David Beighley, Dean of General Education & Professional Studies
134 Education Building / (304) 367-4726
Locust Avenue Campus
David.Beighley@pierpont.edu
Program Purpose
The Board of Governors A.A.S. Degree is a degree program designed to help adults achieve their personal and/or professional goals and complete a college degree without committing to a specific academic major. This degree program is open to any student who has graduated from high school two or more years prior; students who earned a High School Equivalency Exam Certificate are welcome to enroll if their assigned graduating class has been out of high school two years or more.
The BOG degree requires the successful completion of 21 required hours across a common “core” and 39 credit hours of general electives. Students completing 15 or more credits in a particular technical or occupational focus will have an “area of emphasis” noted on their academic transcript upon graduation, provided the student has earned grades of C or higher in each course. (In cases of test-outs, a CR is considered a “C.”)
The BOG degree can be earned by combining any of the following: previously earned college credits; enrollment in traditional or online courses; military credits; credits earned through “challenge” exams or test-outs; credits awarded through CLEP tests; credits awarded through professional certifications that have been approved through the WV State BOG/RBA program; and credits that may be awarded through the official documentation and assessment of prior learning experiences through a portfolio submission. (See Special Notes)
Students in the BOG degree program receive highly personalized advising and the benefit of automatic “academic forgiveness” of all Fs earned four or more years prior to enrollment in the program, thus raising the final GPA upon graduation.
Furthermore, the BOG program at Pierpont Community & Technical College welcomes students who have completed all required 60 credits at other colleges and universities but who are unable, for whatever reason, to complete those particular programs. No additional coursework will be required through Pierpont, provided that at least 12 of the required 60 credits were completed through “regionally accredited” colleges.
Beginning Spring 2019, a $300 transcript evaluation fee may be charged to students who have no institutional residency from West Virginia colleges.
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
Students graduating with a Board of Governors A.A.S. degree may choose to apply all hours of that degree to a WV Regents Bachelors of Arts (RBA) degree program at a West Virginia Bachelor-degree granting colleges or universities. Students may also use the BOG A.A.S. in their employment search for any position with the minimum expectation of the candidate having completed at least two years of college-level coursework or of having earned an Associate degree.
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