Admission Requirements
The Providence College School of Continuing Education affords an individual the opportunity of a college education at a variety of levels: as a degree or certificate candidate; as a nondegree candidate, taking courses that can be applied to a degree program at a later time; or as an auditor, taking courses solely for personal enrichment.
Students enrolled in credit-bearing courses in SCE, including those in a nondegree status, are expected to hold a high school diploma or equivalent. Exceptions can be made only with the approval of the dean.
Acceptance into a degree-status program requires the high school diploma (or GED) plus the transfer of satisfactory academic credits the student may have earned at an accredited college/university, and approval by the dean of the School of Continuing Education. Admission into post-baccalaureate programs may have specific admission requirements, please consult program descriptions.
Admission Procedures
Students who wish to pursue a bachelor’s degree, associate’s degree, or certificate program must complete a formal application for admission, which is available from the School of Continuing Education Office as well as online.
Former Providence College day students who wish to complete their degree in SCE must apply for admission into SCE (the application fee is waived). Former day students are encouraged to meet with an adviser to determine how the Providence College credit already earned can be applied to the new degree program.
Students may submit the application and a nonrefundable application fee of $55 to the School of Continuing Education, Providence College, 1 Cunningham Square, Providence, RI 02918-0001 or online. Students must request an official copy of their secondary school transcript, as well as official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions they have attended, and have them sent directly to the SCE Office.
A student who has been dismissed or placed on academic probation at another collegiate institution or by the Providence College undergraduate school is generally not eligible for immediate admittance to a degree program in the School of Continuing Education. At least one full academic year must elapse before such a student will be considered for admission, during which time the student must complete one semester at the School of Continuing Education (or another institution) as a nondegree student earning a grade point average of 2.0 or higher.
Conditional Admission
Students who have left their most recent college or university on poor academic standing (either on probation or dismissed) and who wish to be admitted into an SCE degree program before having established an acceptable academic record as described in the preceding section may petition for conditional admission into a School of Continuing Education degree program. Students admitted conditionally may enroll in no more than two courses per semester and must establish an acceptable grade point average (2.0 or above) in order to be removed from conditional status. Students must also meet any additional conditions that may be placed on their admission. Students who have not established an acceptable academic record (2.0 or above) after two semesters will be dismissed from the program.
International Students
Students enrolled at another institution on an F-1 visa must provide proof of valid F-1 status as well as permission from the international student adviser at their home institution approving any enrollment at Providence College.
Prospective international students in the U.S. on any visa type other than F-1 must meet with an adviser to determine eligibility to enroll in courses.
Proof of English Proficiency
English is the language of instruction at Providence College. You must be able to understand written and spoken English, and you must be able to express yourself clearly in spoken and written English. Applicants whose heritage language (also called first language, home language or native language) is not English must provide proof of English proficiency with their application materials. You must submit scores for Providence College’s preferred English proficiency tests, either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Test System (IELTS).
Veterans’ Deployment and Readmission Policy
Under the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008, a student who is called to active duty in the United States Armed Forces or the National Guard or Reserve for a period of more than 30 days is entitled to reenroll in the same program, with the same enrollment status, number of credits, and academic standing as when he or she was last in attendance at Providence College.
Readmission is allowed provided the student meets the following requirements:
- the cumulative length of the student’s absences from the college because of service on active duty does not exceed five years (which period may be extended in certain cases, as provided by statute);
- the student notifies the college upon completion of service that he or she intends to reenroll at the college; and
- the student has not been discharged from the Armed Forces with a dishonorable or bad-conduct discharge.
Matriculation
A student with 18 or more credits and who plans to earn a degree or certificate at Providence College must apply for admission into the intended program. Students who plan to pursue a certificate must apply for admission when they have earned no more than 6 hours towards that program’s requirements. Matriculation is an agreement with the College to a particular set of degree requirements. Students are encouraged to work with an SCE adviser who can assist them in selecting an appropriate program. Any modification of a program’s requirements can be made only through securing written approval from SCE. If the College changes a program’s requirements while a student is enrolled, that student will continue with the original degree requirements. Students who re-enroll after having been made inactive will matriculate into the current degree requirements.
Nondegree (ND) Status
The designation nondegree/ND indicates that the student is registered in class work but has not been admitted into a program. All applicable credits earned in the nondegree category may be applied toward degree requirements at such time as the student is admitted into a program. However, when degree requirements change, students not enrolled in the degree must adhere to the new requirements and courses taken prior to matriculation may not be applicable to the new degree requirements. Therefore, students are encouraged to apply for admission into a degree program as early in their tenure as possible.
Change in Degree Status or Program
A student may initiate a change of degree program or degree status by requesting in writing that such a change be made. Students are subject to the program requirements in place upon their enrollment in that program.
Transfer of Credits
Transfer credit may be granted for courses taken at other institutions prior to a student’s matriculation in the School of Continuing Education at Providence College. A maximum of 75 credit hours for a bachelor’s degree, 36 credit hours for an associate’s degree, and three credit hours for a certificate–from any accredited institution of higher learning–may be accepted and applied toward SCE program requirements. CLEP, AP, ACE, military and PLA credits are included in this total. To be eligible for transfer, all courses in question must carry a grade of “C” or higher. Requests to transfer credit from another institution after admission into a degree program requires approval from SCE prior to taking the course(s). A student may transfer no more than one-third of the credits remaining in his or her degree program.
SCE students pursuing the bachelor’s degree or the associate’s degree must complete at least 50 percent of those courses required in the major at Providence College. All core requirements, with the exception of Perspectives on Western Civilization and specific required courses, are considered fulfilled for students entering SCE with a previously earned baccalaureate degree.
CLEP Credit
Students enrolled in a degree program may receive credits from the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) with a score equivalent to a grade of a C or higher and prior approval of a School of Continuing Education adviser. CLEP credits may be transferrable provided that the CLEP credits are not in a subject area for which the student has already received or will receive academic credit for course work completed and that the CLEP credits do not exceed the maximum total of transfer credits allowed. General and subject test and schedule information, registration forms, and a listing of CLEP colleges are available in the SCE Office and through CollegeBoard.
ACE Credit
The School of Continuing Education also recognizes and accepts, when appropriate, American Council on Education and National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) credit recommendations attached to military training and experience, corporate training programs, as well as Prior Learning Assessment. Please consult an adviser for additional information.
Advanced Placement (AP) Credit
The College participates in the Advanced Placement Program administered by the College Entrance Examination Board. Students who demonstrate superior performance in the Advanced Placement Examination (a score of 4 or 5) will typically be awarded Advanced Placement credit following the criteria established by departments and in keeping with SCE transfer credit policy. More information about the transfer of AP credit is available here.
SCE participates in “Learning Counts,” a program of the Council on Adult Experiential Learning (CAEL), through which a student may receive college credit by developing a portfolio to document learning experiences not reflected on transcripts. Students who believe that the learning associated with their experience-through work, volunteer, military service, job training, etc.-may warrant college credit should speak with their academic adviser. A maximum of thirty hours of prior learning credit may be applied as elective credit in a degree program.
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