Adult Degree Programs

Bachelor of Professional Studies Degree requirements

As of January 2011, no new students are being admitted to the Bachelor of Professional Studies program. Currently enrolled students will be given every opportunity to complete this course of study by the summer of 2016. The Bachelor of Liberal Studies program, explicitly designed with the needs to the non-traditional student in mind, has been revised and strengthen with the addition of a new multidisciplinary major in Leadership and management, which is open only to students in the Bachelor of Liberal Studies degree program. Currently enrolled Bachelor of Professional Studies students who wish to transfer to the Bachelor of Liberal Studies program are welcome to do so, and should first meet with the Assistant Dean of Advising Services on the Stafford Campus. Following that meeting, students should contact Dr. Ana Chichester (Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and BLS Program Director) for further instructions.

The remainder of this section of the Catalog summarizes requirements for students already enrolled in the BPS program. Most of the courses listed in this section will continue to be offered to support current BPS students as they complete their degrees, although some courses may be revised, combined, or changed in other ways. Current BPS Students will be kept well informed of all changes, and may always contact Janet Cropp (Assistant Dean for Advising Services) for additional information about BPS courses or the “teach out” plan.

Bachelor of Professional Studies General Education Requirements

Requirement 1 – English Competency (3 semester credits) The ability to write logically, clearly, and precisely; the ability to acquire, organize, present, and document ideas and information; these skills must be demonstrated by completing a college-level course in English composition or the equivalent.

Requirement 2 – Sciences and Mathematics (6 semester credits including at least 3 credits of science and 3 credits of either mathematics or science) An understanding of mathematical thought and the ability to conceptualize and apply mathematical logic to problem solving; an appreciation of the major contributions of science to an understanding of the natural world and to the possible solution of contemporary problems.

Requirement 3 – Humanities (6 semester credits) An understanding of human culture as expressed in disciplines such as art appreciation, art history, classics, creative writing, drama performance, foreign language, history of drama, history of film, literature, music appreciation, music history, philosophy, and religion.

Requirement 4 – Social Sciences (6 semester credits) An understanding of the history and development of the forces shaping human behavior, social structures, and institutions; disciplines include anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology.

Requirement 5 – Communication (6 semester credits) Two courses that focus on written and oral professional communication: BPST 311 Critical Thinking, Research, and Presentation BPST 312 Technical and Business Communication

Requirement 6 – Statistics (3 semester credits) One course that focuses on statistical methods employed in the collection and analysis of data to assist management decision-making: BPST 316 Statistics for Managers, or equivalent

Writing Intensive Requirement: Students will complete two designated courses that provide instruction appropriate to the subject or discipline and to the writing tasks assigned. This requirement may be fulfilled in conjunction with designated program course offerings: BPST 311, BPST 312, and COMM 315.

Speaking Intensive Requirement: Students will complete one designated course in which oral assignments are a significant portion of their graded work. This requirement may be fulfilled in conjunction with designated program course offerings: BPST 311, BPST 312, or COMM 317.

Global Inquiry: Students will complete one designated course that focuses on global economic, political, cultural, and/or environmental issues. Courses fulfilling this requirement should: – examine how past, present, or future persons, places, phenomena, and/or events affect or are affected by global interconnections; and – explore some combination of technological, economic, political, social, cultural, and/or environmental global interconnections most relevant to the course content. This inquiry may be fulfilled with courses in specific areas, including BPST 314, CIST 301, LRSP 306, or LRSP 434.

Portfolio (Credit for Life/Work Experience)

The portfolio system is designed to award college credit for applicable college-level learning acquired through nonacademic experiences. Learning documented in the portfolio must be equivalent in scope and complexity to what students learn in college classrooms. Hence, the portfolio system is a way of recognizing experiential learning, which is generally equivalent to college classroom learning. All credit earned through portfolio assessment must be measurable or verifiable by a qualified, formally-appointed assessor; such credit is considered transfer credit.

While a great deal is learned from life’s experiences, e.g., marriage and parenthood, these experiences do not automatically translate into college credit; a portfolio must present what a student has learned in such a way that the assessor can identify and measure it. While most adults can do a great many complex things—such as complete income tax forms, balance checkbooks, and vote for presidential candidates—the University does not award college credit for typical adult competencies.

Individuals who wish to present a portfolio must be enrolled at the University as degree-seeking students. In addition, they are required to enroll in and satisfactorily complete BLST 101, Portfolio Development, prior to presenting the portfolio for assessment. This course carries one pass/fail credit and is offered on an as-needed basis. The course defines the kind of learning a portfolio can present successfully, provides a detailed outline of the portfolio format, and offers each student specific instruction in the assembly of the initial stages of his/her portfolio. It also outlines additional methods, other than the portfolio, for providing documentation of experiential learning for college credit.

