Applying for Graduation

All potential graduates must officially apply for graduation in the Office of the Registrar one term prior to the term in which they plan to graduate. Students must file applications no later than the date specified in the academic calendar or the date listed on the Registrar' Office website. If the student does not graduate in the term for which he or she applies, he or she must reapply for graduation.   

Graduation Application Fee

Effective for the fall 2022 semester, a graduation application fee of $40.00 will be assessed for each student applying for graduation.  This fee will cover the cost of mailing the diploma (if mailed) and supplies such as diploma tubes, mailers, etc.

Graduation Under a Particular Catalog

Both graduate and undergraduate students must meet the graduation requirements listed in the catalog governing the first semester in which they enrolled in residence as a degree-seeking student. If the student has not enrolled in the university in the past five years, he or she must meet graduation requirements and policy statements in the catalog in effect at the time of re-entry as a degree-seeking student. 

The student may also choose to graduate under any catalog published subsequent to the time of re-entry. The option to graduate under older catalog editions depends upon whether the university still offers programs and courses listed in the older catalog. 

Only with special approval may a student graduate under the requirements of a catalog issued over five years prior to the student’s date of graduation. The university grants this permission in rare cases where extenuating circumstances exist and extreme hardship may result. The appropriate dean may authorize a limited extension.

Note: The term “graduation requirements” applies to course, grade-point averages in three areas, proficiency, and other specified requirements for graduation. Students seeking teacher certification must meet current certification requirements listed in the catalog in effect at the time of enrollment as a degree-seeking student provided that the student meets all requirements and provided the student completes all degree and certification requirements within a five-year period.

Note: Any person who has completed their first degree at Texas A&M University - Texarkana and re-enters to seek a second degree will be listed under the catalog in effect at the time of entry to seek the second degree or any subsequent catalog. The student may not select a program which the university phased out prior to the student’s re-entry.

Please contact graduation@tamut.edu if you have any questions.

Bachelors Graduation Requirements

The university staff uses the following checklist to determine eligibility for graduation.

The student must complete specific degree-program requirements, including the following, as listed on official degree plans:

  1. Minimum of 120 SCH
  2. Minimum of 45 SCH in upper-division course work (See individual degree plans as some degrees require 54 SCH).
  3. Minimum of 25% of course work from Texas A&M University - Texarkana (See Non-traditional Credit.). Note: For honors-graduate designation, the university requires a total of 45 SCH of resident credits.
  4. Minimum GPA of 2.00 or above in all course work (Cumulative GPA), in all courses applied to the major (Major GPA), and in all coursework the student takes at Texas A&M University - Texarkana (Institutional GPA). Some programs require an overall or designated-specific GPA that is higher than 2.0.
  5. Official degree-plan requirements may not be over five years old. The university places a student under the degree requirements in effect during their first term of enrollment. If a student does not complete all degree requirements within 5 years from the date of initial enrollment, the university must update the student to the requirements in effect at the time of re-enrollment.
  6. The student may apply no more than 12 SCH of independent-study-format courses towards degree requirements for graduation.
  7. Students must complete all "X" grades prior to graduation.
  8. The university will calculate all undergraduate course work the student takes prior to graduation into the final GPA.
  9. Complete the “Application for Graduation” by the date published in the schedule of classes. (The student must file for graduation no later than the census date [fall/spring = 12th class day; summer = 4th class day] of the semester in which he or she intends to graduate.)
  10. All official transcripts must be on file in the registrar's office.
  11. Students who enroll off campus during the semester they expect to graduate will be responsible for submitting official transcripts to the Office of the Registrar before their degree can be awarded. The university must record final grades from all courses the student has taken at another university on a student's Texas A&M University-Texarkana transcript.  This requirement includes cross-registered courses, CLEP exams and courses completed through the course-exchange program.  Failure to submit official transcripts by the deadline stated by the Office of the Registrar will prevent the degree from being awarded for the intended graduation term.  Students whose degree is not awarded for the intended graduation term, will be required to apply for a future term.
  12. In order for a student to receive their degree, diploma, official transcript and participate in commencement, they must have completed all degree requirements and have a zero balance on their account by the Friday one week prior to the graduation-commencement ceremony.   Also, the Registrar's Office will be unable to verify a degree to potential employers if the student has an outstanding account balance.

Tuition Rebate Program for Undergraduates

The State of Texas has authorized tuition rebates for students who complete baccalaureate degrees with no more than three (3) credits in excess of those required for their degrees. Students graduating with their first baccalaureate degree may be eligible for a $1,000.00 tuition rebate. To qualify, students must meet all of the following conditions:

  1. Enrolled for the first time in an institution of higher education in the fall 1997 semester or later. If enrolled for the first time in fall 2005 or later, must graduate within four (4) calendar years for a four-year degree or within five (5) calendar years for a five-year degree if the degree is in architecture, engineering, or any other program that the Board of Education determines requires more than four (4) years to complete.
  2. Requested a rebate for work related to a first baccalaureate degree received from a general academic teaching institution.
  3. Was a resident of Texas and was entitled to pay resident tuition at all times while pursuing the degree.
  4. Attempted no more than three (3) hours in excess of the minimum number of semester credit hours (SCH) required for completion of the degree as specified in the catalog under which the student graduated. Hours attempted include transfer credits, examination course credit (except that, for the purposes of this program, the university only treats the number of semester credit hours the student earned exclusively through examination in excess of nine (9) SCH as hours attempted), courses dropped after the official census date, for-credit developmental courses, optional internship and cooperative education courses, and repeated courses. The university will not count dual credit courses and courses the student dropped for reasons that the institution determined to be totally beyond the control of the student. For students concurrently earning a baccalaureate degree and a Texas teaching certificate, the university shall not count required teacher-education courses to the extent that they are over and above the free electives the university allows in the baccalaureate-degree program.

