Graduation Requirements (Draft)

Please refer to the Undergraduate Bulletin corresponding with your Program Requirement Term for detailed information regarding university graduation requirements.

Transfer students will be expected to satisfy all FSU Bulletin requirements corresponding to the academic year in which the student first enrolled at Florida State University. However, they may choose to "adopt" the requirements stated in the bulletin in effect for the academic year in which they enrolled at a Florida public community college.

• COMPLETION OF A MAJOR

  • Each department sets the specific requirements for completion of the major(s) in that department. Students should meet with the department advisor in the intended major on a regular basis (e.g., once a semester) to lay out a plan of study. Since the required curriculum may change over time, it is important to refer to the appropriate edition of the Undergraduate Bulletin (or contact the department advisor) to be aware of specific requirements.
  • Students need to be aware that no more than 4 hours in courses counted toward the major can also count toward General Education requirements. 

• COMPLETION OF A MINOR

  • Students must complete an approved minor.
    • To ensure that each student who graduates from the College of Arts and Sciences has a broad, liberal education, a concentration of courses in a department outside the major department is required. It is the responsibility of the student to meet the requirements for a minor based on information provided in the General Bulletin. While many minors require only 12 semester hours, others may require as many as 18 semester hours. The minor department does not have to be in the College of Arts and Sciences but should be outside the student’s major department. If you have questions about the availability of specific courses, the preferred sequences of courses, etc., please contact the academic adviser for the minor department.
    • A complete list of minors can be found at academic-guide.fsu.edu.
    • Completion of an approved FSU certificate program will satisfy the college minor requirement.
    • Requirements for each minor can be found in the Undergraduate Bulletin.
    • Although most majors in the College of Arts and Sciences require selection and completion of a specific academic minor, this is not true for the following programs: secondary science/math teaching; humanities; foreign language/business; and certain science majors that have a required collateral minor.
    • In addition, students completing a double major do not have to complete a minor. Students must declare additional majors before accumulating 90 earned hours. 
  • No courses used in satisfying major, foreign language, or General Education requirements may also be counted toward the minor. 
  • Students pursuing two degrees must have a separate minor for each degree that is awarded by this college. If one of the degrees is to be awarded by another college in the university, the dean's office of that college will specify whether minor requirements must be satisfied.
  • While students may choose to pursue additional minors, only one minor per degree will be verified for graduation and can be considered degree applicable for financial aid. 

• FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY

  • Florida State University requires study of a foreign language in high school as a condition for acceptance to the university (two years at the high school level). However, all students who intend to graduate with a bachelor's degree (either a B.A. or B.S.) from a department in the College of Arts and Sciences must show language proficiency beyond that required for university admission. Specifically, students must demonstrate proficiency equivalent to or beyond that attained upon completion of the intermediate level course (2000-level) in a language other than English. Hours used to fulfill the foreign language requirement may not be counted toward a major or minor.
  • Proficiency in an ancient or modern foreign language can be demonstrated by successful completion of enrollment in a 2000-level course in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Greek, Hebrew (Biblical or Modern), Italian, Japanese, Latin, Portuguese, Russian or Spanish. All coursework used to fulfill the language requirement must be completed with a grade of “C-“ or better, or an S grade if taken on an S/U basis. Proficiency equivalent to completion of a 2000-level language course may be demonstrated through exemption or placement examinations. 
    • Modern Languages Exemption and Placement Options
      • Students who have prior knowledge of a language, either as a native speaker or are continuing a language from high school and have not earned college-level credit through an accelerated credit mechanism such as AP, IB, AICE, CLEP, or dual enrollment, should take the placement exam before enrolling in a college-level course to determine their proficiency level. It is possible to complete the proficiency requirement through a placement exam. If you have collegiate credit in a language, you can simply register for the next level in the sequence that you have the pre-requisite for. If your credit is transfer credit that does not have an equivalent at FSU, please consult with the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics before registering for your first language course at FSU.
      • Students wishing to place out of Spanish, French or German should review the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics Exemption and Placement website.
      • Native speakers of other modern languages should review the information found here.
    • Classical Languages Exemption and Placement Options
      • Students who wish to demonstrate proficiency in Latin should review this site for information about courses and exemption options.
      • Students who wish to demonstrate proficiency in either Biblical or Modern Hebrew should contact Dr. David Levenson (dlevenson@fsu.edu) in the Department of Religion for information about exemption and enrollment options.
    • American Sign Language Exemption and Placement Options
      • Students may use ASL to satisfy the Arts and Sciences Foreign Language requirement. The intermediate level proficiency course for ASL is ASL2160C.
      • The College of Communication and Information (CCI) offers ASL courses at FSU and does not allow these courses to be taken on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis.
      • Information about the ASL courses offered at FSU and ASL placement exam options can be found here.
      • As these courses have limited enrollment at FSU, please communicate with your departmental advisor regarding options for completing the required ASL courses before your junior year.
    • Students with no prior experience in the language they wish to study are not required to complete a placement exam and would enroll in the 1120 level of the language of interest. If a student is starting with the first level of a language, e.g., SPN1120 (4 credit hours), they would then complete the sequence by taking and passing the second level, e.g., SPN1121 (4 credit hours) and the intermediate level, e.g., SPN2220 (4 credit hours).
    • Students with college-level credit in a language will have their course placement level determined based on the evaluation of the transfer work completed.

