Bachelor’s Programs

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Hofstra University offers the degrees of Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Science in Education.

Students who have not decided on a field of specialization (i.e., major) when they enter as freshmen will be advised on academic planning by the Center for University Advisement. Students must choose their field of specialization by no later than the completion of 60 student semester hours. After meeting with a staff member at the Center for University Advisement, students should apply to the chairperson of the department of specialization and submit the appropriate documentation to the Office of Academic Records. Students can change their major at any time. However, the timing of that change might affect a student’s graduation date and scholarship awards. In order to facilitate orientation and advisement of a student to his or her new major, students must report any change in their major, minor, specialization, concentration, or degree on the official Change of Study form to the Office of Academic Records. Any change requires a signature from the new department indicating that the student has notified the new department and has been made aware of all requirements. Students are not required to obtain a signature from the program or major they are leaving.

For students interested in teaching in elementary and secondary schools, see the Undergraduate Preprofessional Programs section of this Bulletin. Students who think they may wish to pursue a preprofessional program other than education (premedical, prelaw, etc.) should consult with the preprofessional adviser in the University Advisement Office early in their college career.

Evening students will normally choose their major field after completing 12 semester hours. They will be given an appointment with a divisional adviser at the University Advisement Office.

Programs are listed under the major department or area. For information on all teaching fields (e.g., early childhood, elementary or secondary), see the teaching fields section of this Bulletin.

* Dual enrollment is required for co-majors.

It may be possible for a student to complete two majors as part of one degree, and in rare instances it may be possible for a student to complete two undergraduate degrees simultaneously. Students interested in either of these options must register with the University Advisement Office where they will be advised and given specific information on dual major or dual degree requirements.

Students who already hold a bachelor’s degree may earn a second one by satisfying the following requirements:

1. The student must apply and be accepted in a program of study toward a second degree by the Office of Admission;
2. the work for a second degree must be completed in a major or program distinctly different from the one in the first degree;
3. the work in the major area of concentration must be completed in accordance with the requirements listed in this Bulletin;
4. all University and degree requirements not met on admission must be completed;
5. at least 30 credits over and above any used to satisfy the first bachelor’s degree must be completed at Hofstra. A minimum of 15 of these 30 credits must be in the new major field of concentration;
6. a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 must be earned in the courses taken at Hofstra for the second degree.

To obtain a degree, each student successfully completes the following three distinct sets of requirements:

Current students may not take courses at other educational institutions within reasonable commuting distance of the campus if the same or comparable course is being offered at Hofstra.

Students are advised that permission from the Office of Academic Records is required for any attendance at another institution while the student is enrolled in a degree program at Hofstra.

Most programs leading to a bachelor’s degree require distribution courses. Students who receive transfer credit for courses that are equivalent to those that satisfy distribution requirements may apply these courses to fulfill some or all of their distribution requirements. No student may satisfy distribution requirements at another institution once that student has matriculated at Hofstra University with the exception of students participating in an accredited study abroad program at another institution; with permission of the department offering the distribution course, such students may receive credit for one, and only one, distribution course upon successful completion of the course and the study abroad program. In acknowledgement of the experiential component of study abroad courses, it is recognized that distribution courses taken while participating in study abroad programs may not be exact equivalents to Hofstra courses that satisfy distribution requirements. A waiver and substitution form signed by the chairperson of the department offering the distribution course and the dean of the unit of the student’s major is required.

Students who enter New College for Interdisciplinary Studies in fall 2006 or after must meet the New College for Interdisciplinary Studies distribution course requirements as stipulated in the New College for Interdisciplinary Studies section of this Bulletin.

For the B.B.A. distribution course requirements, see the Frank G. Zarb School of Business section of this Bulletin.

Transfer students who expect to earn Hofstra degrees must meet the University residency requirements. All students must take and pass the Hofstra Writing Proficiency Exam as a requirement for graduation. At least 15 semester hours in the major field of study and the last 30 hours must be completed at Hofstra for the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Engineering (the 15 hours need not be included within the last 30 hours). Students who transfer into New College for Interdisciplinary Studies in fall 2006 or after must meet the residency requirement as stipulated in the New College for Interdisciplinary Studies section of this Bulletin.

For the Bachelor of Science in Education, the last 30 semester hours must be completed at Hofstra, and the residency requirement for the education major, which includes student teaching, is as follows: art (at least 29 hours), music (at least 30 hours), physical education (at least 25 hours).

The Bachelor of Fine Arts normally requires the last 6 semesters of full-time study be taken at Hofstra.

As of fall 2008 Hofstra’s one-year retention rate was 80 percent and the graduation rate of the class entering in fall 2002 was 55 percent. Note that these calculations are based on all students entering Hofstra as full-time, first-time degree seeking students. If students transfer or leave Hofstra for any reason, they are counted as “not retained” and “not graduated” even if they graduate elsewhere. The graduation rate refers to a six-year period, in accordance with National Center of Education Statistics standards.