It is highly recommended that you meet with your advisor at least once a year, if not once a semester, to confirm you are on the right path to graduate on time. It is your advisor’s primary function to make sure you have a plan and the tools needed to complete your degree. Be sure to check Degree Navigator often to track your course completion and progress.

Your transcript and myRutgers portal will show your expected date of graduation. Please be sure this date lines up with your plans. If you think it is off, please speak with your advisor.

Undergraduate students at Mason Gross are encouraged to take advantage of a variety of courses available outside of their intended majors, as their schedules allow. Students who take a few courses in a certain subject may find that they have enough credits to declare a second major or minor in that area.

Students are encouraged to start taking these additional classes as soon as they are able but to wait until at least their second year before declaring the second major or minor on their transcript.

Note: Mason Gross students declared in a BFA or BM program may not declare a second major in a Mason Gross curriculum (i.e. Art & Design, Dance, Film, Music or Theater). However, Mason Gross students declared in a BFA or BM program may declare a minor in another Mason Gross curriculum. For example, a Mason Gross BFA Dance Major cannot declare a second major in Music, but they can declare the Music minor.  

Students who would like to declare a second major or minor but are not sure if doing so would be right for them should speak with their advisor. Advisors will know what second majors/minors best complement specific majors and can assist students in choosing a major/minor that fits their personal strengths and interests.

Students should be sure to review the entry requirements for the major/minor they are exploring and note that the following majors require a separate application process and must be submitted directly to the offering school:

• Communication
• Information Technology and Informatics
• Journalism and Media Studies
• Health Administration
• Planning and Public Policy
• Public Health
• Public Policy
• Urban Planning and Design

For all other programs, students should request to declare a second major/minor online through the Mason Gross
MyMajor portal. The MyMajor Portal can also be used to confirm your anticipated graduation date.

If students decide their Mason Gross major is not right for them, they may choose to transfer out of Mason Gross to another school within Rutgers University. When this happens students should first speak with their advisor before changing their schedule on their own. We have advised many students through successful transitions to other majors at Rutgers University. No one has to do this alone!

Any Mason Gross School of the Arts undergraduate student who wishes to transfer to another undergraduate school at Rutgers-New Brunswick may do so by filing a school-to-school transfer application, which is available online. Submission of the transfer application does not guarantee admission to the school or department of the student’s choice and also does not guarantee the transfer of merit scholarships awarded to the student while enrolled at Mason Gross.

Each academic unit at Rutgers has different requirements for admission through the school-to-school application. Students should review these pages if they are interested in enrolling in a different major at Rutgers and to see if they meet the criteria for admission:

• Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy
• Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
• Rutgers Business School
• School of Arts and Sciences
• School of Communication and Information
• School of Engineering
• School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
• Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations
• School of Nursing

**AGAIN, PLEASE NOTE: Students receiving a merit scholarship from Mason Gross must contact the scholarship administrator at the school to which they would like to transfer to see if their Mason Gross Award will be honored before they commit to transferring. Transfer of merit scholarships from one Rutgers unit to another is not guaranteed.

If you are currently enrolled and need to register for the subsequent fall or spring term you will be eligible to do so during pre-registration. Continuing students gain access to registration based on the number of credits they have completed. The Priority Registration Calendar Schedule is available on the Registrar website.

Students returning to Mason Gross after an absence will be able to register for classes once their re-enrollment has been processed and approved. Typically, re-enrollment applications will not be processed until after the pre-registration period, so please plan accordingly.

Full-time students (i.e., those taking at least 12 credits) are charged a flat tuition rate and permitted to take additional credits (up to the maximum credit limit) at no additional cost. If students are taking a credit load less than full-time, they will be charged tuition by the credit.

All undergraduate majors in Mason Gross School of the Arts are full-time, professional degree programs. Only under extenuating circumstances, as determined by the Assistant Dean for Advising and Student Success, can a Mason Gross undergraduate student attend on a part-time basis. This policy also applies to undergraduate students in their final semester, even if they require fewer than 12 credits to complete their degree.

Full-time status is required for most financial aid awards. Therefore, students should consider the impact that part-time registration may have on their scholarships and/or financial aid.

