Graduation Policies

College Degree Requirements

It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all requirements for graduation are fulfilled in a timely fashion. To assist, a degree audit is created for each matriculated student, specifying all of their degree requirements and indicating whether the student has met the requirement and, if not, what the student must do to meet the requirement.

Specific degree programs may require additional requirements or higher standards beyond those listed below. In those cases, the program-level requirements supersede the following College-level requirements. Students can review their degree program’s requirements in the Academic Programs section of the Springfield College Catalog.

Undergraduate Degree Requirements

To qualify for conferral of a Bachelor’s degree, the candidate must:

• Complete all applicable General Education / Core Curriculum, major, and/or selective requirements for all academic program declarations, including any declared major, concentration, minor, or certificate;
• Complete a minimum of 120 credit hours with at least 45 of those credits hours being completed directly at the College, including a minimum of 15 of a student’s final 30 credit hours.  Additional details about qualifications for residential credits are available in the Residency Credit Requirement policy.
• Achieve a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or higher; and
• Submit a completed Graduation Application (available in PrideNET) and Graduating Student Survey (sent to prospective graduating students during their final academic year).

Graduate Degree Requirements

To qualify for conferral of a Master’s degree, Doctoral degree, or Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study, the candidate must:

• Complete all applicable major, and/or selective requirements for all academic program declarations, including any declared major, concentration, or certificate;
• Meet the minimum credit total required for the respective degree (e.g., total differs by program);
• Achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher; and
• Submit a completed Graduation Application (available in PrideNET) and Graduating Student Survey (sent to prospective graduating students during their final academic year).

Stand-Alone Certificate Requirements

To quality for conferral of an Undergraduate Certificate, Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, or Post-Master’s Certificate, the candidate must:

• Complete all applicable certificate and/or selective requirements for the declared certificate; and
• Achieve the minimum cumulative grade point average for the certificate level (2.0 for undergraduate certificates and 3.0 for post-baccalaureate and post-master’s certificates);
• Submit a completed Graduation Application (available in PrideNET) and Graduating Student Survey (sent to prospective graduating students during their final academic year).

Conferral of Degrees

Degrees are conferred after completion of each fall, spring, and summer semester. Students are eligible for a conferral date associated with the semester in which their degree requirements were completed. In cases where their degree requirements were met mid-semester, degree conferral will not occur until the end of the corresponding semester.

Exceptions to this policy must be approved by the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Academic Honors (Undergraduate)

Students who receive conferral of their Bachelor’s degree with a minimum of a 3.500 cumulative grade point average (CGPA)  are awarded their degrees with honor according to the following criteria:

Summa Cum Laude            3.900 to 4.000

Magna Cum Laude              3.700 to 3.899

Cum Laude                          3.500 to 3.699

Academic honors are formally noted on a student’s diploma and transcript. In addition, eligible students participating at the undergraduate commencement ceremony will be recognized with honor cords. Students are not eligible for honor cords if they have not received conferral of their degree as of the Commencement ceremony, regardless of their CGPA at the time of the ceremony. 

The College does not award academic honors or other distinctions for other degrees, including Doctoral degrees, Master’s degrees, and/or Certificates of Advanced Graduate Study.

Eligibility for Participation at Commencement Ceremony

Springfield College annually hosts a separate Commencement ceremony for all eligible graduate and undergraduate students during a single weekend each May (e.g., students who earned / will earn a Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree, Doctoral degree, or Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study during the corresponding academic year).  Students are eligible to participate in only one commencement ceremony for each earned degree.

All students must complete a Degree Application in PrideNET to appropriately inform the Registrar’s Office of their intent to participate at Commencement. The College also reserves the right to prohibit a student from participating in the commencement ceremony in the event that any disciplinary proceedings have been or are being commenced against the student. 

Students are eligible to participate at the appropriate ceremony if they completed their degree requirements during the prior summer/fall semester.  In addition, students who are scheduled to complete their degree requirements in the spring or summer semester are eligible to participate at the appropriate ceremony if they meet the following criteria:

• Undergraduate students must be within 12 credits of completion and have a minimum of a 2.000 cumulative grade point average at the time of the ceremony;
• Graduate students must have successfully defended their thesis, dissertation, capstone project, or independent study, when applicable by the time of the commencement ceremony. Additionally, students must be enrolled in all outstanding requirements by May 1st.

Students who do not meet these requirements that wish to participate in the appropriate commencement ceremony may petition using the Petition to March Form.  For participating students who have not received conferral of their degree, it will occur at the end of the semester in which all degree requirements are completed.

Graduation Name

Students are provided an opportunity to inform the College how they would like their name to appear on their diploma when they complete their Degree Application in PrideNET.  In essence, students can choose a preferred or chosen name that does not match their legal name as it is not inappropriate or derogatory towards another student or group.  This name will also appear on their diploma and in the corresponding Commencement program; however, only their legal name on file will appear on their official transcript.  The College treats a student’s transcript as a legally binding document that requires the appearance of their legal name on file to appear without reference to any preferred or chosen name.  Students who wish to change their legal name on file must complete the College’s Student Name Change Request Form and submit any appropriate supporting documentation for consideration.