Residency Requirement

Residency requirement refers to the number of credits that students must take at JWU to be eligible for a degree or certificate, whether they are transfer students or JWU students acquiring an additional degree.

Classes taken elsewhere while matriculating at JWU are considered transfer credits and do not apply to residency requirements. In general, credits taken during study abroad programs are processed as transfer credits and do not apply to residency requirements.

Please see the appropriate section for information regarding residency requirements.

The residency requirement for all students pursuing an associate degree is a minimum of 21.0 credit hours, half of which must be within the major field.

For students pursuing a bachelor’s degree, the minimum is 30.0 credit hours, half of which must be within the major field.

Students pursuing a certificate program will be allowed to transfer a maximum of 6.0 credits (including re-use of JWU courses) toward certificate program requirements. Please note that Micro-Certificates do not allow for transfer credit or re-use of previous coursework.

Upon department chair review, certain related professional studies courses, baking or culinary foundations, business foundations and program electives may be considered when determining residency. Standardized testing credits are not considered when determining residency requirements.

Additional Degrees

Students in good academic standing may pursue one additional associate degree in a program that has a minimum of 21.0 credits which are not in their primary major (there must be a 21.0-credit difference between the two associate degrees). Half of the credits must be within the major field of the additional associate degree. Classes in the additional associate degree may not be used as electives in the primary major if residency requirements have not been met.

Students in good academic standing may pursue one additional bachelor's degree in a program that has a minimum of 30 credits which are not in their primary major (there must be a 30-credit difference between the two bachelor's degrees). This will typically equate to at least a full year of study beyond the first baccalaureate degree. Half of the credits must be within the major field of the additional bachelor's degree. Classes in the additional bachelor's degree may not be used as electives in the primary major if residency requirements have not been met.

Note: Students pursuing additional degrees may also incur additional tuition and fees. 

A maximum of 20 percent of the program’s credits may be awarded as transfer credit in accordance with the university's Graduate Transfer Credit Policy.

Additional Degrees

Due to the overlap in core curriculum, students who complete an MBA at Johnson & Wales University are not eligible to complete a second MBA at Johnson & Wales University. However, any student who received a master’s degree from Johnson & Wales University may apply for admittance to additional master's degree programs at the university through Graduate Admissions. A maximum of 20 percent of coursework may be shared between the graduate programs. Students must be in good academic standing and meet the entrance requirements for the prospective program to gain admittance.

Note: Students pursuing additional degrees may also incur additional tuition and fees.