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Minimum Degree Requirements

THE FOLLOWING ARE UNIVERSITY-WIDE REQUIREMENTS FOR A BACHELOR'S DEGREE:

 

  1. Minimum Hours for a Degree: Students must complete a minimum of 120 hours of coursework to earn the bachelor’s degree. All hours counted towards this requirement must be unique, non-duplicated credit hours. Credit hours for multiple completions of a courses designated specifically as repeatable for credit, up the designated repeat limit for each such course, are considered unique credit hours. Some majors may require more than 120 credit hours to earn the degree.
  2. Minimum Overall Institutional GPA: The overall institutional grade point average (GPA) is derived from all courses completed at UTRGV. Grades earned through transferred credits are not included in the overall institutional GPA. However, coursework transferred from the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College for students enrolled at UTRGV prior to Fall 2017 will be included in the calculation of the Institutional GPA. Students must earn a minimum overall institutional GPA of 2.0. See here for more information on GPA calculation.
  3. Major and Minor GPA of 2.0: Students must earn a minimum GPA of 2.0 in the courses used to fulfill major and minor requirements. Grades earned through transfer credit are not included in the calculation of the major or minor GPA. Some majors and/or minors may require a higher minimum GPA than 2.0. Certain degree plans are structured in a manner where a student can choose from an extensive list of courses that can be used to fulfill a degree requirement (e.g., a list of prescribed or technical electives). If a student completes more courses from a list of approved options than are needed for the degree (e.g. the degree requires 24 hours and the student complete 30 hours), the courses with the highest grades earned will be used to calculate the major or minor GPA. If a student takes only the minimum number of courses needed to fulfill a major or minor requirement, then all courses completed will be used to calculate the major or minor GPA. Failed courses do not fulfill major or minor requirements. See here for more information on GPA calculation.
  4. Minimum Core Curriculum Hours: Students must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 42 hours from the approved University core curriculum. Some courses required in the major can be used to fulfill core curriculum requirements. Students seeking the most efficient way to complete the degree should become familiar with courses that fulfill both requirements.
  5. Core First Year Writing Grade Requirement: A minimum grade of C must be achieved in each of the required first year writing courses (ENGL 1301 and ENGL 1302).
  6. Core Math Courses Grade Requirement: A minimum grade of C must be achieved in approved math courses in the general education core.
  7. Advanced Hours Overall: Students must complete a minimum of 42 hours of advanced-level (3000/4000) work. Some degrees require additional advanced hours.
  8. Major Credit Hours: Students must complete a minimum of 30 hours in a major discipline or subject of which at least 15 hours must be advanced.
  9. Residency: Students must complete at least 25 percent of the earned credit hours required for the degree through instruction offered by UTRGV. Transfer students may be required to complete additional hours above those on their degree plan to meet this requirement. In this situation, students will work with the Academic Advising Center to select hours that support the student's academic and professional goals.
  10. “Re-Using” a Course: Students may use a course taken to fulfill core curriculum requirements to also meet either a major, minor, or certificate requirement. Courses outside of those used to fulfill core curriculum requirements (e.g., major, minor, and certificate) cannot be used to fulfill more than one requirement on the degree plan (e.g., a course taken for the major cannot be used to fulfill a certificate requirement).
  11. Declaring a Major: All undergraduate students must declare a major in an academic degree program by the time they have earned 30 semester credit hours.
  12. Degree Plan: Students must complete all requirements in their official Degree Plan. Degree plans are available in the catalog and via Degree Works in ASSIST upon declaration of a major.
  13. Graduation under a Specific Catalog: The degree requirements that must be completed for graduation will be those in effect at the time the student begins his/her college career or those provided in a subsequent catalog. In any case, the catalog used to determine the degree requirements must not be more than seven years old. Students who do not complete their degree by the expiration date will be moved to the subsequent catalog year. Any changes in the degree plan must be approved by the department chair and the Dean of the college. For purposes of graduation requirements, this catalog expires August 2030.
  14. Graduate Courses: Students may not use graduate courses to satisfy any undergraduate requirements for a bachelor’s degree.
  15. Non-Traditional Credit: A maximum of 30 hours of college credit will be accepted toward a bachelor’s degree by any combination of extension, examination, or correspondence, with an 18-hour limit on correspondence credit. No credit will be awarded for “life experience.”