Office of the University Registrar

Degree and Graduation Policies

Application for Degree

Undergraduates must file an application for degree by the deadline with the Office of the University Registrar at www.isis.ufl.edu. To file an application, select Degree Application under My Record on the left menu.

Students must apply in the term in which they expect to graduate, regardless of applications in previous terms. Students who have completed all the requirements for their degree will be required to graduate. Degree application deadlines are available in this catalog under Academic Dates and Deadlines.

Catalog Year

UF operates on a semester system. There are two semesters averaging 15 weeks of instruction, plus a week of final examinations and two six-week summer terms. Semesters begin in August, January and May. The summer term is offered as a whole as Term C, or in two sessions as half terms, with Term A beginning in May and Term B beginning in June.

Catalog year determines the set of academic requirements (general education and the major) that must be fulfilled for graduation. Students graduate under the catalog in effect at the time of their initial undergraduate enrollment as a degree-seeking student at UF, a Florida public community college or other Florida state institution, provided they maintain continuous enrollment (registration for and completion of at least one course for one term in an academic year).

Students who do not maintain continuous enrollment will be assigned the catalog in effect at the time they resume enrollment. Students with the approval of their college dean’s office may choose to graduate under the requirements of a later catalog, but they must fulfill all graduation requirements from that alternative catalog year.

The university will make every reasonable effort to honor the curriculum requirements appropriate to each student’s catalog year. However, courses and programs will sometimes be discontinued and requirements may change as a result of curricular review or actions by accrediting associations and other agencies.

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Continuous Enrollment

Undergraduate students who register for and complete at least one course for one term in an academic year are continuously enrolled.

Curriculum Requirements

Students must complete all degree requirements established by the university, their college, their major and minor (if applicable); this includes completion of general education, writing and math, CLASR and the summer term enrollment requirements.

Minors are awarded only in conjunction with the receipt of a baccalaureate degree. To determine program requirements, refer to the academic advising and majors sections.

College Dean’s Certification

Students who have completed all requirements for their degree will be required to graduate. The dean certifies that all requirements have been completed and that the student has been recommended for graduation by the faculty.

Completion Deadline To Receive a Degree

All work must be completed by the end of the final exam period for the fall and spring terms and by the last day of classes for the summer terms.

Degree Certification and Graduation Date

All programs, excluding professional programs in the colleges of Dentistry, Law, Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, will certify their graduates the Tuesday following the last day of classes for summer terms or the Tuesday following the end of the final exam period for fall and spring terms. This certification date will appear on the transcript and the diploma as the official date of graduation. Professional programs in the aforementioned colleges will use the date of their official commencement ceremony as the date of graduation. This date will appear on both the transcript and diploma as the official date of graduation, as required by professional accreditation guidelines.

Diploma Replacement

Each diploma ordered subsequent to a student’s initial degree application can result in a diploma replacement charge.

Dual Degrees and Multiple Majors

At their discretion, UF colleges and schools can permit students to pursue dual degrees or multiple majors.

  • A student completing major and college requirements in two different colleges at the same time will receive two degrees. The transcript will list each degree and the appropriate majors.
  • A student completing major and college requirements in one college and major requirements only in another college will receive a degree from the first college. The transcript will list the degree and each major.
  • A student completing multiple majors that have the same degree, i.e., Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science, will receive a single degree. The transcript will list the degree and each major.
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Admission Foreign Language Requirement

Students must complete two sequential courses of a foreign language in secondary school, 8-10 semester hours at the postsecondary level or document an equivalent level of proficiency for admission to the university.

In addition, some degrees also have specific foreign language requirements. To earn a UF degree, students must meet the requirements of their major and college in addition to the university's foreign language requirement for admission.

Pending Charge of Academic Dishonesty or Student Conduct Violation

No degree will be conferred if a charge of academic dishonesty or conduct violation is pending and the penalty could be dismissal, expulsion, failing grade or any combination of the above, until the charge is resolved and degree requirements are met.

Residence Requirements

The minimum residence requirement for the baccalaureate degree is two semesters.

  • At least 25 percent of the credit hours applied toward a degree must be earned while in residence at the University of Florida.
  • Students are required to complete the last 30 credits toward the baccalaureate degree in residence at the college from which they will graduate.

Summer Term Enrollment

Students who enter a state university in Florida with fewer than 60 credits must earn at least nine credits before graduation during summer terms at State University System institutions. Credit earned through any of the study-abroad programs approved by UF during a summer term counts toward satisfaction of the summer term enrollment requirement.

Students entering UF beginning with Summer B 2002 are EXEMPT from the summer requirement under the following condition: they have earned nine hours of credit from accelerated mechanisms, such as the Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE), Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB) or approved dual enrollment programs.