Graduation [ALES]

Return to: Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences [ALES] 

1. Application for Graduation:
   Students must apply for graduation on Bear Tracks (https://www.beartracks.ualberta.ca) by February 1 for Spring Convocation or by September 1 for Fall Convocation.
2. Convocation:
   Students completing degree requirements during the Fall Term or Winter Term will graduate at Spring Convocation; those completing degree requirements during the Spring/Summer will graduate at Fall Convocation.
3. Degree Requirements:
   Students registered in the following degree programs require ★120 to graduate: BSc Agriculture, BSc Agricultural/Food Business Management, BSc Animal Health, BSc Environmental and Conservation Sciences, BA Environmental Studies, BSc Forestry, BSc Forest Business Management, BSc Human Ecology, and BSc Nutrition and Food Science. Students registered in the BSc in Human Ecology/BEd and the BSc in Environmental and Conservation Sciences/BA in Native Studies Combined Degrees require ★150 to graduate.
4. Courses Extra to the Degree
   Courses successfully completed while registered in a program which are not being used for degree credit are known as courses extra to the degree. Such courses are, however, included in the assessment of academic standing.
   The Faculty will designate courses as extra to degree when they are not being used for degree credit. When a course designated by the Faculty as extra to degree could also satisfy a degree requirement, the student may request a revision of the designation of that course. If the Faculty agrees to the revision, a course that was previously deemed to be satisfying the same degree requirement must in turn be declared extra to degree.
5. Graduation Grade Point Average
   To be eligible for graduation from any of the programs offered by the Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences, students must present Satisfactory Academic Standing [see (6) below] and obtain a GPA of at least 2.0 (2.7 for the BSc in Nutrition and Food Science, Food Science and Technology Specialization and the BSc in Nutrition and Food Science, Dietetics Specialization; and 3.0 for the BSc in Honors in Food Science and the BSc Honors in Nutrition) on their last ★60 counting towards their degree (including courses completed at another institution).
   When calculating the Graduation GPA all courses from a particular term of study must be used. When fewer credits than were taken in a specific term are needed to meet the requirement of the last ★60 counting towards the degree, the grade points will be calculated by multiplying the GPA of all courses completed in that term by the number of credits required to meet the ★60.
6. Extension to the Graduating Year
   Students who have successfully completed at least ★120 or ★150 [for programs as indicated in (3)] who do not meet program requirements for graduation, and who are otherwise eligible to continue in their program of study, may continue to register to the end of the next Fall/Winter of study in order to meet graduation requirements.
   Students who have been given their first assignment of “Marginal Standing” (i.e. Academic Warning) in their graduating year, may continue to register to the end of the next Fall/Winter of study. Students must complete a minimum ★9 to a maximum ★15 to meet the “Satisfactory Standing” requirement for graduation [see (8) above].
   Students who are in Unsatisfactory Standing, (i.e., Required to Withdraw), may petition/appeal to be allowed to complete one further Fall/Winter of study to meet the “Satisfactory Standing” for graduation requirements. If graduation requirements are not met within the Fall/Winter period, such students will be required to withdraw and will not normally be readmitted.
7. Graduation with Distinction
   This designation is awarded to a student achieving a grade point average of 3.5 or greater on the last ★60. The same calculation as detailed in Graduation Grade Point Average in (5) above applies.