Full-time undergraduate students at Mason Gross usually carry at least 15 credits per semester and in some programs need to carry more than 15 credits in one or more semesters to graduate within the standard four-year period.

Rutgers offers three placement tests to inform students and their advisors of the appropriate classes that students should take. Students are encouraged to take these placement tests before they are registered and are advised to complete their placement tests within 30 days of their official enrollment. Tests are available for English, Math, and World Language. CLICK HERE for general information about placement test requirements. Read below for testing information specific to Mason Gross.

English Placement Test – All new undergraduate students are required to take the English Placement Test unless they receive transfer credit for Expository Writing (01:355:101) or they demonstrate SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores of 650 or higher or ACT Reading scores of 32 or higher.  Students with these test scores will automatically be placed in Expository Writing (01:355:101) and are not required to complete the English Placement Test.  First-year students who do not meet the SAT/ACT score requirements above or do not have Dual Enrollment credit for Expository writing must take the English Placement Test.

Students who place into courses below the level of Expository Writing must take all required writing pre-requisite courses to Expository Writing at Rutgers–New Brunswick. Transfer students entering Rutgers without an equivalent Expository Writing course must complete the English Placement Test.

For more information about the English Placement Test, please CLICK HERE.

Math Placement Test – All new undergraduate students (first-year and transfer) are highly encouraged to take the Math Placement Test, regardless of their course of study. Even if their major does not have a math requirement, many liberal arts courses and double majors do, so students are encouraged to take this test proactively while their math skills are still fresh.  With Math Placement Test results students will not have an extra hurdle to overcome if they wish to take a math course in the future. 

For additional Math Placement Test information and exemptions, please CLICK HERE

World Language Placement Test – New undergraduate students are encouraged to take the World Language Placement Test for languages students have had experience with and intend on taking an advanced course in at Rutgers. Students planning to start studying a new world language at Rutgers should NOT take the test in the new language. CLICK HERE for more information on the World Language Placement Test.  

Mason Gross Undergraduate students must fulfill non-major course requirements, referred to as liberal arts courses. Students are provided lists of courses that would fulfill liberal arts requirements; however, students often identify courses offered at other units within Rutgers not included on the lists we provide. Students who would like to fulfill a liberal arts requirement by taking a course that is not included on our lists may submit a request though the form below.

During fall and spring pre-registration, Mason Gross students are restricted to a maximum of 20 credits until the first day of classes, when the add/drop period opens. During the add/drop period, the 20-credit restriction will be lifted, and Mason Gross students may register for a maximum 24 credits.

• Students may not be registered for more than 12 credits in the summer. This includes the total number of courses taken at Rutgers and elsewhere.
• Students may not be registered for more than two courses in a single summer session or overlapping sessions.
• Students are expected to pay for summer courses before they begin.
• It is recommended that incoming first-year students not take classes in the summer before their enrollment at Mason Gross. Exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and preapproval is required for any summer classes. Contact us at advisement@mgsa.rutgers.edu.
• The summer registration system does not monitor course prerequisites or time conflicts, so it may allow you to register for courses when you are not eligible to do so. Be aware that:
  • It is the student’s responsibility to be sure prerequisites have been satisfied. We reserve the right to retroactively deny credit if the proper prerequisites are not met, even if the course has been completed with a passing grade.
  • It is the student’s responsibility to be sure courses do not conflict with each other.
  • Under a Consortium Agreement at Rutgers University–New Brunswick, a matriculated undergraduate may receive financial assistance to take courses at another school (host school) and have the completed credits count toward their degree requirements at Rutgers.
  • Prior to applying for financial assistance, students MUST obtain pre-approval from their MGSA-based academic advisor and have a completed financial aid application (FAFSA) on file for the appropriate award year.
  • If a student is pre-approved to complete course(s) outside of Rutgers University–New Brunswick and would like to be considered for financial aid for those course(s), the student should visit https://scarlethub.rutgers.edu/NBConsortium for additional information.

First-year students are not permitted to register for winter session course.  All other students may take no more than two courses or a maximum 4 credits in the winter session. Please note that not all winter session courses are equivalent to courses with the same title and number offered in the fall and spring terms, therefore students are advised to receive preapproval to be sure the course will count towards their degree prior to registration.

