Admission, Enrollment and Graduation Requirements
and Sciences. Final selection is based upon scholastic performance, Christian witness and contributions to the Biola community. Membership is limited to no more than 5% of the graduating class. To be eligible for membership, a student must have a cumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher and must have completed 80 credits at Biola prior to the semester of graduation. Graduate Programs Graduate Graduation Check Graduate students must make an appointment with a Graduate Graduation Counselor in the Office of the Registrar to declare their intent to graduate. This should be done one year prior to graduation. Students declaring this intention late will be charged a late graduate graduation check fee of $100. This graduation check will be considered late after the last day of Add/Drop during the semester of a student’s intended graduation. For students graduating in the Spring, after May 1st students will not be allowed to be added to the graduation lists regardless of payment of the fee. For the Fall, the date is December 1st, after which no students will be added to the graduation lists. For all schools except Talbot School of Theology, students will need to meet with their department advisor(s) prior to meeting with a Graduate Graduation Counselor and bring the paperwork provided by that advisor. Doctoral students (including those from Talbot) must meet with their department advisor prior to contacting a Graduate Graduation Counselor. Requirements for all Graduate Degrees Refer to individual degree programs for specific requirements for graduation. 1. Completion of all academic requirements and approval of the student’s intent to graduate by his or her department advisor and a Graduate Graduation Counselor, in Office of the Registrar, one year before graduation. See Graduate Graduation Check above for more details. 2. All course work during the final semester which will be applied toward graduation requirements must be taken at Biola University. 3. A minimum of 24 credits must be taken at Biola University in the degree program. 4. A minimum of 24 distinct credits must be completed at Biola in any additional graduate degree at the same level. This applies to the second (or additional) degrees and double degrees taken at Biola for all graduate programs except Talbot (see Talbot section of this catalog). Double Emphases A minimum of 12 credits must be taken that are unique to the second emphasis. (i.e., Talbot: a minimum of 78 credits for two emphases in the M.A. and a minimum of 110 credits for two emphases in the M.Div. degree). All prerequisites, supporting courses, and departmental requirements for both of the emphases must be completed prior to the single commencement. The student must receive the approval of both the departments and approval of the Office of the Registrar. Second Master’s Degree Students seeking a second master’s degree must complete a minimum of 24 distinct credits in a second area of major study, taken at Biola University. All prerequisites, supporting courses and departmental requirements for each degree must be completed prior to graduation. The student must receive approval from both the academic departments and the Office of the Registrar. The student may choose to graduate with both degrees at one commencement or different commencements. A student may petition the Registrar and the school faculty to surrender the certificate toward a Master’s or M.Div. degree. The programs in Talbot School of Theology are accredited by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). ATS requires a minimum of 50% of coursework in a second Master of Arts or Master of Divinity degree program be taken in residency (i.e., 50% cannot be shared
with any other completed master’s level program). (ATS Standards, 1998). Graduation Honors Honors at graduation for master’s program recipients are based on grade point average, overall performance, Christian values, and a minimum 24-credit residency. Honors are not automatically granted. Faculty may raise the standards at any time. Honors are granted by the faculty and may be denied or higher standards may be applied. The University honors have been defined by the Academic Standards Committee as: Honor GPA Honors 3.50–3.69 High Honors 3.70–3.89 Highest Honors 3.90–4.00 Honors recognized in the graduation ceremony may be changed based on the processing of final grades. GPA standards for honors must be met with no rounding of numbers. Graduate students should check their program section in the catalog for honors qualification and honor society recognition. Post-Graduate Transfer Credit Normally, only 6 credits of transfer credit are allowed toward doctoral degrees. However, for the Cook School of Intercultural Studies additional course reductions will be considered for Master’s and doctoral level work that duplicates some foundational and Biblical studies course work. Commencement All degree requirements must be completed before the student may participate in commencement ceremonies. Those students completing all their coursework during Interterm or Summer Session must contact their graduation counselor to be cleared for graduation. For each commencement, all requirements must be completed before participating in graduation. It is expected that all graduating students will be present at commencement ceremonies except in cases of extreme emergency or other similarly difficult circumstances. Permission to graduate in absentia must be secured at least one month prior to commencement from the Office of the Registrar.
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