General Requirements for a Master’s Degree
The following requirements apply to all master’s degree programs. (Specific degree requirements are listed each program section of this Catalog.) Each master’s degree student must:
- Satisfactorily complete the approved program of study.
- Complete the minimum master’s requirement of 33 credits required for the degree. The last 15 credits of the degree must be earned at SPU.
- Complete no fewer than 27 credits on the master’s degree after being admitted to the specific degree program.
- Complete at least a 3-credit graduate course in Christian faith and values.
- Maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher. No course in which a grade below C (= 2.0) is earned may apply toward a master’s degree. If a student’s cumulative GPA falls below 3.0 (= B), he or she will be placed on academic probation.
- Maintain the professional and personal standards expected of graduate students that are stipulated for each program. Failure to maintain these standards may result in removal from the program of study and degree status.
- Apply for the master’s degree no later than the second week of the quarter before the student plans to graduate. For example, students expecting to graduate at the end of Winter Quarter should apply no later than the second week of Autumn Quarter. Application forms are available online.
- Make application for any required comprehensive examination at least four weeks before the examination is scheduled and pay the comprehensive examination fee at Student Financial Services (SFS).
- Pay the cost of binding the requested copies of the thesis/project (if applicable) to the appropriate graduate office.
- Students who may reasonably complete all graduation requirements by the start of the following Autumn Quarter may seek special permission to participate in Commencement. This requires that the director of graduate studies for the student’s program make such a recommendation to the registrar.
- Participation in the University’s Commencement exercises, held at the end of Spring Quarter each year, is optional.
- Note: Degrees are awarded and posted to academic records after all degree requirements have been completed. This occurs during the quarter following the last quarter of enrollment.
Second Master’s Degree
Students holding a master’s degree from an accredited institution may earn a second master’s degree at Seattle Pacific under the following conditions:
- The student meets the normal admission requirements for admission to the University and to the specific degree program.
- The student meets all degree requirements for the second degree.
- Credits earned by the student while taking his or her first master’s degree may be used to meet the requirements of the second master’s degree, provided those credits were taken within seven years of admission to the second degree program.
- Regardless of how many credits from the first master’s degree are counted toward the second master’s degree, the student will in any case complete a minimum of 27 credits on his or her approved program of study at SPU after being admitted for the second degree. Of these 27 credits, at least 15 will be in 6000-level courses.
- The specialization in the second master’s degree program will be different from that of the first master’s degree. The student may work toward two master’s degrees simultaneously.