Degree Overview
A degree is the title of the credential that the university confers on a graduate who has completed all university requirements. Degrees are defined by the State Board of Higher Education of the North Dakota University System Policy 409: Degrees Offered.
Degree Types Defined
Certificate of Completion - A certificate awarded for the completion of an undergraduate course of study of less than nine credit hours or a graduate course of study of less than eight credit hours. Only credits earned at NDSU may be applied to an NDSU certificate of completion.
Program Certificate - A program certificate is a course of study requiring a minimum of nine credit hours at the undergraduate level or eight credit hours at the graduate level. A certificate program can be completed in one year of study or less. Only credits earned at NDSU may be applied to an NDSU certificate program.
Bachelor's Degree - A bachelor's degree requires a minimum of 120 semester credits. A baccalaureate degree is comprised of academic courses in general education and a major field of study consisting of a minimum of 32 credits related to an academic area. Majors may include subplans (also called options, specializations, concentrations, emphasis areas, etc.) which are a specific identified group of courses consisting of a minimum of 12 credits. Subplans may not always appear on the transcript; this is determined by the department at the time of the subplan request. In addition to a major, students may also wish to pursue a minor program of study as part of their bachelor's degree (see Other Credential Offered below).
Master's Degree - The Master of Arts and Master of Science degrees require a minimum of 30 credit hours in courses that carry graduate credit.
Education Specialist - This degree requires a minimum of 60 credit hours in courses that carry graduate credit beyond the baccalaureate degree. This degree is a professional degree for certification in an educational field.
Doctoral Degree - The Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Education, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees all require a minimum of 90 credit hours beyond the bachelor's degree in courses that carry graduate credit. The Doctor of Philosophy degree includes a substantial component of independent research and the Doctor of Education recognizes the completion of academic preparation for professional practice in education. The Doctor of Pharmacy degree is a terminal degree program that prepares individuals to practice pharmacy. And the Doctor of Nursing Practice requires 86 credit hours beyond the bachelor's degree and prepares nurses to make contributions to evidence-based practice through professional leadership and scholarly practice and to function as clinical educators of future nurses.
Other Credentials Offered
Minor - A minor is a similar grouping of courses in a field of study with a minimum of 16 credit hours. Minors cannot be earned without the student also completing a major program of study. A student may also return to pursue a minor if they have already earned a baccalaureate degree at NDSU.
Undergraduate Degrees
Most undergraduate degree recipients at NDSU earn a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree, however, many programs of study result in a specialized degree. Students may also pursue a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree, if available for their selected major, by completing the Bachelor of Arts Requirements Using a Second Language and/or requirements as specified by their academic college on the program curriculum guide.
NDSU confers the following degrees at the undergraduate level:
- Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.)
- Bachelor of Music (B.Mus.)
- Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
- Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (B.S.A.B.En.)
- Bachelor of Science in Architecture (B.S.Arch.)
- Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (B.S.C.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering (B.S.Cpr.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering (B.S.Con.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Construction Management (B.S.Cons.M.)
- Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (B.S.E.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering (B.S.Env.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering and Management (B.S.I.E.Mgt.)
- Bachelor of Science in Manufacturing Engineering (B.S.Mfg.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (B.S.M.E.)
- Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.)
- Bachelor of University Studies (B.U.S.)
Graduate Degrees
NDSU awards the following graduate degrees:
- Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
- Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.)
- Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.)
- Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.)
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Education Specialist (Ed.S.)
- Master of Accountancy (M.Acc.)
- Master of Agriculture (M.Ag.)
- Master of Architecture (M.Arch.)
- Master of Arts (M.A.)
- Master of Athletic Training (M.A.Trg.)
- Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.)
- Master of Construction Management (M.Cons.M.)
- Master of Education (M.Ed.)
- Master of Engineering (M.Engr.)
- Master of Healthcare Administration (M.H.A.)
- Master of Landscape Architecture (M.L.A.)
- Master of Music (M.M.)
- Master of Natural Resources Management (M.N.R.M.)
- Master of Public Health (M.P.H.)
- Master of Public Health in Epidemiology (M.P.H.Epi.)
- Master of Public Policy (M.P.P.)
- Master of Science (M.S.)
- Master of Software Engineering (M.S.E.)
- Master of Supply Chain Management (M.S.C.M.)
