Double Majors/Dual Degrees

Students who have declared a second or third major and who have completed all the requirements (courses and credits) for each major, as well as all the general degree requirements, will be awarded a baccalaureate degree at graduation. If the student’s major departments include both B.A. and B.S. majors, the student will need to select which degree s/he will earn at graduation. 

However, if a student has satisfied all the degree requirements for a B.A. major, has satisfied all the degree requirements for a B.S. major, and accumulated the equivalent of an additional year of coursework (normally 24 additional credits) beyond the minimum of 120 credits required by the College’s general degree requirements (per NECHE guidelines*), Providence College will award the student both the B.A. and the B.S. degrees. This will be indicated on the student’s transcript and on the student’s (single) diploma. Students who are considering this opportunity should discuss this with their academic advisors as they plan out their extra coursework. 

*NECHE (New England Commission of Higher Education) writes: 

Joint, Dual or Concurrent Degrees: While the nomenclature for various arrangements in which students study simultaneously from or for two degree programs is not entirely consistent among institutions, the definitions below will be used by the Commission for purposes of consistency: 

Joint degree: A single degree awarded by two institutions. 

Dual or concurrent degrees: Two degrees, awarded by one or two institutions to students who have been admitted to each degree program, based on the normal qualifications. At the undergraduate level, students must typically take the equivalent of a full year of study beyond the first baccalaureate degree to earn the second degree. At the graduate level, enrollment in a dual or concurrent degree program typically results in a reduction in time, for example, a reduction in total time of a semester for two degrees which if taken separately would require four years of full-time study.