Board of Governors, A.A.S.

Dean David Beighley, Board of Governors Program Coordinator
(304) 367-4726
dbeighley@pierpont.edu

Program Purpose

The Board of Governors Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree program in West Virginia is designed for adult learners seeking to complete their associate degree. Here are the key points:

• The program is nontraditional and focuses on degree completion.
• It caters to adult learners who want to achieve occupational goals, meet employment requirements, establish professional credentials, or pursue personal goals.
• Adult students can use credit for prior learning experiences (such as licenses, certificates, and military credit) while ensuring maximum credit transferability.
• The A.A.S. degree program allows learners to establish credentials, experience personal accomplishment, and position themselves for further education (e.g., baccalaureate programs).
• It aims to increase educational access and degree opportunities for adults who have deferred or interrupted their educational plans.

Admission Requirements

Admission into the Board of Governors (A.A.S.) degree program is based upon the following criteria:

• The Board of Governors (A.A.S.) degree is available only to students who have not previously completed a college degree at the associate level or higher.
• Prospective students must have graduated from high school at least one year prior to admission to the program.  Students who earned high school equivalencies must be at least one year removed from the graduation date of their traditional class.  (If a homeschooled student’s traditional graduating class would have been May 2024, for example, the student may be admitted to the BOG in June 2025.)

In summary, the Board of Governors A.A.S. degree program provides a flexible pathway for adult learners to achieve their educational and career goals.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the Board of Governors A.A.S. degree, graduates will be able to do the following:

• Demonstrate successful completion of those student learning outcomes detailed in their core courses and general electives

Opportunities

Graduates may use the Board of Governors AAS degree in their employment search for any position in which the minimum expectation is an earned associate degree or for transfer purposes with some baccalaureate institutions.  Coursework completed through the public higher education system of West Virginia will optimize transfer in to the Regents, Bachelor of Arts (RBA) degrees at WV public four-year colleges and universities.

Graduation Requirements

• A 2.0 GPA or higher is required of all graduates.  Previously earned grades of F are not transferred in; however, grades of D are accepted in transfer. 
• Students who have completed required credits but do not have a GPA of 2.0 or higher will be denied graduation until their GPA is a 2.0 or higher.
• There are no exceptions to the grade point average requirement regardless of how many “credits” the student has earned. 
• To qualify for a “with honors” designation at graduation, students are required to have completed at least 12 letter-graded credits.
• Students graduating with the AAS degree from the Board of Governors program are eligible to participate in traditional commencement ceremonies but will not have degrees conferred immediately upon completion.  Prospective graduates from the Board of Governors (A.A.S.) degree program must submit applications for graduation by deadline and are eligible for degree conferral only at the institution’s traditional degree conferral periods:  upon the conclusion of each Fall, Spring, and Summer term. 

Requirements

• A student must have completed 60 college credits.
• 12 credit hours must be completed from a regionally accredited higher educational institution.*
  • Coursework completed through sites that are ACE-certified must be send via the Credly transcript process to qualify.
• 45 credits of general education are required. These credits can come from military credits, professional certifications, college credits earned prior to admission to Pierpont, etc.
  • Please note that military credits, ACE-certified courses completed through competency-based sites, and professional certifications do NOT convey as letter grades, only credits.

• Students who wish to appeal for college credits not completed through college coursework, military credits, professional certifications, CLEP or AP exams or institutional test-outs, may consider submitting a professional portfolio to appeal for college credits. There is a State-wide non-refundable submission fee of $300.  This fee is in addition to the fee assessed for students who have completed no Pierpont coursework. 

• Board of Governors (A.A.S.) Program Fee:

  • West Virginia residents with no Pierpont coursework will be assessed a $150 fee.  Students who have completed at least one Pierpont course will NOT be assessed this fee.

  • Non-West Virginia residents with no Pierpont coursework will be assessed a $350 fee.  Students who have completed at least one Pierpont coursework will pay traditional “in-state” or “out-of-state” (or “metro”) tuition and fees and will not be charged the separate Board Of Governors program fee.

• Area of Emphasis:

  • Students who earn 15 or more credits in a particular content area with grades no lower than C (or “credit”) are eligible for an “area of emphasis” notation on their final, official Pierpont transcript.  Any “area of emphasis” is determined by the BOG program coordinator in collaboration with the Office of the Registrar, using existing Pierpont course prefixes and or degree programs.  Students may not declare their own “area of emphasis.”  This “area of emphasis” appears ONLY on the final official Pierpont transcript-not on the diploma or in degree title.

  • Students whose coursework does not align with available “areas of emphasis” will have a notation of “General Studies.”

*Disclaimer: Per the handbook for the BOG degree program in WV, Pierpont requires a residency requirement of 12 credit hours (passing grades only) of coursework completed through Pierpont. Effective October 4, 2024, extra-institutional credits will not count toward the 12-credit residency requirement. Extra-institutional credits include ACE credits. BOG students without an approved application for graduation and degree audit for fall 2024 or those who apply to the institution after October 4, 2024, declaring the BOG (AAS) degree, will be required to complete 12 credit hours of Pierpont residential credit.