SECOND BACCALAUREATE DEGREE OR DUAL DEGREE

• CONSECUTIVE BACHELOR'S DEGREE BEYOND THE FIRST BACHELOR'S DEGREE
  • Students may receive additional baccalaureate degrees beyond the first degree in cases where a bachelor's degree has already been awarded. University policy prohibits the awarding of more than one degree from the same degree program due to the overlap of core requirements of that degree program.
  • A student completing a second bachelor's degree in the College of Arts and Sciences must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours in residence, a new major (including computer competency), a new minor, satisfy the Civic Literacy requirement, and demonstrate satisfaction of the College of Arts and Sciences' foreign language requirement.
  • The additional 30 semester hours must be completed in residence after the completion of the first degree. Hours earned by the student during the completion of the first baccalaureate degree, over and above those actually required for the first degree, may not be included in the 30 semester hours.
  • With regards to the major, students will be permitted to use the prerequisites and core requirements that had been completed in a prior bachelor’s degree, but any elective courses cannot be applied to the second bachelor’s degree.
  • There are no General Education requirements for the second degree.
  • Foreign language proficiency, once established, can be used towards the additional bachelor's degree requirements.
• DUAL BACHELOR'S DEGREES
  • In certain cases, students may pursue multiple bachelor's degrees simultaneously. The requirement for earning concurrent, or dual, bachelor's degrees are:
    • (1) satisfy the requirements for each major/minor as well as individual college requirements for both the first and the second degrees;
    • (2) complete 30 semester hours in residence, in addition to the hours required for the first degree, for a minimum total of 150 earned hours, and
    • (3) complete all university degree requirements. There are no General Education requirements for the additional degree(s).
• Note: To distinguish between second baccalaureate degrees and second majors, see the appropriate paragraph under "Undergraduate Degree Requirements" in the Undergraduate Bulletin.

What is an academic progress check and how do I request one?

The FSU Registrar’s Office will place an academic progress check registration hold on your account requiring you to request an academic progress check when you reach 90 hours, including your current enrollment. Submit your College of Arts and Sciences academic progress check request using this submission link as soon as the hold is placed to minimize any delays in registering for courses and to ensure the timely review of your academic records.

The purpose of the academic progress check is to provide you with a status update of the college, university, and major requirements that you must successfully complete to graduate with your bachelor’s degree.

Once you submit your academic progress check request using this submission link, you will be given an estimated completion date​. Our office will send you a copy of the completed progress check to your FSU student email account on or soon after the estimated completion date.

I am planning to graduate next semester. How do I make sure that I am on track for graduation?

Your first step in ensuring you will complete degree requirements by the end of the semester that you plan to graduate is to reach out to your major advisor to confirm you’ll be completing all major requirements. You should also share your completed Arts and Sciences progress check with your advisor to confirm that you have completed all college and university requirements.

If you have questions or concerns about a specific graduation requirement and wish to reach out to your Academic Dean’s office for verification of graduation requirements, email as-advising@fsu.edu with your specific questions once your schedule is in place for your final semester at FSU.

How do I apply for graduation?

You should apply for graduation during the second and third week of the term when you will be completing all degree requirements. Please refer to the University Registrar’s Graduation Calendar for specific deadlines and important dates.

Submitting the Graduation Application Online

1. Login at my.fsu.edu.
2. Under myFSU Links on the left-hand side of the screen, click the SC icon.
3. Under the Academics area, click the drop down box arrow and select Apply for Graduation.

If the graduation link is missing, please contact the Graduation Office within the Registrar’s Office at (850) 644-5850 for assistance.

