To be eligible for the Bachelor of Arts degree, a student must satisfy these requirements:

1.  Complete the online Application to Graduate by the published deadline (in the Fall semester of the student’s senior year);

2.  Earn 32 course credits (at least 21 of them with standard grades)

     a.  within a time period of

          (1)  twelve (12) semesters of enrollment and

          (2)  eight (8) calendar years from initial matriculation, and

     b. with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00, and

     c.  with standard grades in all Connections, major and minor courses;

3.  Meet all Introduction and Exploration Phase requirements by:

     a.  satisfying the Introduction phase of the curriculum through completion of the Connections requirement;

     b. satisfying the Exploration phase of the curriculum through completion of:

          (1)   six course credits distributed as follows

                   i.   one course credit in the Arts (A);

                   ii.   one course credit in the Humanities (H);

                   iii.   one course credit in the Social Sciences (S);

                   iv.   two course credits in the Natural Sciences, either through passing two natural science with lab courses (N) or passing one natural science with lab course (N) and an additional course carrying the Natural Science in Perspective (NSP) designation;

                   v.   for students entering the college in the Fall of 2021 and later, one course credit in World Perspectives (WP); for students who entered the College prior to the Fall of 2021, one course credit in Non-Western Cultures (NW); and

          (2)  the Language Studies requirement by passing or placing out of the third semester of any foreign or classical language sequence (generally the 201 level);

4.  Complete the Concentration Phase by passing an approved major field of study, with a minimum of a 2.00 grade point average in those courses considered by the major department to fulfill the major requirements;

5.  Earn at least sixteen (16) course credits on the Franklin & Marshall campus; and

6.  Enroll in at least three course credits during each of the last two semesters (usually the seventh and eighth semesters) in which the student completes degree requirements, with the final semester being in residence at Franklin & Marshall College.

• Petitions for exceptions to either of these rules on educational grounds must be made to the Committee on Academic Status.
• Students who have attended Franklin & Marshall College for eight full-time semesters and who expect to complete the graduation requirements elsewhere may petition the Committee on Academic Status to do so.

For special graduation requirements for transfer students, see policy on Transfer Credit Prior to Matriculation.

Degree Audits

A degree audit is an electronic review of each student’s course transcript matched against the College’s requirements for a degree. Students may review their degree audits through myDiplomat and become informed about their progress toward the degree at any given time. Faculty advisers also have access to the degree audits of their advisees. While the electronic degree audit is usually accurate, at times the complicated nature of a major or other requirement may lead to inaccuracies. Students are responsible for reporting audit discrepancies to the Registrar. In addition, a discrepancy in the degree audit does not change the actual requirements for graduation; in particular, unfulfilled requirements are not waived because of degree audit discrepancies. The responsibility for understanding and meeting degree requirements rests entirely with the student.