Undergraduate students who wish to register for two courses but are blocked from doing so by WebReg because of a scheduling conflict (due to the time, days, or location of the courses), must request an override from their advisor. These students will need to provide written approval from one or both instructors of the two courses stating the student will be allowed either to arrive late or leave early from at least one of the two courses.

Students will only be approved for a conflict override if meeting times overlap only slightly due to estimated travel time. They will not be approved if an entire meeting time conflicts.

When there is an overlap scheduling conflict, students should register for the class which is more likely to reach maximum capacity first while they await approval and processing of the scheduling conflict override.

All requests for conflict overrides submitted prior to the first day of classes will be processed before the end of the add/drop period.

With permission from their advisor a student may repeat a course taken at Rutgers University in which they earned a grade of “D” or “F.” If they earn a higher grade by repeating the course, the student may request that the original grade be deleted from the cumulative GPA (grade-point average) by application of an “E” prefix. Although the original grade of “D” or “F” will remain on the transcript, the “E” prefix allows the original grade to be omitted from the cumulative GPA.

To qualify, repeated courses must be taken at Rutgers and may be used only once for any given course. If a student fails the course a second time, only the second “D” or “F” will be computed into the cumulative average.

This action can only be completed for a maximum of 16 credits and in no more than four courses.

To request permission to apply the “E” prefix to a course that was successfully repeated, students should submit the form below to their advisor.

Satisfactory academic progress (SAP) is a requirement for all undergraduate students receiving federal, state, or university assistance while enrolled at Rutgers. Financial aid recipients must meet both a qualitative and a quantitative standard to maintain eligibility for aid. In addition, the student must complete the program within the maximum timeframe. To learn more about Rutgers Satisfactory Academic Progress as it relates to financial aid, how to file a SAP appeal, and what to do if you are unable to meet SAP standards, CLICK HERE.

In the fall or spring term, after the add/drop period is over, students may elect to withdraw from a single course until the 7th week of the semester. Students are encouraged to withdraw from a single course if failure is imminent due to performance or attendance in a class (typically indicated by warning grades mid-semester).

Undergraduate students may freely withdraw from a single course if they remain above 12 credits after the withdrawal. If the withdrawal drops their credit load below 12 credits, the student will need to gain permission from the Assistant Dean for Advising and Student Success to withdraw from the class.

Single-course withdrawal deadlines are posted on the Registrar website. 

Withdrawals from single courses will result in a “W” grade on the student’s transcript. “W” grades are considered attempted credits; therefore, even when dropping below 12 credits due to withdrawal from a single course, students will still be considered full-time for billing and financial aid purposes.

No refunds of tuition are given for individual course withdrawals after the second week of classes.

At times, students may experience personal circumstances or hardships preventing them from completing a semester. When this happens, students should meet with an advisor to determine the best course of action. Students may be advised or elect to withdraw from all classes.

Students withdrawing from all courses with the intent to return to their program in the future will be initiating a leave of absence.

Students withdrawing from all courses who do not intend on returning to complete their degree are withdrawing from the university.

A student who withdraws from all courses, may receive a partial refund according to the rules described on the Student Accounting website.

Withdrawal is not permitted during the last two weeks of classes.

More information on withdrawing from all courses can be found on the Scarlet Hub website.

At times, students may receive approval for a Rutgers direct equivalent at institutions outside of Rutgers (that are not NJ Community Colleges). If you’d like to make a request for a course that is outside of Rutgers and not at a NJ Community College, please use the Transfer Course Evaluation Form.

For courses available at NJ Community Colleges, please use the Outside Course Approval Form.

Under New Jersey state law, certain approved courses in high school may be taken for college credit. Students should consult with an advisor to determine if these courses qualify for credit at Mason Gross.

New Jersey Community College credit earned while the student is in high school, courses taken at the high school and recorded on a college transcript, or courses taken the summer prior to matriculation at Rutgers may be submitted for credit transfer with an official college transcript. Courses taken while in high school at New Jersey Community Colleges may have Rutgers equivalents in njtransfer.org, but they may only transfer as elective credit or may not transfer at all. In these cases, students are advised to submit an official transcript, course description, and syllabus to their major advisor for evaluation.

