Graduation Information

A student will graduate and their degree will be posted only when all the required coursework for that degree has been completed and verified by the Registrar’s office. Commencement Exercises to honor graduates are held each May and December.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

The following degrees are currently being offered through the BOLD Program:

  • Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Organizational Leadership requires 120 units of coursework.

  • Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Psychology requires 130 units of coursework.

For graduation, the following requirements must be fulfilled:

  1. Major courses (OL - 42 units; Psych - 51 units). 24 units (minimum) must be upper-division, of which a minimum of 15 units must be taken at Biola. Borrowed units and lower division courses that have been substituted for major courses will not count towards these minimums.

  2. 30 units of the entire program must be taken in residence through Biola University.

  3. All Biola’s GE requirements.

  4. Biola’s Biblical Studies requirements (minimum 14 units). At least 50% of the Bible units that a student will need must be taken in residence. Early Christian History/Acts must be taken at Biola.

  5. A minimum cumulative GPA of "C" (2.00 on a 4.00 scale) in the major and on all work done at Biola.

Students may choose to finish their General Education and Elective units after completing all their Biola University coursework. In such cases, it is generally assumed that students will finish their coursework and graduate within a year of the taking their final course with Biola, and will remain under the University Catalog requirements in effect when they started.

PLEASE NOTE: Students who do not finish and graduate within a one-year period of their final course at Biola University, will be subject to the University Catalog requirements in effect at the time of their official graduation.

DEADLINES FOR COMMENCEMENT

To participate in Commencement the following deadlines must be met.

MAY COMMENCEMENT

January 15thLast day to file a Graduation Petition without the $200 late fee.
April 1st Last day to file a Graduation Petition with a $200 late fee.
April 15th Last day for filing Proof of Registration for off-campus courses.
Last day to receive Final Transcripts for Correspondence Courses and CLEP Tests.
Last day for final CPL approval by Registrar.
June 30th Last day for classes to end with a Spring Term designation.

(Note: Students taking off-campus courses that end after June 30th or with a Summer Term designation must walk in December.)

MAY COMMENCEMENT (walking) – AUGUST POSTING

(For students finishing up thier Biola courses during the summer term.)

January 15thLast day to file a Graduation Petition without the $200 late fee.
April 1st Last day to file a Graduation Petition with a $200 late fee.
April 15th Last day for filing Proof of Registration for off-campus courses.
Last day to receive Final Transcripts for Correspondence Courses and CLEP Tests.
Last day for final CPL approval by Registrar.
June 30th Last day for classes to end with a Spring Term designation.
August 31stLast day for Summer Term BOLD and Traditional Biola Summer Sessions to end.
Last day for all Official Transcripts to be received.

DECEMBER COMMENCEMENT (walking) – AUGUST POSTING*

April 1stLast day to file a Graduation Petition without the $200 late fee.
June 1st Last day to file a Graduation Petition with a $200 late fee.
June 1st Last day for filing Proof of Registration for off-campus courses.
Last day to receive Final Transcripts for Correspondence Courses and CLEP Tests.
Last day for final CPL approval by Registrar.
August 31st Last day for classes to end with a Summer Term designation.
Last day for all Official Transcripts to be received.

DECEMBER COMMENCEMENT

August 15thLast day to file a Graduation Petition without the $200 late fee.
November 1st Last day to file a Graduation Petition with a $200 late fee.
November 15th Last day for filing Proof of Registration for off-campus courses.
Last day to receive Final Transcripts for Correspondence Courses and CLEP Tests.
Last day for final CPL approval by Registrar.
December Graduation DateLast day for classes to end.

(Note: Degree will not post until all official transcripts for off-campus courses have been recieved.)

GRADUATING IN ABSENTIA

You are expected to attend your commencement ceremony. If you wish to be excused from participation (thus, graduating in absentia), you must request permission in writing from the Dean of Institutional Records and Research, outlining your reasons for such a request.

GRADUATING NON-RESIDENT

Graduation requirements may be completed even if you are out of the area. However, finishing the program as “non-resident” may only be done under the following circumstances:

  1. A minimum of 30 units (graded), of which 15 units (minimum) of upper-division coursework from the program major have been taken in residence at Biola.

  2. You will finish with at least 24 upper-division units in the major.

  3. You will not exceed the limit of 70 community college units counted towards graduation.

  4. The program major courses not taken at Biola, if any, are ones that can be completed at another institution and are transferable to Biola.