Accelerated Degree Programs
NDSU offers accelerated programs of study in a variety of academic disciplines. These programs provide an opportunity for highly-qualified students to earn both a bachelor's degree and master's degree in a cost-effective, high-quality and timely manner. The following disciplines are available as a combined accelerated program where requirements for each degree have been agreed upon by the faculty:
| Undergraduate Program | Graduate Program |
|---|
| B.S. Agribusiness | M.S. Agribusiness & Applied Economics |
| B.S. Agricultural Economics | M.S. Agribusiness & Applied Economics |
| B.S.A.B.En. Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering | M.S. Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering |
| B.S. Animal Science | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | M.S. Biochemistry |
| B.S. or B.A. Biological Sciences | M.S. Biology |
| B.S. Biotechnology | M.S. Microbiology |
| B.S. Biotechnology | M.S. Plant Pathology |
| B.S. Business Administration | M.B.A. Business Administration |
| B.S. Chemistry | M.S. Chemistry |
| B.S.C.E. Civil Engineering | M.S.CVE. Civil Engineering |
| Minor Coatings & Polymeric Materials* | M.S. Coatings & Polymeric Materials |
| B.S.Cpr.E. Computer Engineering | M.S. or M.Engr. Electrical & Computer Engineering |
| B.S. Computer Science | M.S. Computer Science |
| B.S.Con.E. Construction Engineering | M.S. or M.Cons.M. Construction Management |
| B.S.Con.E. Construction Engineering | M.S.CVE. Civil Engineering |
| B.S.Cons.M. Construction Management | M.B.A. Business Administration |
| B.S.Cons.M. Construction Management | M.S. or M.Cons.M. Construction Management |
| B.S. or B.A. Criminal Justice | M.S. Criminal Justice |
| B.S. or B.A. Economics | M.S. Agribusiness & Applied Economics |
| B.S.E.E. Electrical Engineering | M.S. or M. Engr. Electrical & Computer Engineering |
| B.S. Disaster Resilience and Emergency Management | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. Disaster Resilience and Emergency Managmeent | M.S. Community Planning and Resilience |
| B.S. Exercise Science | M.A.Trg. Athletic Training |
| B.S. Food Science | M.S. Cereal Science |
| B.S. Health Services | M.H.A. Healthcare Administration |
| B.S. Health Services | M.P.H. Public Health or M.P.H.Epi. Epidemiology |
| B.S. Horticulture & Urban Agriculture | M.S. Horticulture & Urban Agriculture |
| B.S. Human Development & Family Science | M.S./M.Ed. Counselor Education |
| B.S. Human Development & Family Science | M.S. Human Development & Family Science |
| B.S.I.E.Mgt. Industrial Engineering and Management | M.B.A. Business Administration |
| B.S.I.E.Mgt. Industrial Engineering and Management | Master of Engineering |
| B.S. Management | M.B.A. Business Administration |
| B.S.Mfg.E. Manufacturing Engineering | Master of Engineering |
| B.S. Marketing | M.B.A. Business Administration |
| B.S. Mathematics | M.S. Mathematics |
| B.S.M.E. Mechanical Engineering | M.S. Mechanical Engineering |
| B.S. Microbiology | M.S. Microbiology |
| B.S. Microbiology | M.S. Plant Pathology |
| B.S. Microbiology | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. Natural Resources Management | M.N.R.M Natural Resources Mgt. (not eligible with the M.S. in NRM) |
| B.S. Nutrition Science | M.S. Dietetics |
| B.S. Nutrition Science | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. Nutrition Science | M.S. Health, Nutrition and Exercise Science - Exercise Science & Nutrition option |
| B.S. or B.A. Physics | M.S. Physics |
| B.S. Plant Science and Technology | M.S. Plant Pathology |
| B.S. Plant Science and Technology | M.S. Plant Sciences |
| B.S. or B.A. Political Science | M.P.P. Public Policy |
| B.S. Psychology | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. or B.A. Sociology | M.P.H. Public Health |
| B.S. Sport Management | M.S. Sport Management |
| B.S. Supply Chain Management | M.B.A. Business Administration |
Guidelines for Accelerated Bachelors to Masters Programs
The following guidelines set the minimal expectations for combined/accelerated students and programs. Academic departments may set more stringent standards.
- Student must complete at least 60 credits at the undergraduate level prior to conditional admission to the College of Graduate and Interdisciplinary Studies.
- Interested and eligible students must submit a Accelerated Program Degree Program Declaration Form to the director of the graduate program of choice. The graduate program director will evaluate the student's proposed set of graduate classes to determine whether the student will be able to complete them as part of an accelerated program.
- Next, the student's undergraduate major or minor department chairperson/head will evaluate and approve the substitution of the graduate level courses into the undergraduate program as noted in the chart below. A maximum of 15 graduate student credits may be applied to the undergraduate degree.
| UGRD Credits to be Satisfied by GRAD coursework | Academic Unit Approving the Couse Substitution |
|---|
| Open Electives | UGRD Academic Major |
| Optional Minor | UGRD Academic Minor |
| Required Minor | UGRD Academic Minor |
| Major | UGRD Academic Major |
- After receiving the necessary approvals noted above, the student will submit the declaration form to the Graduate School and formally apply for admission to the graduate program.
- All admissions to the Graduate College will be conditional. The minimum condition is completion of the bachelor's degree prior to full standing in the master's program, and the student must maintain a 3.00 CGPA in their graduate classes. Other conditions related to academic performance may be added by the academic unit or Graduate School.
- No undergraduate course may be counted toward a master's degree.
- Students entering the master's degree with a bachelor's degree in hand may not use courses earned as part of the bachelor's program for master's requirements, even if those courses were graduate level courses.
- Students must meet all requirements that would ordinarily be expected of those enrolled in the master's program.
