UNIVERSITY STUDIES DEGREE

Coordinator, Ed Barbanell, Ph.D.
University Studies Program
144 Sill Center

Mailing Address:
195 S. Central Campus Dr.
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0511

Phone: 585-6423
Fax: 585-3581
E-mail: barbanell-e@ugs.utah.edu

The purpose of the Bachelor of University Studies (B.U.S.) degree option is to enable students, under the guidance of a faculty adviser, to design their own majors by combining courses from several departments. The student/adviser team submits the proposed major to the University Studies Committee for approval. The general guidelines for the B.U.S. degree are as follows:

1. The major emphasis must be thematically cohesive as well as interdisciplinary. It may not resemble a combination of existing major and minor in any academic departments. Examples of major titles include Medical Illustration, Human Diversity, and Biopsychology.
2. Courses may be drawn from existing University courses that fulfill bachelor's degree requirements. Some courses may require special permission to enter.
3. The student's selection of a faculty adviser is subject to committee approval. The adviser should be a tenure-track professor with academic expertise in the student's major emphasis. The student will be coded for graduation in the academic college of this adviser, but is subject to no graduation requirements other than those of the B.U.S. Program.
4. The student must commit to completing at least 40 additional semester hours at the time the proposal is submitted. The student must also have a minimum GPA of 2.5.

Program Graduation Requirements

1. Complete at least 122 semester units, no more than 40 from one department unless the total of graduation credits exceeds 122.
2. Complete at least 56 upper-division units.
3. Complete at least 44 units in the major emphasis, 16 of which are at the 4000 level or above. Credit/no-credit courses and courses with a grade of C- or below are not counted as part of major emphasis.
4. Design and complete a senior project that brings together the program's disparate elements. This will be supervised and graded by the student's faculty adviser.
5. Complete the University's undergraduate general education requirements.
6. Complete University requirements for either a B.A. or B.S. degree.
7. Complete an exit interview with the B.U.S. adviser.