Graduation Policies

Graduation Application

To receive a certificate or degree, a Graduation Application must be filed with the Student Services Office by the published graduation application deadline in which the student plans to complete requirements. It is the student's responsibility to apply for graduation. The Graduation Application form may be downloaded from the MCC website, requested from the Student Services Office, or requested from MCC Centers.

LATE GRADUATION APPLICATIONS

Graduation Application forms received after the term deadline may risk missing deadlines for:

• Graduation honors designations & honors cord
• Graduation publicity
• Commencement program inclusion
• May incur delay in final graduation processing & receipt of diploma beyond the usual 4-6 weeks after term end
• May incur extra charges for commencement participation

Graduation Application Deadlines

Only one graduation ceremony is held each year.

To receive a certificate or degree a Graduation Application form must be filed with the Student Services Office by the following dates:

Note: If the listed date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, or a date the college is closed, the deadline will be the following Monday.

Graduation Requirements

Graduation requirements for degrees and certificates listed are as follows:

• Completed all course requirements for the degree or certificate as listed in the candidate’s effective catalog or addendum
• Cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher (Some certificate programs may be computed based on program only GPA with Instructional Dean or Vice President of Instruction approval)
• No grades below a "C" among the required courses in the program
• Satisfactorily completed a minimum of 15 credit hours in residency at the institution from which the degree is offered. Residency hours must apply to the program of study for which you are applying to graduate. For certificates, at least 25% of the credits must be completed in residence. Online courses with registrations through the home college will be included in residency hours.
• Submitted a Graduation Application form for the completion term
• Met all financial obligations to the College (To receive a diploma or transcripts, all financial obligations to the college must be met as well as any financial obligations to other CCCS system colleges)

Note: Certain programs have additional requirements. Check program layouts or consult with academic advisors for specifics.

Other Graduation Policies

• Morgan Community College will accept those courses in transfer that have been completed with a "C" or better at an accredited college or university, or other approved institution
• No remedial or developmental courses will be applicable to an Associate of Arts (A.A.), Associate of Science (A.S.), Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) or Associate of General Studies (A.G.S.) degree
• The College reserves the right to substitute or delete course work based on current curriculum
• All Guaranteed Transfer gtPathways courses used to complete the State Guaranteed Transfer requirements and the 60 credits for the A.A. and A.S. degrees must be completed at a "C" or higher level
• No more than three (3) semester hours of physical education course work may be applied to an associate degree program
• To complete an associate degree program or certificate, students are required to fulfill the requirements in effect at the time of initial enrollment as specified in the MCC catalog. If a student does not attend the College for at least two consecutive semesters, excluding summer semester, the student will be subject to the requirements of the catalog in effect at the time of re-enrollment

Graduation Honors

Graduation honors recognize outstanding academic achievement throughout a student’s academic career at Morgan Community College. The honors are awarded to students who complete the requirements for an associate degree and earn a 3.5 or better cumulative grade point average (CGPA) at the institution. Only college level courses completed at Morgan Community College will be included in the GPA calculation.

A minimum of 51% of the degree credits must be earned in residence at MCC to be eligible for graduation honors. The three levels of recognition are defined as follows and will be posted on the student’s transcript.

-Approved by CCCS Education Services Council; CCCS ES 9-85 Graduation Honors

Other Graduation Honors Requirements

• Submitted a Graduation Application by the graduation application deadline for the completion term.
• Applied to graduate with an Associate of Arts (A.A.), Associate of Science (A.S.), Associate of General Studies (A.G.S.), or Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree.
• Transfer students must have completed a minimum of 51% of course work at MCC
• Recipients must have all course work in progress to be completed by the end of the graduation semester to be recognized at commencement and receive honors designations during the ceremony, in the program, and in commencement publicity.
• Honors recognition at the Spring Commencement ceremony is based on the GPA from the last completed term prior to the graduation term.
• If a final CGPA qualifies a spring graduate for honors, even though the previous final GPA was below 3.50, the honor will be posted on the official academic transcript, although the honor was not noted at the commencement ceremony. Conversely, if a final GPA disqualifies a spring graduate from receipt of honors designation, the designation will not be posted on the official academic transcript, even if the honor was noted in the ceremony program and publicity.

Commencement Ceremony

An annual commencement ceremony is held at the end of the spring semester for the previous fall graduates and spring graduation candidates. Participation in the commencement ceremony does not imply that a degree/certificate has been awarded. All degree requirements must be met before a degree/certificate is awarded. Students must pay a commencement participation charge to attend the ceremony.

Summer Completers

Students completing their requirements in the upcoming summer may participate in the spring commencement ceremony. 

See SUMMER COMPLETERS for additional information

Commencement Participation Charge

There is a charge for each commencement participation. Completion of the Graduation Application form DOES NOT constitute notice that you plan to participate in the spring ceremony. Students must contact the MCC Bookstore or MCC Center Office by the 4th week of the term to purchase a commencement participation package. A late charge may be added for those failing to meet this deadline.

Students who do not plan to participate in the college commencement ceremony may purchase a diploma cover and/or tassel from the MCC bookstore or from a local area MCC Center.

Graduation Publicity

Graduation applicants who apply by the posted deadlines will have their names are printed in the annual commencement program each May and in any media reports about the ceremony unless the Registrar’s Office is contacted in writing or by email by the 4th week of the graduation term. No guarantees are made that information will be withheld, but every attempt will be made to do so.

Diplomas, Transcripts, and Degree Posting

There is no charge to receive a diploma. After the end of the semester and after all final grades are recorded, the earned degrees and certificates are posted to the official academic record. If transcripts are desired with the degree posted, students should wait to request their transcripts until the degree appears on their academic record (students can check their online accounts).

Diplomas are mailed 6-8 weeks after the end of the term. The diploma is issued with the name listed in the official academic records and is mailed to the LOCAL address listed in the student records.

If Requirements Are Not Complete

If degree/certificate requirements, including financial obligations, are not complete by the end of the application term, a new Graduation Application form is required for the following term. No further processing will be done without a new application.

Summer Completers

Summer Completers and Spring Commencement Participation

Students completing requirements during the summer term who wish to participate in the previous spring commencement ceremony should indicate summer as the award term, but should submit the Graduation Application using the spring term deadline (February 1) to be sure to receive all commencement ceremony email notices, etc.

Summer Completers and Honors

A student who is completing requirements during the summer term will not be eligible for commencement honors recognition the spring before completion. If, at the end of the summer term, completion is within honors ranges, the honors will be posted to the student’s official transcript.

MAPP Testing Requirement for Graduation

All full-time degree-seeking students need to take the MAPP test during their last semester before graduation. This test provides MCC with information about the effectiveness of their degree programs. This data is used to compare MCC to other community colleges nationwide. There is no charge for this exam, it takes approximately 40 minutes, and is scheduled by the student through the Testing Center in the LRC or through a local area MCC Center.