1. Credit Requirements

A.    Minimum total credits: 120 academic credits are required for graduation.  
(NOTE: Physical Education, Review/Supplemental, and repeated courses are NOT considered academic credits.)

Important Clarifications:                              

• Review or supplemental courses (e.g., 1000- to 1099-level courses) increase the number of credits required for graduation by the number of credits in the course. These credits do not count toward the minimum 12 credits required for full-time status. 
     
• Physical education courses do not count toward 120 credits for graduation. They do not count toward the minimum 12 credits required for full-time status.
  
• Repeated courses increase the number of credits required for graduation by the number of credits in the course. These credits do count toward the minimum 12 credits required for full-time status.

B.    Minimum credits at Cornell: 60 academic credits must be completed at Cornell.

C.    Maximum non-Cornell credits: 60 non-Cornell credits (AP, CASE, transfer, Cornell Abroad, and exchange credits) can be applied toward degree requirements.

Important Clarifications:

• A maximum of 30 test credits (i.e. AP and CASE credits) can be applied toward the 60 non-Cornell credit limit.
  
•   A maximum of 15 Cornell Abroad credits (NOT CALS Exchange credits) per semester can be applied toward the 60 non-Cornell credit limit.

 D.     Minimum credits from College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: 55 CALS credits are required for graduation. CALS credits include all courses from departments within CALS, and courses offered in the Biological Sciences, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Information Science, Nutritional Sciences, and Statistical Science Departments, and through the Sea Education Association (SEA). Specifically, courses offered under the following subject prefixes count as CALS credits: AGSCI, AIS, ALS, AEM, ANSC, BEE, BIOG, BIOAP, BIOBM, BIOEE, BIOGD, BIOMI, BIONB, BIOPL, BIOSM, BTRY, COMM, CSS, DSOC, EAS, EDUC, ENTOM, FDSC, HORT, IARD, INFO, LA, NS, NTRES, PLBR, PLPA, SEA, SNES, and STSCI.

E.     Maximum credits from endowed colleges: 55 endowed credits can be completed without incurring excess tuition charges. Endowed credits include all courses from departments in the College of Arts and Sciences, Architecture, Art, and Planning, Engineering, the Hotel School, the Johnson School of Graduate Management, and the Law School. Courses completed during the summer and winter sessions do not count against the 55 endowed credit limit.

 F.     Minimum letter-graded credits: 100 letter-credits required.*

G.    Maximum credits earned through independent study, research, teaching assistantships, and/or internships: 15 credits of “unstructured” course work can be applied toward graduation requirements (i.e., a minimum of 105 “structured” credits are required for graduation).*
Of those 15 credits, a maximum of 6 internship credits total can be applied, not to exceed 3 credits per semester.

* (F) and (G) are pro-rated for students who are applying non-Cornell credit toward their CALS degree.  Refer to the chart below to determine your letter-credit and structured credit requirements.

*Proration Chart for Students with Non-Cornell Credit*

 

Number of Non-Cornell Credits Accepted by CALS	Number of Structured Credits Required for Graduation	Number of Letter-Graded Credits Required for Graduation
0 - 7	105 structured credits (15 unstructured credits allowed)	100 letter-graded credits (20 S/U credits allowed)
8 - 15 (Equivalent to 1 semester of coursework)	92 structured credits (13 unstructured credits allowed)	88 letter-graded credits (17 S/U credits allowed)
16-30 (Equivalent to 2 semesters of coursework)	79 structured credits (11 unstructured credits allowed)	75 letter-graded credits (15 S/U credits allowed)
31-45 (Equivalent to 3 semesters of coursework)	66 structured credits (9 unstructured credits allowed)	63 letter-graded credits (12 S/U credits allowed)
46-60 (Equivalent to 4 semesters of coursework)	52 structured credits (8 unstructured credits allowed)	50 letter-graded credits (10 S/U credits allowed)

Structured Credit Rationale:

Faculty legislation states that an entering first-year student can count up to 15 non-structured credits toward graduation. It also states that a student is expected to register in the college for 8 semesters.  If you divide the number of non-structured credits allowed (15) by the number of expected semesters in residence (8), students are credited with 1.875 non-structured credits per semester in residence.

 

Letter-Graded Credit Rationale:

Faculty legislation states that an entering first-year student needs to complete a minimum of 100 letter-graded credits for graduation. It also states that a student is expected to register in the college for 8 semesters.  If you divide the number of letter-graded credits required (100) by the number of expected semesters in residence (8), students are credited with 2.5 letter-graded credits per semester in residence.

 

2. Physical Education Requirement

A.    Pass two Physical Education (PE) courses with a satisfactory grade.

Exception: External transfer students are credited with one course of physical education for each semester previously enrolled full-time (12 or more credits) at another college before matriculation.