Who should apply for graduation?

Apply for Summer 2025 graduation via Student Central only if you will complete all degree requirements during the Summer 2025 semester.

• Eligibility is determined by the FSU Registrar’s Office based on whether you are on track to complete the minimum 120 unduplicated credit hours needed to earn a bachelor's degree. This calculation includes both your current enrollment and total earned credit hours.
• Note that the system does not check other degree requirements when determining eligibility.
• If you are unable to apply for graduation, contact the Graduation Department within the FSU Registrar's Office for assistance.

What happens after I apply for graduation?

Once you apply, your academic record will be reviewed throughout the semester by your department, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the FSU Registrar’s Office to ensure you meet graduation requirements. If any issues negatively impacting graduation are identified, you will be notified via your FSU email. Remember, applying for graduation does not guarantee approval for graduation.

If you apply for graduation and still need to fulfill the College of Arts and Sciences foreign language proficiency graduation requirement through a placement exam, take the placement exam as soon as possible, but no later than the posted 7th-week deadline of the semester for which you applied for graduation.

The final review of graduation applicants occurs over a period of several weeks after grades for your final semester have been posted. If any issues arise which prevent your degree from being conferred, you will be notified via your FSU email.

To be approved for graduation after grades are posted, you must meet the following criteria:

• Have a minimum FSU cumulative GPA of 2.0 after final grades are posted.
• Complete all major, college (including minor and foreign language), and university requirements with a minimum grade of "C-" or "S" (for S/U-graded foreign language or elective courses).

For further updates, please refer the Graduation website and the Academic Calendar for important deadlines.

Can I register to take classes for a future semester once I am on the graduation list?

After you apply for graduation, a stop will be placed on any future registrations unless you have been readmitted to the university or your name has been removed from the graduation list.

When you receive a degree from the university, you are "discontinued" as a student. If you wish to continue as special (non-degree seeking) student, or to work on a second bachelor's degree, you must apply for readmission to the university through the appropriate section of the Office of Admissions.

Students seeking to begin work on a graduate degree program must be admitted through the FSU Graduate School.

I missed the deadline to apply for graduation online. What do I do?

If you intended to graduate this semester and you missed the deadline to apply for graduation online, you must submit a request to be added late to the current semester’s graduation list.

1. Contact the academic advisor for your major to obtain a graduation clearance and verify that you are on track to complete all graduation requirements for your major by the end of the semester.
2. Complete the “Undergraduate Request to Apply Late for Graduation” form.
3. Email the graduation clearance from the academic advisor for your major and the completed “Undergraduate Request to Apply Late for Graduation” form to our office.
4. Wait a minimum of one business week for our office to conduct an initial review of your academic record so we can determine if you are eligible to be added late to the current semester’s graduation list. You will be notified whether your request to be added to the current semester’s graduation list late has been approved.

I have enough credit to graduate early, but I don't want to — what are my options?

The university and College of Arts and Sciences expectation for students is that they graduate within four years for incoming first year students or two years for incoming upper division/AA transfer students.

If you are on track to complete your graduation requirements before this period ends, there are a variety of programs and opportunities available to you on campus to enrich your remaining time. A good resource to contact is the Graduation Planning and Strategies Office.

How do I verify for employers, grad school, etc. that I completed my degree?

A student’s official FSU transcript is the university’s verified record of academic progress and degree completion. Degrees typically “post” (are listed as complete on a transcript) approximately four weeks after the end of a semester. Degree posting date for the current semester can be found on the Registrar’s graduation important dates page.

I completed a double major. Why is only one listed on my diploma?

The FSU diploma lists a student’s degree program. Undergraduate students who complete a double major will have the degree name associated with their primary major listed on their diploma. Note that major names are not listed on the diploma but are listed on a student’s transcript. Additional information may be found in the Academic Regulations and Procedures section of the University Bulletin, section “Second Majors and Academic Regulations” under “Academic Advisement and Registration Responsibility."

What do I do after graduation?

Start thinking about your future now. For career advice or planning, we recommend contacting the FSU Career Center or one of the Career Liaisons assigned to the College of Arts and Sciences to help start the process now.

How do I request an academic progress check?

The process to request an academic progress check is automated. Access the submission link, and then accurately complete and submit the electronic form to request your progress check.

The progress chec​k will list all college, university and major requirements. Once this form is submitted, you will be given an estimated completion date​. Our office will send a copy of yo​ur progress check to your FSU student email account on or soon after the estimated completion date.