General Graduation Requirements
1. Total Hour Requirement
A minimum of 121 hours of applicable coursework must be successfully completed to qualify for graduation.
Credit earned in certain prescribed coursework (MATH 10006, 10021, US 10003 and 10006) and hours in
excess of the restrictions listed above under Limitations on Applicability of Credit do not count toward the 121
required hours. Depending upon the students’ major and high school preparation, students may need to
complete additional hours of prerequisite coursework. There are a limited number of major programs in the
College of Arts and Sciences that require more than 121 hours for completion. Further information on these
majors can be obtained in the college office.
2. Upper-Division-Hour Requirement
The college requires a minimum of 42 hours of upper-division coursework (coursework at the 30000 and
40000 level). Transfer coursework is considered upper-division only if the coursework was taken as upper-
division at the transfer institution. Community college coursework is classified as lower-division.
3. College General Requirements
The General Requirements of the college include the university Liberal Education Requirements and
diversity requirement as well as any conditional coursework prescribed upon admission, First Year
Experience FLASH Point and additional coursework in mathematics/logic, foreign language, social sciences
and basic sciences. Detailed discussions of the General Requirements for each of the degree programs
offered in the college are listed below in the section Degree Program Requirements.
4. Major/Minor Requirements
The particular requirements of all of the major and minor programs offered in the College of Arts and
Sciences are described in detail in the sections Degree Program Requirements and Minor Program
Requirements. Requirements for minors offered by the other colleges are described in the appropriate
college’s section of the Catalog.
5. Writing-Intensive Course Requirement
Refer to the Writing-Intensive Course List for specific information on this requirement.
6. Grade Point Average Requirements
Students must achieve a cumulative GPA of at least 2.00 in all coursework taken at Kent State University
including Regional Campus coursework. Students must also achieve a 2.00 cumulative average in the fields
of specialization, including majors, fields of concentration and minors. Some minors offered by other
colleges may stipulate a higher cumulative average requirement.
Students may need to take additional coursework beyond the specified requirements in the major or field of
specialization in order to raise the cumulative average in the major or field of concentration to 2.00. In such a
case, the course(s) to be used for this purpose must be selected in consultation with the faculty advisor and
approved by the dean prior to registration for the course(s). It is generally required that such additional
coursework be taken at the upper-division level.
7. Residence Requirement
The university’s residence requirement may be met by completing the first 91 semester credit hours or the
final 30 semester credit hours at Kent State University. Summer and junior-year study abroad may be taken
as part of the 91 credit hours. Students must complete at least three upper-division courses in the major at
Kent State on a graded basis (A-F). If a minor is elected, at least two upper-division courses in the minor
must be completed at the university on a graded basis.
8. Mandatory Outcomes Assessment
In addition to the other General Requirements of the college, candidates for an undergraduate degree in the
College of Arts and Sciences are required, as a condition of graduation, to participate in an outcomes
assessment. These outcomes assessments are conducted by each undergraduate degree program in the
College of Arts and Sciences.