Academic Degrees
Calvin University offers the following graduate degrees:
- MA Master of Arts
- MS Master of Science
- MAcc Master of Accounting
- MAT Master of Arts in Teaching
- MBA Master of Business Administration
- MEd Master of Education
- MSW Master of Social Work
Academic Review and Good Standing
At the end of the fall, spring, and summer 16-week semesters, graduate students are determined to be in good standing if they (1) maintain a semester GPA of at least 3.0 and have completed at least 50% of attempted credit hours in that semester; and (2) maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 and have completed at least 50% of attempted credit hours cumulatively. Students who fall below these thresholds are generally placed on academic probation, but they are subject to dismissal if their GPA or rate of course completion would make good standing unlikely in the immediately subsequent semester.
The number of credit hours attempted is the number of hours for which a student is registered at the beginning of the second week of classes plus the attempted hours accumulated from previous semesters at Calvin. Credited hours are those for which the student has earned credit that applies toward a degree.
Courses that are repeated are counted in the number of courses attempted, but not in the number of hours credited. Incompletes are not calculated in the GPA until the deadline for completion. If they are not completed by the deadline, a failing grade is assigned.
Academic Probation and Dismissal
The Registrar will notify graduate students and their program directors when students are on academic probation. In consultation with the Academic Review Committee, program directors might recommend specific actions to address the probationary status. These actions generally include, but are not limited to, regular meetings with an academic counselor or limited enrollment for the subsequent semester.
Graduate students on academic probation are subject to academic dismissal after attempting to complete courses in a subsequent semester if they have a resulting cumulative GPA of less than 3.0 or have completed less than 50% of attempted credit hours. The Academic Review Committee, in consultation with program directors, makes final decisions about academic dismissal.
Students who are not permitted to continue may appeal their academic dismissal to the Academic Review Committee. Students for whom an appeal is granted are placed on academic probation, no longer in good standing, and consequently subject to the interventions determined by the Academic Review Committee and the students’ program directors.
Programs may have additional graduation requirements related to accreditation or other professional standards. Students are responsible for understanding specific program requirements.
Accelerated Pathways
Some graduate programs offer pathways to accelerate the pace for completing a graduate degree. Graduate programs at Calvin University have several pathways to assist students in accelerating their degree: advanced standing, 4+1, and 3+2 programs. Students must apply no later than January 15.
Advanced-standing programs allow students to transfer up to 50% of their undergraduate experience toward a graduate degree program; 4+1 and 3+2 programs exist to help Calvin undergrads accelerate their degree by completing some graduate-level courses as part of their undergraduate program. Admission to these programs is selective.
Policy for Programs Seeking Accelerated Status
Graduate programs seeking accelerated pathway status (advanced standing, 4+1, or 3+2) must be reviewed by the Graduate Studies Committee. Programs seeking 4+1 or 3+2 status may be required to receive approval by the Undergraduate Studies Committee as well. Often, accreditors for professionally accredited programs provide outlines and rubrics for assessing accelerated program curricula.
Programs seeking accelerated status must submit a course-planning document that outlines how a student will typically progress through the specific accelerated pathway.
Programs requesting 4+1 or 3+2 status must outline how a student will make progress toward completion of the bachelor’s degree with the inclusion of graduate coursework. Additionally, 4+1 and 3+2 programs must also provide an off-ramp for students in the program who do not plan to complete the graduate program and only want an undergraduate degree in the program’s area of study.
Programs seeking advanced standing status must identify what courses (or their equivalencies) will qualify for advanced standing.
Auditing
Auditing is not permitted for graduate courses.
Course Numbering
As is appropriate for an advanced area of study that builds on prior academic learning and training, 500- and 600-level courses have a focus on primary sources, advanced application and a mastery of the research and theory of a given discipline. Courses in a master’s degree program may include a focus on professional practices, creative projects, or an original thesis.
Deferral
Graduate students can defer admission to the next academic year without needing to submit additional documentation. Some programs might have more limited deferral policies. Prospective students considering a deferral should check with the relevant program director.
International Student Deferral – due to federal law, international students will need to resubmit financial verification documents if they defer beyond the academic year to which they were admitted.
Attendance in classes is mandatory starting from the first day of classes. Students who will miss the first day of classes for any reason must defer their admission to the following available term.
Dropping/Withdrawing from a Course
Students must notify the registrar’s office when deciding to drop a course (successcenter@calvin.edu). Refunds will be given according to the Financial Information section of this catalog.
Students who do not access an online course within 5 days of its start date will be dropped from the course. The course will not appear on the transcript, and no charges will be incurred. Non-access after the first week will be handled on a case-by-case basis.
Students may drop/withdraw from a course with no entry on their record, with a grade of W (“authorized withdrawal”) or with a grade of N (“unauthorized withdrawal,” calculated as an F when determining the GPA). With the approval of the registrar, students who completely drop/withdraw from all courses at any time may be given grades of W in all courses.