Under New Jersey state law, certain approved courses in high school may be taken for college credit. An official college transcript is required to have credit for these courses applied to their Rutgers transcript. Students should consult with an advisor to determine if the courses taken qualify for credit at Mason Gross. Students may earn College Writing credit if they complete an equivalent writing course through an official dual enrollment program while in high school at a New Jersey Community College or at another New Jersey State public college or university. 

Degree credit for non-major liberal arts courses is awarded for advanced placement scores of 4 or 5 on the College Board Advanced Placement Exams. Credit is not given for scores of 1, 2, or 3. Credit earned by advanced placement is not computed in the cumulative grade-point average.

A score of 4 or 5 on either the English Language/Composition (Test #36) or English Literature/Composition (Test #37) awards credit for College Writing (01:355:101). A score of 4 or 5 received on both the English Language/Composition and English Literature/Composition awards credit for both College Writing (01:355:101) and Introduction to Literature (01:358:201).

For a full list of AP course credit equivalents please click here.

Mason Gross recognizes the rigor of the International Baccalaureate program and grants college credit for students who demonstrate strong performance (scores of 7, 6, and 5) on Higher Level exams. Credit is not given for grades of 4 or lower or for Subsidiary/Standard Level exams.

For a full list of IB course credit equivalents, please click here.

Once admitted to Rutgers University–New Brunswick, all first-year and transfer students without equivalent transfer credit are required to complete College Writing 101 (01:355:101) at the New Brunswick campus.

Students may receive College Writing 101 Credit prior to enrollment if they meet any of the following requirements:

EXPOS CREDIT THROUGH DUAL ENROLLMENT – The Writing Program will accept dual enrollment credits earned in partnership between a New Jersey High School and NJ Community Colleges or other New Jersey state universities/colleges (in courses listed as equivalent to 01:355:101 in NJ Transfer) as equivalent to 01:355:101. This policy does not apply to Dual Enrollment with other private schools (e.g. Seton Hall, FDU, Kean or Syracuse). Credit may not be transferred in from a course taken during high school at another college or university that is not a New Jersey Community College or a New Jersey state College or University, even if taken through a Dual Enrollment program at that school. Additionally, it does not apply to incoming first-year students looking to take a writing course between their senior year of high school and matriculation at Rutgers (this includes summer).

EXPOS CREDIT FOR NJ COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRANSFER STUDENTS – Students transferring from a New Jersey Community College will receive credit for College Writing 101 if the course taken at the New Jersey Community College is listed as equivalent to College Writing 101 at Rutgers on njtransfer.org.

EXPOS CREDIT FOR TRANSFER STUDENTS FROM OTHER FOUR-YEAR INSTITUTIONS – Students transferring from a college or university outside of the New Jersey Community College system may request College Writing 101 credit from a course taken at their prior institution if they believe the course is equivalent to College Writing 101 at Rutgers by submitting an official transcript, course description and syllabus to their assigned advisor. College Writing 101 credit may then be awarded credit for the course. If the assigned advisor determines the course completed does not qualify as equivalent to College Writing 101 the student may submit an appeal to the Rutgers Writing Program.

COLLEGE CREDIT WHILE IN HIGH SCHOOL/DUAL ENROLLMENT – For first-year students who have taken a college-level math course while in high school, the transferability of the credits will be dependent upon their performance on the Rutgers Math Placement Test and submission of an official college transcript.  For the placement test they must place at an equal or higher level of the course they would like to receive credit for. For example, if a student has received credit for pre-calculus taken at a college while in high school, they must place into pre-calculus or higher in order to receive the credit for the course at Rutgers.

TRANSFER STUDENTS – Transfer students may receive transfer credit for equivalent math courses taken at New Jersey Community Colleges as indicated on NJTransfer.org (New Jersey Community Colleges only) or for courses listed on the Math Transfer Credit Chart, which also includes courses from some New Jersey four-year institutions. To have credit earned from one of these approved courses applied to a Rutgers transcript, students must provide their advisor with an official college transcript.  Transfer students are not required to take the math placement test to take upper level math courses if they receive course equivalent transfer credit from any of the courses listed on the Math Transfer Credit Chart.

