a double major should consult with the Office of the Dean.

A major should be chosen in consultation with an academic adviser after alternatives have been carefully weighed. While premature specialization is unwise, a major should ordinarily be selected by the end of the sophomore year. It is important that students seeking teaching certification declare their majors early to facilitate program planning.

Students whose educational goals lie outside the areas listed above may seek faculty approval to pursue a combination of existing courses as an individualized major.

Students may pursue majors in more than one discipline or area, and, where permissible, may apply particular courses toward majors in more than one discipline or area. For each major, the respective department determines whether its requirements have been fulfilled.

The department from which a transfer student seeks certification as a major may, after examining the student's credentials, require the completion of a certain number of courses to fulfill the major regardless of the amount of work in a discipline or related areas the student has completed elsewhere.

Special Requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree:

A student may pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in the College of Arts and Sciences in the Division of Natural Science, Humanities or Social Sciences.

A. Requirements for majors offered in the Division of Natural Science:

1. A major in a natural science, as determined by the appropriate department. 
2. Twelve credit hours in natural science courses other than in the major area.
3. One course in a natural science requiring a laboratory.
4. Course(s) in either statistics or computer science (minimum of three credit hours).

B. Requirements for majors offered in the divisions of Humanities or Social Sciences:

1. A major in a discipline other than a natural science, as determined by the appropriate department.
2. A minor in a natural science, as designated by the appropriate minor department.
3. One course in a natural science requiring a laboratory.
4. Course(s) in either statistics or computer science (minimum of three credit hours).

C. In addition to A or B above, all students pursuing Bachelor of Science degrees in the College of Arts and Sciences must complete all Drake Curriculum requirements.

Special Requirements for Bachelor of Arts Degree within the School of Fine Arts:

Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree within the School of Fine Arts must satisfy the Drake Curriculum requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Each department within the School of Fine Arts has established its own graduation requirements for professional degree candidates. A description of those requirements may be found under the individual departmental listings.

The following regulations must be observed by students enrolled in the Drake University School of Fine Arts:

1. Students are assigned an academic adviser who guides them in their program selection. However, the student alone is ultimately held responsible for the selection of the proper course in the proper sequence to fit the selected degree program.
2. A fine arts student may take a maximum of 12 hours of work on a credit-no credit basis. For details, see the Credit-No Credit Program.
3. Thirty hours of credit by examination may be applied toward degrees in the School of Fine Arts. These credits may be for any University course within the fine arts degree program except for major area courses, defined as art for the art major, music for the music major, or theatre arts for the theatre arts major. The final 30 hours of any degree must be in coursework completed at Drake University.

Additional hours of credit by examination beyond 30 hours or exceptions to the above rules may be allowed on the degree program when approved by a committee composed of the department chair, the student's adviser and a faculty member representing the area of study in which the additional hours or exceptions are sought.

Policy for Students Seeking Multiple Degrees:

A student may pursue a dual degree course of study within the College of Arts and Sciences by declaring so on the Change of Record.

Note: the dual degree program within the College of Arts and Sciences requires that students pursue two different degree options (B.S., B.A., B.F.A., B.A.E., B.M.E., or B.M.).

A student who has earned a degree from a major or program within the College of Arts and Sciences and then returns to Drake to earn a second degree within the College may do so as long as the degree designation is different from the original. For example, a student that has earned a B.A. degree in history may earn a B.S. degree in biology should he/she choose to re-enroll at Drake at a later date.

A student who has earned a degree from a major or program within the College of Arts and Sciences at Drake and then returns to Drake to earn a second degree within the College may not earn a second degree of the same type. Instead, the student may earn a second major within the college. For example, a student that has earned a B.A. in history at Drake cannot earn a second B.A. degree by completing the curriculum of a second major.