  5. You have written both the Dean of the School of Professional Studies and the Dean of Institutional Records and Research, outlining your graduation plan (including specific courses and specific schools), and this plan is approved by both Deans.

This policy is an exception to the Biola University catalog section that states, "All coursework during the final semester which will be applied toward graduation requirements must be taken at Biola University."

GRADUATION DEPARTURE FORM

A completed Graduation Departure form must be submitted to your Education Center prior to graduation rehearsal. You may obtain this form from your Education Center or download it online at http://www.biola.edu/academics/professional-studies/bold/current_students/grad_prep/. Please complete the top portion of the form, as well as the comment section. You do not need to route it for departmental signatures; your Education Center will handle this for you.

GRADUATION CEREMONY INFORMATION

For information regarding an upcoming graduation (i.e. date, time, ordering announcements or a cap and gown), go to the commencement website located at www.biola.edu/commencement.

GRADUATION PETITION

Six months prior to your target graduation date, a Graduation Petition indicating which courses have been completed as well as what requirements are left to complete must be submitted to your Education Center. Graduation Petitions for either Organizational Leadership or Psychology may be found at http://www.biola.edu/academics/professional-studies/bold/current_students/grad_prep/. Please complete it using a recent assessment as a guide. If need be, you may request an updated assessment from your Academic Counselor.

Submit the completed petition and the Off Campus Courses Request form, if applicable, to your Academic Counselor. You may opt to set up an appointment to discuss the petition and your remaining coursework in person or you may mail it to the office. Your Academic Counselor will review the completed petition. Any questions will be addressed. Once it has been reviewed and finalized, the petition will be forwarded to the Registrar's Office.

Any changes to the Petition must be made in writing to the Graduation Counselor in the Registrar’s Office.

Petition Deadlines and Late Petition Fee

Failure to submit a completed petition by the deadline will result in a $200 late fee assessed by the Registrar's Office [see Deadlines above]. Although considered late, Graduation Petitions will be accepted prior to November 1st for fall commencement and April 15th for spring commencement. Thereafter, the student must participate in the following commencement.

GRADUATION VERIFICATION

If verification is needed for an employer or graduate school, an official letter from the Biola University Registrar's Office may be requested. This will confirm that you have completed all necessary graduation requirements for your degree, as well as indicate the date that your degree will be awarded.

HONORS AND AWARDS

Graduating with Honors or High Honors

To graduate with Honors or High Honors, a minimum of 45 units need to be from graded courses completed at Biola University. Credit for Prior Learning and Challenge Exam units are not counted in the computation of the required 45 units since they do not represent graded learning at Biola University under the supervision of a Biola professor. GPA is only based on courses taken at Biola. Grades earned at other colleges do not affect your Biola GPA.

Honors GPA Requirements:

  • High Honors = 3.95 - 4.00
  • Honors = 3.85 - 3.949

Honors and High Honors will be indicated on the transcript and diploma. In addition, those graduating with High Honors will be announced at commencement.

Honors Indicated in the Commencement Program

For Honors and High Honors to be included in the commencement program, units and GPA are calculated by the following dates: April 1st for May commencement and November 1st for December commencement. If courses are completed after the deadline you may still graduate with Honors or High Honors, but it will not be listed in the graduation program nor will it be announced (for those with High Honors) at the ceremony. However, it will be indicated on your transcript and diploma.

Honor Society - Alpha Sigma Lambda (ASL)

Biola has been granted authority to establish the "Iota Alpha" Chapter of the Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society, a national honor society for students in continuing higher education. BOLD Program faculty, administration, and peers will recommend students based on academic achievement (minimum 3.20 GPA), demonstrated leadership ability, and personal character. The number of students nominated will not exceed ten percent of the total number of BOLD Program students graduating. This honor will be indicated in the commencement program.

POSTING OF DEGREE

Degrees are posted following the May and December Commencement Exercises, once all degree requirements have been verified by the Registrar’s Office. The State of California allows degrees to be posted in August before December Commencement for only two reasons:

  1. Employment-related needs

  2. Graduate school application-related needs

To walk in the December ceremony but have your degree posted in August, a written request must be submitted to the Dean of Academic Records and Institutional Research. No written request is required for walking in the May Commencement with an August degree posting. Graduating students are expected to participate in their Commencement Ceremony unless given permission to graduate in absentia [see Graduating in absentia].