Graduation Information
Undergraduate Programs
SMWC offers courses of study leading to one of the following undergraduate degrees: bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, associate in arts and associate in science. Each degree requires a basic group of prescribed courses and a specialization in one or more areas.
Students must successfully complete 120 credit hours in order to graduate with an undergraduate bachelor’s degree; achieving a grade point average of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale. The graduate must also achieve a minimum GPA of 2.0 in his or her major and minor area(s) of concentration unless the specific concentration requires a higher ratio.
To be eligible for an associate degree, a student must complete a minimum of 62 credit hours and have a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale, as well as a 2.0 in his or her major area of study.
Hours Earned at Other Institutions
To earn a degree from SMWC, a minimum of 30 hours for the bachelor’s degree and 18 hours for the associate degree must be earned at SMWC. No more than 9 of the last 18 credit hours toward graduation may be taken at another institution.
Maximum Time to Complete a Degree
Full-time students seeking the bachelor’s degree must complete the work within six years of the date of enrollment; for the associate degree, within three years. Part-time students seeking the bachelor’s degree must complete the work within 12 years of enrollment; for the associate degree, within six years. The primary responsibility for meeting degree and certification requirements rests with the student.
Graduate Programs
SMWC offers the following master’s programs: Master of Arts in Art Therapy, Master of Business Administration, Master of Healthcare Administration, Master of Leadership Development, Master of Arts in Music Therapy, Master of Science in Nursing and Ph.D. in Global Leadership. Each degree requires a basic group of courses.
Students must successfully complete the credits required by their specific program in order to graduate with a master’s degree; achieving a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. Any course that results in a “C” or below will not count toward graduation requirements.
Hours Earned at Other Institutions
To earn a master’s degree from SMWC, a minimum of 30 hours is required for a student to complete. Students in the art therapy program may transfer up to 12 credit hours from other institutions, students in the leadership development and music therapy programs may transfer up to 9 credit hours and students in the MSN program may transfer up to 12 credit hours. All transferred credits must be approved by the program director and be relevant to the program’s area of study.
Maximum Time to Complete a Degree
Students seeking a master’s degree must complete all work within seven years of the date of enrollment.
Graduation Honors
All students completing an associate degree who have earned 18 hours of graded coursework at SMWC, students completing a bachelor’s degree who have earned 30 hours of graded coursework at SMWC, and students completing a master’s degree, are considered for graduation honors. Each student’s complete academic history is used in the calculation – this includes the grades of coursework transferred to SMWC from other institutions.
Master’s Degree Honors:
“With Honors” – GPA: 3.95 – 4.0
Bachelor Degree Honors:
Summa cum laude – GPA: 3.9 – 4.0
Magna cum laude – GPA: 3.75 – 3.89
Cum laude – GPA: 3.50 – 3.749
Associate Degree Honors:
“With Honors” – GPA: 3.5 – 4.0
Alumni Email Account
All students, after completing their degree, will have their accounts automatically converted into Alumni Email accounts. An Alumni Email account allows you to keep your email address for as long as you need it. The requirement is that the account is logged into at least once per year. Alumni Email accounts do not have access to the Student Portal. Questions regarding your email account may be submitted to servicedesk@smwc.edu.