The Rutgers-New Brunswick/Piscataway Math Department will not approve the transfer of any course with 3 or more credits offered in any session (summer, winter, or other) lasting fewer than 5 weeks.

The Rutgers-New Brunswick/Piscataway Math Department will not approve the transfer of courses taught at sites that are not on the campus of the college offering them. Online and hybrid courses are acceptable, on condition that the student can document that the courses had adequate examination integrity protocols.

Students who have taken two or more years of foreign-language courses in high school must take a placement exam before taking a course in that language as an undergraduate. Students who speak a second language at home but are looking to take courses in that language at Rutgers also need to take the placement exam. Students who have studied two or more years of a foreign language in high school may not receive credit for the 100- to 102-level courses in that foreign language at Rutgers. Intermediate foreign language is the first level for which they may receive credit.

Courses taken prior to enrollment as a BA or BFA in dance must be evaluated and approved by the Dance Department using the Transfer Course Departmental Evaluation Form. Once enrolled in the BA or BFA dance program, courses taken outside of Rutgers are not accepted for credit within the major but may count as elective credit.

Due to the innate artistic nature of Filmmaking, the transfer credit process for film production is based on portfolio and course syllabus assessment by Film faculty. Please include the specific type of equipment when seeking consideration. Students are notified of a department’s decision via email, with the advisor providing a transfer credit summary over the summer.

Once enrolled, BFA Filmmaking students cannot take film credits at another institution.

Placement in the level of applied music lessons is based on the Mason Gross audition, regardless of the number of semesters of lessons taken elsewhere (and/or the number of credits transferred).

Transfer credit for, and placement in, music theory, aural skills, and music history courses is based on a review of the grade earned and the syllabi of the relevant courses; in addition, students must earn the required minimum grade in the Music Department’s placement tests. The department determines if music transfer course(s) are equivalent to the Mason Gross Music Department’s course(s) or not. In some cases, a course may be approved for elective credit, but not for a specific Music Department course.

A student who has completed music history, music theory, or aural skills courses at other institutions and wishes to place out of the equivalent Mason Gross course must take the final exam of the Mason Gross course. Course exemptions will be determined based on the test evaluation by the appropriate music faculty.

To graduate, a student must reach the level of performance required by the Music Department, regardless of previous study; also, a student must complete the full Music Department sequence in music theory, aural skills, music history, and applied major lessons, even if some credits in these areas have been approved for elective credit.

Courses taken prior to enrollment as a BA or BFA in theater must be evaluated and approved by the Theater Department using the Transfer Course Departmental Evaluation Form. In most cases, prior coursework transfers in as elective credit only. Once enrolled in the BA or BFA theater program, external courses are not accepted for credit within the major but may count as elective credit.

MGSA Graduation Review and Graduation Dates

The Office for Advising & Student Success reviews students for graduation based upon the declared graduation date, which is determined upon admission to Rutgers. Undergraduate students who wish to change their graduation date must meet with their assigned MGSA Student Success Counselor and submit a formal request through MyMajor. Graduate students must meet with their assigned departmental advisor to be reviewed for graduation and follow the policy of their department.

All students must apply to graduate through the Online Diploma Application System. Failure to do so in a timely manner will result in not being tracked for the appropriate graduation cycle and possibly being blocked from registering for future coursework.

There are three graduation cycles:

January following the fall and winter terms
May following the spring term
August following the summer term

You are expected to graduate once your degree requirements are complete. MGSA will review and forward the names of students whose requirements are complete by the declared graduation date to the Registrar’s office, which will post the degree to the transcript. If you need to stay beyond your declared graduation date, you must submit a request to change your date at MyMajor PRIOR TO the end of the semester

Diploma Information

It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that their graduation date is correct. The Diploma Application will say ‘PENDING’ under Dean Review until we complete our entire graduation review process for May, August, and January graduates. Those updates will happen in mid-June, mid-September, and early February. Students are responsible for confirming diploma information by checking the Online Diploma Application System within 30 days of the end of the anticipated graduation term. Failure to do so may result in the granting of a degree in a later application cycle.

Diplomas are not distributed at the MGSA Convocation Ceremony. Diplomas will be mailed to the address listed on your diploma application approximately 6–8 weeks after graduation. Contact the Registrar for more questions about the distribution of diplomas.