Costs include tuition, student-center-complex fee, admissions and application fee, recreational-sports fee, student-endowed-scholarship fee, student-health fee, and the university-services fee. The following are only minimum figures. The university does not include parking fees, course fees, lab fees, and distance-education fees.

Please contact graduation@tamut.edu if you have any questions regarding the Tuition Rebate. 

Masters Graduation Requirements

The following is a checklist university staff uses to determine eligibility for graduation. The following checklist will validate progress:    

  1. Students must complete an approved master’s degree program. Students must follow the “Official Degree Plan” A&M-Texarkana has issued. (Students may choose to complete a six (6) SCH thesis as part of their degree program.) Note: Consult section on “Graduation Under a Particular Catalog.”
  2. Students may transfer no more than 12 SCH of graduate-level course work from another regionally accredited institution and have the university apply those credits toward a master’s degree at A&M-Texarkana.
  3. Students may apply no more than 6 SCH of special-format courses (597, 589, and/or 529) to degree requirements.
  4. Students may apply no more than 9 SCH of S/U-graded courses to degree requirements.
  5. Students may not apply courses they have taken more than five years prior to admission to the graduate-studies program to their degree. The dean may give special approval to apply such courses to a particular degree.
  6. A student’s degree plan must not be over five years old.
  7. Students must complete all “X” grades prior to graduation.
  8. Students must achieve the following grade-point averages:
    1. 3.00 or above on all graduate work attempted in major field of study or area of concentration (Major GPA);
    2. 3.00 or above on all graduate courses attempted at A&M-Texarkana (Institutional GPA);

    3. 3.00 or above on all graduate course work (Cumulative GPA).
      Note: The university will not count grades lower than “C” toward a graduate degree, but the university will use those grades to calculate the GPA. The university considers a course with a grade of “D” or “F” completed, and the GPA will reflect those grades.

  9. The university will calculate into the final grade all graduate course work the student has taken prior to graduation.
  10. The student may apply, upon recommendation of the instructor and approval of the college dean, a maximum of two (2) 400-level undergraduate courses toward fulfillment of graduate-degree requirements. When taking a 400-level course for graduate credit, the student must complete additional work beyond the quality and quantity of work, which distinguishes graduate instruction (See "Enrollment in Undergraduate Courses for Graduate Credit" in the Graduate Studies section of this catalog under General Academic Policies).  Graduate courses are numbered 500 and above.
  11. The specific college may require students to pass a comprehensive examination covering work within the master’s degree program including, if applicable, an acceptable defense of the thesis.  For programs that do not require a comprehensive exam, the student must earn a minimum grade on a required capstone course.  (See the requirements for the student’s particular degree.)  A student who fails to pass the comprehensive exam must complete whatever further courses or additional study the advisor requires to correct the deficiencies.  If the student fails a second time, he or she may not take the exam again without special permission of the dean of the college.  Students who fail to achieve the required minimum grade on the capstone course must repeat the course.
  12. Students must submit the completed application for graduation  by the date published in the schedule of classes.
  13. The university must have a copy of all official transcripts on file with the Office of the Registrar.
  14. Students who enroll off campus during the semester they expect to graduate will be responsible for submitting official transcripts to the Office of the Registrar before their degree can be awarded. The university must record final grades from all courses the student has taken at another university on a student's Texas A&M University-Texarkana transcript.  This requirement includes cross-registered courses, CLEP exams and courses completed through the course-exchange program.  Failure to submit official transcripts by the deadline stated by the Office of the Registrar will prevent the degree from being awarded for the intended graduation term.  Students whose degree is not awarded for the intended graduation term, will be required to apply for a future term.
  15. In order for a student to receive their degree, diploma, official transcript and participate in commencement, they must have completed all degree requirements (including passing comprehensive exams) and have a zero balance on their account by the Friday one week prior to the graduation-commencement ceremony.   Also, the Registrar's Office will be unable to verify a degree to potential employers if the student has an outstanding account balance.

Doctoral Graduation Requirements

The successful completion of a doctoral degree requires several different elements including: coursework specific to the student's plan of study totaling no less than 60 semester credit hours, a passing score on the comprehensive examinations, and the successful defense of a dissertation. Because this program requires specific coursework mapping and planning, and contains such a high degree of individualization, students are referred to the "Doctoral Program Handbook" for more information on the necessary steps to successfully graduate with a doctoral degree.

Commencement

The university restricts participation in the commencement ceremony to those students who have completed all graduation requirements as indicated and have a zero-account balance.  The university holds commencement ceremonies in May and December. Students have the option to participate in the commencement ceremony for the term they are graduating. Students completing degree requirements in August may participate in the December commencement ceremony.  The university provides details about the ceremonies when the student applies for graduation. Regalia for commencement must be purchased through the Campus Bookstore.