Admission Categories and Criteria

SE Catalog > Graduate Studies > Admission Categories and Criteria

Full Admission to the School of Graduate Studies

To be considered for full admission, the applicant must have a minimum of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution and meet one of the following criteria:

  1. Meet the grade-point average requirements of the respective program (refer to program-specific admission requirements).
  2. An undergraduate grade-point average of at least 3.00 on the last 60 hours of coursework.
  3. Documented years of experience, approved by the program coordinator, in the proposed graduate field of study.
  4. Six graduate hours in the proposed field of study (nine hours for the MBA) or related field at another accredited institution with at least a 3.00 overall GPA on a 4.00 scale.
  5. Scores on an appropriate nationally recognized battery of tests (GRE or similar test approved by the Graduate Dean) placing the applicant at or above the seventy-fifth percentile of college graduates.

Program-Specific Admission

Acceptance into a graduate program at Southeastern does not assure admission to the following master’s degree programs, which have additional in-department admission requirements conducted at the coordinator’s discretion:

  • Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  • Master of Science in Occupational Safety and Health
  • Master of Science in Aerospace Administration and Logistics
  • Master of Music Education
  • Master of Science in Biology

The applicant must have full admission to the School of Graduate Studies with an approved plan of study on file prior to applying for admission to a specific program.

Concurrent Graduate Study / Seniors in Graduate Courses

Senior undergraduate students enrolling in their final semester of undergraduate study may enroll in 5000-level graduate courses with departmental approval, provided they have fulfilled the following criteria:

  1. Obtained permission from the School of Graduate Studies and met the admission requirements of the intended graduate program.
  2. Enrolled in enough undergraduate coursework to complete the requirements for the bachelor’s degree.
  3. Submitted up-to-date transcripts of all college work to the Graduate Office.
  4. If not currently enrolled at Southeastern, submitted a letter or email from their college or university with an anticipated graduation date.

Seniors receiving permission to enroll in graduate courses are provisionally admitted to graduate study. Note: This policy does not apply to Graduate Counseling courses (COUN prefix) per program specialty accreditation requirements.

Non-Degree Seeking Admission

Students may enroll in a maximum of 12 credit hours as a non-degree seeking graduate student. To be considered, the applicant must have a minimum of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution, submit an application for admission, and provide an official transcript from the highest degree-granting institution. Graduate coursework taken as a non-degree-seeking student may not subsequently be applied to a master’s degree program.

Certificate Admission

Graduate Studies offers embedded and stand-alone certificate offerings as postsecondary credentials comprised of a course of study that is a subset of a single existing graduate degree or a combination of courses in the degree inventory. Certificate offerings are designed to provide specific skills and knowledge that can be readily transferred to the workforce.

For certificate admission, the applicant must have a minimum of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution, submit an application for admission, and provide one official transcript from each college or university attended. The granting of a certificate will be transcribed upon successful completion of all required coursework.

Transfer of Credit

A maximum of nine (9) semester hours of equivalency credit may be accepted from another regionally accredited college or university toward the master’s degree at Southeastern. A maximum of six (6) semester hours of equivalency credit may be accepted toward certificate programs comprised of 12 or more hours.

All hours, or any part thereof, may be applied when, in the judgment of the Dean of Graduate Studies and the program coordinator, they contribute to the planned program of the student, reflect grades of C or better, and meet the time limit regulation. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the coordinator with a course description and, if possible, a course syllabus for equivalency consideration. All decisions can be appealed to the Graduate Council, whose decision is final.

Second Master’s Degree

Students with a master’s degree from an accredited institution may complete a second master’s degree at Southeastern by completing all requirements (admission, residence, time limitations, etc.) for the second degree. The second master’s degree plan must contain a minimum of twenty-one graduate hours not applied toward any other master’s program, developed in consultation with the Academic Advisor and approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.