UNC Greensboro is committed to helping students navigate their degree requirements in order to graduate as quickly and efficiently as possible. The degree planning process begins as soon as a student is admitted to UNC Greensboro.
Steps to earning a degree
Step 1: Admission
Students are admitted to the university and may have additional requirements in order to be admitted to their degree program. Depending on the degree, students may need to complete a specific course sequence or go through a secondary application process. Check with the academic department for details about eligibility for full admission to the major.
Step 2: Advising
Students should plan to meet with their academic advisor early and often to maintain progress toward their degree. Advising is usually required before registration each semester, but students are welcome to meet more often to discuss questions or concerns about their course of study.
Step 3: Stay on pace
To stay on track to graduate in four years, undergraduate students should plan to take at least 30 credit hours per year and consult closely with their advisor. Transferring, changing majors, dropping or repeating classes, and taking classes out of order may all create delays.
Degree planning help: Degree Works
Degree Works is a web-based, degree-tracking tool. Students who want to explore their degree requirements and different scenarios on their path toward graduation will find Degree Works to be a helpful resource.
Undergraduate students can access their individualized Degree Works evaluation by following these steps:
Log in to UNCGenie’s Secure Area using the user ID and PIN
Click on the Student tab
Click on Student Records
Click on Degree Works– this will automatically generate your Degree Evaluation Worksheet.
Students are encouraged to use Degree Works during registration and before advising meetings to help streamline their path toward graduation. The more planning a student does on their own to prepare, the better their advising sessions will be.
Students considering a major change should also explore Degree Works to get a clear understanding of how their completed coursework lines up with requirements and how a change will affect their graduation timeline.
How Degree Works can help
Degree Works has features to help students with a variety of needs. An overview of each section is listed below.
The Student View section gives an overall summary of personal academic information including academic advisor, cumulative GPA, and major(s) and minor(s). If applicable, students can see their academic standing and account holds that may prevent future course registration.
Students can explore summary information for their current major/minor in the Degree Progress Bar and the Degree Block. More detailed information can also be viewed to see how requirements are being met in the areas of General Education and Major/Concentration. Summaries of elective courses and those where no credit was awarded are also listed here.
A green check mark indicates the required course has been completed.
A red box indicates the course is still needed.
A blue box indicates the course is in progress.
Students can use the Look Ahead tool in Degree Works before registering for classes to see how certain courses will apply to their current program’s requirements.
Students should use the Degree Works “what-if” tool to see how changing their major will affect progress towards graduation. UNCG strongly recommends that students meet with their advisor to go over their Degree Works progress and What-If analysis before changing their major.
Undergraduate students may opt to diverge from their original major. In fact, this is fairly common with about a third of students nationwide changing majors at some point in their college career. It’s important for students to carefully consider the repercussions of any major change or addition. Students should consult closely with their academic advisors.
Students can add a second major and may also be eligible to earn a second degree. There is a distinction between the two:
Second major – Student must complete requirements for both majors offered in the same degree.
Second degree – Students must complete requirements for both programs AND earn a minimum of 31 hours in residence beyond the requirements for the first degree (e.g. if the first degree requires 122 semester hours, a total of 153 hours must be completed).
UNCG also offers students who have already earned a bachelor’s degree to reapply as a second degree seeking student in different degree program or a different major. Students are expected to complete all requirements as stated in the catalog and must also earn a minimum of 31 hours in residence beyond requirements for their first degree.
Adding a minor can allow students to pursue a deeper area of interest within their major, or it can allow students to explore an unrelated area of interest. Students are encouraged to discuss plans for a minor with their advisor before officially declaring a minor. After the student has a plan in place — with their advisor and though the What If tool in Degree Works, they can submit a request through the Registrar’s Office.
UNCG offers several options for students interested in pursuing careers in healthcare, law, and engineering. Pre-professional tracks are not majors; however, they allow students close, expert advising from staff who can give advice on how best to stand out on their medical and/or law school applications.
Students do not have to be in a specific major to declare a pre-professional track, so they are free to explore their interests while working toward long term career goals. To declare a pre-professional track, fill out this form.
A student’s time to graduation can be greatly impacted by changing majors, especially after a few semesters of progress toward an unrelated degree. Therefore, students are urged to think through their decision by:
Reviewing What If scenarios in Degree Works.
Discussing their plans with their advisor.
Weighing the pros and cons of the situation and its impacts.
Students should also note they will be required to follow all the requirements and guidelines for the catalog year in place the semester they declare their new major. See more info on Catalog Year below.
After seeing how a new major will affect their path to graduation and considering options with their advisor, a student can request a change of major by submitting a change of major form.
Why catalog year matters
The student’s catalog year identifies the set of regulations and requirements needed to complete a degree program. The catalog year is established when a student declares or changes their program of study. The current catalog year is what is displayed in Degree Works.
Students are encouraged to thoroughly review the University Catalog in place for their first year to fully understand the degree requirements they must follow.
A student may view their catalog year by logging in to Degree Works and viewing the catalog year under the Student View.
The catalog year can be found in the respective degree block in the Student View
A student may change a catalog year without a change of program or minor only to a more recent catalog. If the curriculum for their program has been revised, it may be advantageous to update the catalog year. The student may request this change formally through their department.
Any student who has been inactivated must reapply for admission to the University. If admitted, the student will be assigned to the catalog requirements for the program in effect for the re-admit term.