B.    Pass a required swim test, administered during orientation. External transfer students who are exempt from PE are exempt from the swim test.

C.    Students are expected to complete the physical education requirement in their first two semesters at Cornell.

3. Residency Requirements

A.    Eight semesters of full-time study are expected. Transfer students are credited with one semester in residence for each 15 credits earned at another institution.

B.    Internal transfer students must be enrolled in CALS for at least two semesters, not including residency in the Internal Transfer Division.

C.    The final semester before graduation must be completed in a Cornell program as a full-time student in continued good academic standing.

D.    Students in the ninth and final semester may apply for prorated tuition. The eligibility criteria are listed online at http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/registrar/current-students/cals-graduation/prorated.cfm.

4.    Grade-Point Average (GPA) Requirements

Minimum cumulative GPA: 2.00 or above must be maintained. The cumulative GPA includes all letter grades earned at Cornell.

5.    Schedule Requirements

A.   A minimum of 12 academic credits per semester is required to be a full-time student in good academic standing.  NOTE: Students must enroll in an average of 15 credits per semester to be on track to graduate in    8 semesters.

B.   Students are expected to enroll in at least one CALS course each semester until 55 CALS credits have been earned.

C.   Review or supplemental courses (e.g., 1000- to 1099-level courses) do not count toward the12 credit minimum required for full-time status.

D.    Physical Education (PE) courses do not count toward the 12 credit minimum required for full-time status.

E.     Repeated courses do count toward the 12 credit minimum required for full-time status.

F.    Freshmen may not enroll in more than 18 credits, not including PE or review/supplemental courses.

G.    Freshmen are limited to one S-U course per semester.

 

6.    Distribution Requirements

The purpose of the distribution requirement is to provide a broad educational background and to ensure a minimum level of competency in particular skills for all students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Through study of the physical and life sciences, students develop their understanding and appreciation of the physical sciences, enhance their quantitative reasoning skills, and gain an appreciation of the variability of living organisms. The social sciences and humanities give students perspective on the structure and values of the society in which we live, and prepare them to make decisions on ethical issues that will affect their work and role in society. Written and oral expression is designed to help students become competent and confident in the use of oral and written communication to express themselves and their ideas.

Important Notes:

• Credits received for independent study, fieldwork, teaching, research, work experience, and internships cannot be used to fulfill the distribution requirement.
  
• Review or supplemental courses, such as 1000- to 1099-level courses, will not be counted in the distribution areas.
  
• First-Year Writing Seminars (FWS), Sophomore Seminars, or Writing in the Majors courses cannot be used to satisfy the Physical and Life Sciences distribution area.

Physical and Life Sciences: 18 credits in at least three disciplines of which 6 credits must be introductory biology and 3 credits in chemistry or physics.

Introductory Biology for Life Sciences Majors: BIOG 1101–1104, 1105–1106, 1107–1108, 1109–1110

Introductory Biology for Non-Life Sciences Majors: Beginning fall 2008, students majoring in Applied Economics and Management, Communication, Development Sociology, Agricultural Science Education, and Landscape Architecture have the option of fulfilling 6 credits of introductory biology by either taking courses listed above or newly developed courses anticipated for fall 2008. See http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/registrar/current-students/cals-graduation/biology.cfm for the most up-to-date list of courses. Students should consult with their advisors to clarify major requirements.

Chemistry/Physics:  All CHEM and PHYS courses

Other Physical/Life Sciences Courses:

 

Social Sciences and Humanities: Students must complete four courses of 3 or more credits each from the following seven categories of courses in the humanities and social sciences.

Social Sciences & Humanities Categories:

• Cultural Analysis (CA)
• Foreign Language (FL)
• Historical Analysis (HA)
• Human Diversity (D)*
• Knowledge, Cognition, and Moral Reasoning (KCM)
• Literature and the Arts (LA)
• Social and Behavioral Analysis (SBA)

 

Written and Oral Expression: 9 credits total, of which at least 6 must be in written expression. Oral expression is not required by the college (it may be for some majors); all 9 credits may be in written expression. Courses in written and oral expression may be selected from the following:

Oral Expression

• COMM 2010, 2030, 3600
• ENTOM 3350

Written Expression

• First-Year Writing Seminars
• Sophomore Seminars (No longer Offered)
• AEM 2000
• COMM 1310, 2630, 3520, 3600
• ENGL 2800, 2810, 2880, 2890, 3820–3850, 3880, 3890
• LA 2150

7.    Quantitative Literacy Requirement: Faculty legislation requires minimum competency in quantitative literacy to complete a degree in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. This requirement can be satisfied in one of three ways:

• Earning a score of 4 or 5 on the AP Calculus exam; or
• Transferring an approved calculus or statistics course with a grade of “C” or better; or
• Taking an approved math or statistics course at Cornell.

A complete listing of approved math and statistics courses is available here.