The usual ceiling for portfolio credit awards is 15 credits; in exceptional cases the award can be as high as 30 credits. Thirty is the maximum number of credits that can be awarded through the portfolio, and applied toward the degree. Due to the nature of the program and changing technologies, students currently enrolled in the BPS program should not include knowledge and experiences older than 10 years; exceptions are considered on an individual basis. Students may submit as many portfolios as they like, and each one is not to exceed 250 typewritten pages. The assessment fee for each portfolio is $100. Portfolios must be submitted prior to accumulating 90 semester hours of transfer credit.

Portfolios must be submitted to the Office of Advising Services within 12 months of completion of the portfolio course, and must be submitted prior to the student’s final semester in the degree program. Credits awarded may be used to satisfy general education requirements, elective credit requirements, and selected major credit requirements. The student’s advisor and the
Office of Advising Services must approve all concentration credit.

Because there is a significant amount of work involved in preparing a portfolio with no guarantee of a successful outcome, students should discuss the project at some length with their faculty advisors and with an advisor in the Office of Advising Services. If the decision is made to pursue credit awards through the portfolio process, permission to enroll in BLST 101 must be secured from the Office of Advising Services.

TRANSFER CREDIT

The transfer credit total for the Bachelor of Professional Studies degree– including a combination of credits from other accredited institutions, standardized tests, portfolio, military, CLEP and ACE – cannot exceed 90 semester credits. Contingent on an evaluation of course content, transfer credit may be used to satisfy general education, concentration, or elective credit requirements. No more than one half of the Bachelor of Professional Studies degree concentration credits may be transfer credit.

The University accepts many of the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) and DANTES Subject Standardized tests as undergraduate transfer credit. Students may earn credit by meeting the minimum required score on selected CLEP or DANTES tests; these credits may be used to fulfill general education and other requirements or as elective credits. The Bachelor of Professional Studies degree program follows American Council on Education (ACE) recommended guidelines for CLEP and DANTES exams as minimum scores for granting credit. A maximum of 30 credits by examination may be counted toward the degree. Students should consult the Office of Advising Services for information on specific CLEP or DANTES exams that are accepted by the University. CLEP tests are administered at local universities. DANTES exams are offered only on military installations.

Credit by Examination

Enrolled, degree-seeking, undergraduate students may request a special examination on any Bachelors of Professional Studies course for which an examination is appropriate. However, it is at the discretion of the department chair and faculty to assess whether credit-by-examination for a course is deemed appropriate. If a student passes the examination with a grade of C or higher, the course and grade of CR will be recorded on the student’s permanent academic record to indicate credits earned, but quality points will not be awarded. If the student earns lower than a C on the examination, it is considered a failure. If the examination is failed, a grade of CI will be recorded. Should the latter occur, the student must enroll in the course in the next session that it is offered. The student’s earned grade and quality points will replace the grade CI. Should the student not enroll, the CI will be converted to the grade of F. Information on credit-by-examination fees can be obtained from the Office of Student Accounts.

Upon approval, credits earned through credit-by-examination may apply to the program core, program concentration, general education requirements, or elective requirements. Credit-by-examination is not available for program capstone courses, selected technology courses, seminars, directed study courses, and certain courses that require a practicum or a research project, or courses designated as writing or speaking intensive. Students may not use credit-by-examination for any courses they are or have been enrolled in. Requests for credit-by-examination will be reviewed only for those courses listed in the current Academic Catalog. No more than 10 credits may be earned through credit-by-examination.

Academic Standing, Progress, Probation, and Suspension

These are the policies applying to currently enrolled BPS students only. Academic Standing. Evaluation of academic standing for full-time and part-time students is based on the total number of University credits attempted and the overall University cumulative GPA. Grades of PA, SA, UN, and W are not considered in calculating the University GPA. In determining academic standing, the number of credits includes all accepted AP, IB, CLEP, portfolio, and transfer credits as well as University credits; the GPA, however, is based on University credits only.

Academic Bankruptcy. Academic bankruptcy releases undergraduate students from prior poor academic performance at the University. Students may request and declare academic bankruptcy for those courses taken at least seven academic years prior to the time of readmission. Academic bankruptcy must be declared at the time of readmission and can be claimed no more than once in a student’s academic career at the University of Mary Washington. With the declaration of academic bankruptcy, course work that is at least seven years old and in which grades lower than C have been earned are not counted in the calculation of the GPA. The assistant dean of advising services and the Office of the Registrar must approve permission for academic bankruptcy.