Withdrawing from 8-week courses
- During first 7 calendar days: no entry on student’s record
- After first 10 calendar days but by end of the fifth week: grade of W
- After end of fifth week: grade of N
Withdrawing from 16-week courses
- During first 10 calendar days: no entry on student’s record
- After first 10 calendar days but by end of the eleventh week: grade of W
- After end of eleventh week: grade of N
Enrollment Deadlines
New students may register for classes no later than three days prior to the start of the term. This ensures time to gain access to student accounts and online learning platforms prior to the start of the term.
Existing students may register for courses up to, and including, the first day of a term.
Full-Time Status
For graduate students, 8 credit hours per 16-week term is considered full-time. Students registered for less than 8 credit hours per 16-week term are considered part-time. Students must be at least half-time (i.e., 4 credit hours per 16-week term) to qualify for financial aid (awards and loans).
Grade Point Average
Graduate candidates must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 to receive their master’s degree. Graduate candidates will be placed on academic probation whenever their cumulative grade point average falls below the threshold stated in the policy on Academic Review and Good Standing for Graduate Students.
Guidelines for English-Language Competency
For all graduate programs, Calvin requires the language proficiency requirements listed here. Prospective graduate students are required to demonstrate adequate language proficiency to ensure success in graduate programs using either TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo.
Typically, if a student has completed an undergraduate degree in the United States or Canada, the English requirement for a graduate program is satisfied. If an applicant has an undergraduate degree from a school outside of the United States or Canada, then an English test (or equivalent) is required.
Guest Graduate Students
Students who wish to enroll as a guest student in a graduate course must have a baccalaureate degree and approval from the School of Graduate and Continuing Studies.
Hiatus
Graduate students may request an official hiatus (interruption in enrollment) status for up to one calendar year by requesting hiatus in Workday. Instructions for the hiatus request can be found here.
If approved for hiatus, the student will maintain account access and will not need to reapply for admission. However, an approved hiatus will not maintain status as an active or enrolled student, and students on hiatus will be reported as withdrawn to the National Student Clearinghouse, which may result in loan repayment being required.
If hiatus status lasts more than one calendar year, the student will be officially unenrolled and will lose student status and access to program declaration and student (IT) accounts. The student will then need to reapply with the graduate admissions office to gain access to accounts and registration.
Transcripts
Calvin requires unofficial transcripts from all institutions where an applicant has earned credit. We require an official transcript from the institution where they received their undergraduate degree with the degree conferred listed as well as any institution where they completed graduate credit that they want to transfer in. If they are currently finishing prerequisite coursework, applicants should wait until their degree has been conferred to request the official transcript. Calvin can decide on admission with unofficial transcripts, but if admitted, an official undergraduate transcript must be submitted no later than the Friday prior to the first week of class.
International Student Applicant Transcripts
International transcripts that are in English and show a completed undergraduate degree, including a GPA or a CGPA, may require a transcript evaluation. An official transcript evaluation (document by document and course by course) is required when those items are not on the transcript and/or when an international applicant is seeking transfer credit.
International transcripts that are not in English must be evaluated by a third-party educational credential evaluator. Official document-by-document evaluations of any undergraduate- and/or graduate-level coursework must be provided by one of the evaluators approved by Calvin University, below. Additionally, course-by-course evaluations will be required to transfer graduate credit to Calvin University.
To international applicants applying for in-person graduate programs: Note that you need a valid passport to study in the US. We encourage you to send us a scanned copy of the ID page of your passport or to begin the necessary paperwork to obtain or review your passport.
Transfer Credits
Request to Apply Transfer Credits
Students are invited to submit a request for transfer credits during the admissions process. All requests for transfer credits must relate to transfer-level coursework, including transfer requests for certificate programs.
Transfer credit will normally be awarded for courses that are
- taken at an accredited institution and represented on an official transcript by the credit-granting institution;
- academic and similar in nature to graduate-level courses offered at Calvin;
- completed with a minimum grade of B (or its equivalent);
- approved by the program director (or designee); and
- completed within seven years of enrolling in the graduate program at Calvin.
Transfer course work is not computed in the Calvin University grade point average.
Transfer Limits
Students may request to transfer a maximum of 9 credits from other regionally accredited institutions (or a recognized foreign institution) to satisfy graduate degree requirements at Calvin University.
Transfer Process for Current Students
Current Calvin University graduate students who change programs may request to apply up to 50% of earned credits into another Calvin graduate program. The program director, for the new program, and the registrar approve the requests for transfer credit across graduate programs.
Transfer Requests for Prior Learning Credit
A maximum of 8 credit hours may be obtained to satisfy or waive graduate degree or postbaccalaureate program requirements through non-classroom-based credit that has been evaluated through Calvin’s prior learning assessment process.
Undergraduate Students in Graduate Courses
Undergraduate students may enroll in graduate courses only if they have been accepted into a 4+1 program.
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