Bachelor of Arts in Art/Drama: Policies
Forty credit-bearing courses of at least three semester hours each are required, with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 for courses taken at this university. At least half the courses in a degree program must be taken at The Catholic University of America. The number of transfer courses after matriculation at CUA is limited to two times the number of years in residence; this limit does not apply to courses brought in at the time of matriculation or to courses taken during CUA Education Abroad programs. In addition, no more than two courses per year may be transferred from summer terms at other institutions.
Normal course load and over-electing
The normal course load is five courses (of three or more credits each) per semester. A student who earns a 3.0 semester grade-point average or has a 3.0 cumulative average may over-elect a sixth course in the following semester. Any student may over-elect a sixth course regardless of GPA in one semester of the senior year but not both (unless the GPA criterion is met). Contact the Undergraduate and Graduate Program Office, 111 Ward Hall, of the Rome School of Music, Drama, and Art.
Liberal Arts Requirements
The liberal arts curriculum for the Bachelor of Arts degree includes a major, 15 courses of Liberal Arts study, and a focus area selected by the student that serves as an enhancement of the course of study.
Major Requirements
Twelve to fourteen courses. (In general, no more than fourteen courses are permitted in the major department.) See departmental requirements below in these Announcements. Each course in the major must be passed with a grade of C- or higher. Courses in the major simultaneously fulfill the Liberal Arts requirement in the area corresponding to that discipline.
Electives
Courses other than Liberal Arts and major requirements are free electives. A department may require, beyond specific courses in the major, as many as eight courses in a closely related and necessary secondary field; therefore, the number of electives will vary depending upon the student's major.
Pass-fail grading for free electives. Prior to the deadline published in the academic calendar, free electives may be taken on a pass/fail basis. Approval of the assistant dean is required to make this change. Neither pass nor fail for a course taken on this basis will affect the student's cumulative average, but fail will earn no degree credit. Courses taken pass/fail may not be used to fulfill major, minor, or Liberal Arts requirements.
Senior Comprehensive Assessment
During the senior year, each undergraduate degree student must pass a Senior Comprehensive Assessment, designed and administered by the major department or program. The comprehensive assessment evaluates majors' ability to synthesize the subject matter and methods of the discipline.
Dean's List: A dean's list is created for each semester to recognize those music students who in a degree program have achieved at least a 3.75 grade point average in a full-time course load for that semester of a minimum of fifteen credit hours, who do not have an Incomplete in any course*, and who have not incurred a failing grade in either a credit-bearing or non-credit bearing course taken that semester. Repeated courses will not be considered in the 15 credit load. Students whose expected graduation date is 2023 and earlier only need to achieve a 3.5 GPA to make Dean’s list.
*Only after an Incomplete has been resolved will dean’s list eligibility be determined for that semester.
Good standing, probation, dismissal: The departments of art and drama follow university policy on good standing, probation, and dismissal, as outlined in the general section of these Undergraduate Announcements.