Academic Probation. Undergraduate students placed on probation may continue their enrollment until they complete an additional 12 graded University credits. Nondegree-seeking students who have been placed on probation must petition the Academic Standing Advisory Committee to return as nondegree seeking students. If they wish to become degree-seeking students, their case will be considered as part of the admission process. Undergraduate students on probation who achieve an overall cumulative University GPA of 2.0 or higher will be returned to good academic standing. Students who were previously on probation and whose overall cumulative University GPA again falls below a 2.0 will be returned to probation. As appropriate, a notation of probation status is entered on the student’s permanent record. Students placed on academic probation are required to consult with the Assistant Dean of Advising Services on the Stafford Campus.

Classification of Student Level. BPS students are classified by level based on earned credits:

Freshman……………………………… 0 to 29 credits
Sophomore…………………………… 30 to 59 credits
Junior……………………………………. 60 to 89 credits
Senior…………………………………… 90 or more credits

Students who are enrolled in certificate programs that do not require a bachelor’s degree or who are taking classes as nondegree-seeking students will not be classified by the above student levels.

Probation and Suspension. The purpose of probation and suspension is to warn students that their academic performance is unsatisfactory, to stimulate them to improve their performance, or to serve notice that the institution will not allow them to continue. All undergraduate University students are expected to make satisfactory academic progress by maintaining a 2.0 overall cumulative GPA, the standard required for graduation. Students who fall below a 2.0 overall cumulative GPA are in academic jeopardy and are subject to the University’s probation and suspension policy. All undergraduate students who have completed 12 or more University graded credits will be reviewed at the end of each semester/summer session. This action is taken regardless of the number of semesters or summer sessions completed, and includes BPS, graded certificate programs, and nondegree students registered through the College.

Progress, Academic. Academic progress is based on students’ earned GPA. The semester or summer session GPA is based on the quality points earned from all attempted 44 course work during that time frame. The cumulative GPA is based on the quality points earned from all attempted course work while in attendance at the University.

Reinstatement After Suspension for BPS Students. First-time or secondtime suspended students who wish to reenroll must notify the Committee on Academic Standing, in writing, of their intent to return to the University at the conclusion of their suspension period. Guidelines for petitioning the Committee on Academic Standing are available in the Office of Advising Services. Reinstatement petitions must be received in the Office of Advising Services by March 15 to be considered for fall or summer reenrollment or by November 15 to be considered for spring reenrollment. The Committee will extend provisions for reinstatement to students, who, upon registering for classes accept the provisions and thereby are ensured continuance at the University immediately following the conclusion of the suspension period, provided the provisions are adhered to.

Suspension for BPS Students. Students in academic difficulty are granted a probationary period, with at least 12 graded credits allowed before determining their status with the University. Students who do not make satisfactory progress while on probation will be suspended. A notation of the student’s suspension status is entered on the student’s permanent record. A suspended student may not enroll in any classes at the University until the period of suspension expires. Courses taken at other institutions while a student is on suspension from the University—academic, disciplinary, or honor—are not accepted by the University for transfer credit and will not fulfill any degree requirement. Prior permission for future transfer work is automatically revoked when a student is suspended. A student who undergoes a third suspension under this policy is ineligible to obtain a degree from the University or to continue enrollment in courses offered by the University for a minimum of seven years. The academic records of all students on probation are subject to review for academic suspension at the conclusion of an additional 12 graded credits after the initial action.

First Suspension – One-semester or summer session suspension. Appeal reviewed by the Committee on Academic Standing. The student will be ineligible to attend the subsequent semester or summer session, but would be eligible to return for the following semester or summer session. Further information on Reinstatement After Suspension is available in this section.

Second Suspension – Two-semester or summer session suspension. Appeal reviewed by the Committee. The student will be ineligible to attend the two subsequent semesters or summer sessions, but the student would be eligible to return for the following semester or summer session. Further information on Reinstatement After Suspension is available in this section.

Third Suspension. No appeal to the Committee possible. A student who faces a third suspension is ineligible to obtain a degree or certificate from the University or to continue enrollment in credit-bearing courses offered by the University, regardless of the program, until such time as seven full calendar years have elapsed. This action occurs at the end of the third probation period if the cumulative GPA is below 2.0. Any student placed on a first or second suspension may appeal the suspension to the Committee on Academic Standing. This Committee considers suspension appeals by students and can modify a suspension period when such is deemed appropriate. This Committee also has the authority to establish and enforce reinstatement provisions for students returning after the completion of suspension periods.