Program Completion Requirements
General Education Course Requirements
Students enrolled in Bachelor’s degree programs must fulfill state minimum core curriculum requirements for graduation in addition to prerequisite and program requirements. In general, the 35 semester credit core curriculum is listed below. Programs may have specific course requirements for these core requirements. Please check the program curriculum for specific courses or contact the CHP Office of Admissions at (501) 686-5730, if you have questions. Some of the courses required as part of the core curriculum may also fulfill the prerequisite course requirement.
| Area | Semester Credits |
|---|---|
| ENGLISH/COMMUNICATION | |
| English Composition | 6 |
| Speech Communication | 0-3 |
| College Algebra or higher level mathematics | 3 |
| Laboratory Sciences* (MUST include laboratories) | 8 |
| Fine Arts/Humanities** | 6-9 |
| SOCIAL SCIENCES | |
| United States History or National Government | 3 |
| Other Social Sciences | 6-9 |
| TOTAL | 35 |
Under Arkansas law or regulations, no associate’s or bachelor’s degree may be granted without a three (3) SC course in American history or national government and a three (3) SC course in college algebra or higher level mathematics. It is strongly recommended that prospective students contact the program of their interest to determine the acceptability of all prerequisite and core curriculum courses before enrolling in them.
*An extra 3 SC course in Fine Arts/Humanities may be taken in lieu of Speech Communication. If this is done, 9 SC of Fine Arts/Humanities will be required. For some programs, Speech Communication is required by their accrediting agency. See the prerequisites list in each program section of this catalog for information specific to that program.
**Institutions may require students majoring in math, engineering, science, education, and health professions to take higher or specific science courses as a part of the State Minimum Core.
***The Fine Arts requirement cannot be fulfilled with a studio course. Humanities requirements may be selected from the courses in the subject areas of philosophy, political science, literature and the humanities. The course in National Government, if selected to meet the US History/National Government requirement, cannot also be used to meet the Humanities requirement in Political Science. Acceptable courses in literature must be broad survey courses; world literature is especially recommended.
A grade of “C” or better is required for all Core Curriculum courses.
Certificate Programs
Students enrolled in certificate programs must successfully complete approved prerequisite and program course work composed of at least 7-18 SC or 24-42 SC if 75% of course work is currently offered in an existing AS or BS program for undergraduate certificate programs and 12-18 SC for graduate certificate programs.
Bachelor’s Degree Programs
Students are required to complete successfully at least 120 SC of approved prerequisite, program, and core curriculum in order to be eligible for graduation in a bachelor’s degree program in the College. In addition, at least 40 SC of the total must be taken from upper-level (i.e., 3000 and 4000: junior and senior) courses.
Student Outcomes Professional Licensure Disclosure
The above semester hour requirements for program completion are the College’s minimum requirements and do not represent specific degrees. Individual programs may require additional semester credit hours. Successful completion of a CHP program does not itself insure certification/licensure/registry eligibility. Students are advised to become familiar with the discipline-specific requirements published by each certification/licensure/ registry agency.
