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It is highly recommended to run a new degree audit every time you register or when changes are made to your record (i.e. course substitutions, transfer work, major changes, certificate change, etc.). This will help you stay on track for graduation requirements.
Graduation Requirements
Graduation requirements for each degree certificate program are outlined in the Degree and Certificate Information section of the Aims catalog. The catalog that is current at the time you declare a program will be used for your graduation requirements. If you do not maintain continuous enrollment (if you have a break in enrollment of three semester or longer), you must use the requirements listed in the new catalog in effect at the time you return.
Things to Know Before You Apply for Graduation:
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All degrees and/or certificates must be declared before applying for graduation. Please review the Academics Overview tab in your Workday profile to review the program(s) you are declared in. If you are not declared in a program and apply to graduate with it, your application will be denied.
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A Graduation Application should be submitted for the degree and/or certificate that you plan to complete, after you register for your final semester of classes. Please make sure all requirements will be met for graduation before submitting an application. If requirements are not met and they will be met by other means (transfer work, Challenge Exams, Sub Memo/Waiver, etc.) please make sure to submit an application and email gradapp@aims.edu right away with those details.
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Summer students may participate in the Spring ceremony and can apply for graduation after they register for their Spring course work.
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All course substitutions must be submitted before applying for graduation.
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If you need to transfer credits from another school, please begin the transfer credit evaluation process no later than 30 business days prior to the end of the semester you plan to graduate. Please visit our Transfer Information page for additional details.
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If you are taking a course at another college in the same term you will graduate, please email gradapp@aims.edu with details on what credits you plan to transfer in your last semester, after you submit your graduation application. Send an official transcript with your final grades as soon as grades are posted. Please see the posted deadlines for the date official transcripts must be received each term. Please visit our Transfer Information page for more information.
How to Apply for Graduation:
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Please utilize the ‘Submitting an Official Graduation Application’ job aid to submit a graduation application. Make sure to review the entire application for graduation deadlines.
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Once you submit your application, you will receive a notification in your Workday account confirming it was successfully submitted.
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All requirements for your program must be showing as being fulfilled/in progress in order for your graduation application to be reviewed and processed. If you will be meeting graduation requirements another way (transfer work, Challenge Exam, Sub Memo, etc.) this needs to be communicated to gradapp@aims.edu. If there is no communication about how remaining requirements will be met, your graduation application will be denied. If your graduation application is denied, it will be your responsibility to follow up with your advisor and re-apply when the outstanding requirements have been resolved.
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Your graduation application will be reviewed in the order it was received and a graduation status report will be sent to your aims.edu email account. If your application is for a future term, your application will not be processed until graduation reviews begin for that term.
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If you need to make any changes to the graduation application after it is submitted (i.e. change in classes, change of major, change of graduation date), please email gradapp@aims.edu with your new plans so we can provide next steps. Please note, you cannot change your graduation term for the purpose of attending another commencement ceremony. Requests for changes in graduation terms can only be made if you are no longer meeting course requirements for the term you applied to graduate in (dropped a course/withdrew from a course, etc.). Please review the Degree Conferral Policy on the Graduation page.
Commencement
Aims holds two Commencement ceremonies each year, one at the end of fall semester and one at the end of spring semester. Aims awards degrees at the end of each semester (fall, spring and summer). Students who graduate during the fall semester are invited to participate in the fall ceremony. Students who graduate in either the spring or summer semesters are invited to participate in the spring ceremony.
In order to participate in a commencement ceremony, you must be on the tentative graduation list prior to the deadline for the respective ceremony. If you have not applied for graduation, your name will not appear in the commencement program or on any graduation list. Applicable graduation deadlines can be found on the Graduation Website.
Please visit the Commencement page for more information and details about the ceremony, regalia ordering, and distribution.
What if I don’t have an active mailing address for my diploma?
If you do not have an active mailing address, your diploma will be held for one year. If no address is provided after one year, you will be required to re-order your diploma and a fee will be required to re-issue your diploma. Please contact the records office at 970-339-6404 or email gradapp@aims.edu to provide a current mailing address. If you need to reorder your diploma and/or certificate, you will go through Parchment the same way you would order a transcript, but instead will select ‘Replacement Diploma’. The Replacement Diploma/Certificate will have the word ‘reissued’ on it, since a student can only receive one original document. Please review our Transcripts page for assistance on how to setup an account or log back in.
Degree Conferral Policy
Academic records will be locked upon degree and certificate conferral. Under no circumstances will changes be made to the academic record after degree or certificate has been awarded.
When all degree requirements have been completed, a degree or certificate must be awarded and completed in the term that is is brought to the attention of the Registration & Records Office. Students cannot request a delay in awarding a degree once all degree and/or certificate requirements have been satisfied.
Effective Catalog
The catalog in use during a student’s first enrollment in the College is normally used in determining degree or certificate requirements. The effective catalog may, however, be no more than four years old at the time of graduation. A student may elect to meet the requirements of any subsequent catalog published during the four-year period, including the current year. This election should be made well before the student submits a graduation application.
A student who has a break in enrollment may be required to meet the program requirements, of the catalog in use at the time of readmission, due to program changes. Any previously completed course work may be subject to an evaluation of its relevance to any revised program. If the program in which the student was previously enrolled in has been discontinued, or if a public notice of program discontinuance has been given, the student cannot re-enroll in that program.
The College reserves the right to substitute courses for those no longer offered, to modify course content at any time, to approve the substitution of one course for another in an applicable degree or certificate programs, or to waive any course prerequisite or corequisite.
Graduation Honors
Graduation honors recognize outstanding academic achievement throughout a student’s academic career. Honors are based on a student’s cumulative grade point average (GPA) for all grades earned at the 1000-level or above at Aims Community College.
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Students graduating with a degree who complete at least thirty letter graded (A-F) credits at Aims Community College, and whose grades qualify, will be granted the following designations:
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Cum Laude - 3.50 to 3.69 cumulative Aims GPA
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Magna Cum Laude - 3.70 to 3.99 cumulative Aims GPA
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Summa Cum Laude - 4.00 cumulative Aims GPA
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Students graduating with a certificate who complete at least fifteen letter graded (A-F) credits at Aims Community College, and whose grades qualify, will be granted the following designations:
In order to be recognized at the Commencement Ceremony, students must meet the graduation honors cumulative GPA requirements at the conclusion of the term immediately preceding the ceremony (i.e. if attending the Fall 2023 ceremony - you must meet the cumulative GPA hours from the last term you took classes, before Fall). Fall enrolled hours will count towards the credit requirements for Fall students. Spring enrolled hours will count towards the credit requirements for Spring and Summer students.
Eligible graduates, participating at the ceremony, will receive gold honor cords included in their regalia when it’s picked up at the Bookstore. Graduation honors will be noted in the commencement program by the student’s name.
Graduation honors will be recorded on the academic transcript if a student meets the requirements at the completion of the term for which they are certified for graduation.
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