Connections Newsletter


It's My Diploma, and I Want It Now!

Nick Nieuwenhuis, Kyle Wesolowski, and Nicole Jacobson Graduation

It's getting to that time. You've taken all the required classes, some that you loved, some that you found worthless, but finally it's that time you never thought would come —graduation. Years of library visits, tutoring sessions, and all-nighters have finally paid off. Now all you have to do is go and walk across the stage, right? Wrong. Have you remembered to do your writing requirement? How about your exit survey? These are just a few things that are commonly forgotten about by future graduates. This article will break all these "other" things down that people commonly forget about when they are about to graduate.

Graduation GPA Requirement

Recently the GPA requirements for the Communication Department have changed. While current students have been grandfathered into the new GPA requirement, incoming students beginning classes in the spring of 2008 are expected to abide by the new GPA requirement.

  • The minimum cumulative GPA for declaring any major in Communication is 2.00. In order to graduate from the Communication Department you must acquire a 2.25 GPA or higher in your major courses.
  • The minimum required GPA for multimedia students is a 2.25. In order to graduate with a multimedia emphasis you must acquire a 2.5 GPA or higher in multimedia courses.
  • All emphases require the completion of a minor or second major prior to graduation.
  • Students seeking to major and minor in the department or declare a double major in the department will need a 2.75 after their first 9 credits of Communication courses, excluding Speech 110, "Introduction to Human Communication," and Speech 131, "Introduction to Mass Communication."
  • Students who choose the Multimedia emphasis should plan on taking at least five semesters to complete the entire sequence. The reason for this is that many of the Multimedia classes require numerous prerequisites to continue through the major.
  • Students who have three or less credits left to graduate may still participate in the ceremony, pending a three-credit class during the winter or the first session of the summer depending on which semester the student graduates.

Writing Requirement

This part of graduation is often overlooked by many students. The writing requirement is an APA-style paper that is assigned and graded by the professor of that class. In most classes you will receive an actual grade for the paper in the class and a grade for the writing requirement itself. In order to pass the writing requirement, you must receive an 80/100 or higher. Students must complete the writing requirement in a course within their major emphasis. The form for the writing requirement can be found here. The writing requirement should be attempted during the first semester of the senior year.

Applying for Graduation

This is one of the easiest parts of graduating, but often forgotten by students. To apply for graduation all you need to do is go to the Registrar's Office, located on the second floor of Roseman Hall, then fill out a small piece of paper that asks for personal information regarding graduation. Make sure you do this the semester before you graduate. Example: Expected graduation is Spring 2010. The person should have filled out the information in Fall 2009.

Exit Survey

Think of this as an evaluation of your entire college career in the department. Similar to class evaluations taken at the end of every semester, except it's an evaluation on your experience with the whole department through your tenure at Whitewater. You must print this form out and hand it in personally to the Communication Department Office in room 464 Heide Hall. YOU CAN'T FILL IT OUT AND HAND IT IN ONLINE. You may opt to have a face-to-face interview over these questions with the department chair. Either contact the office at 262-472-1034 or stop in Heide room 464 to set up an appointment, no later than six weeks before graduation. The form for the interview can be found here.

Common Mistakes/Remedies

  • Problem: Students don't read their Advising Report.

Remedy: Consult your Advising Report every semester while picking and choosing the classes that you will be taking for the upcoming semester. If you don't understand the Advising Report, set up an appointment with Jeanine Fassl to clarify your confusion.

  • Problem: Students don't understand the new GPA requirements.

Remedy: The GPA requirements are much more stringent than in the past years. The student should consult the declaration of major information.

  • Problem: Students don't look at their class grades after they have taken a class.

Remedy: Make sure you are continuously checking your grades throughout your college career. If you don't, you run the risk of possibly failing a class that you need to pass in order to graduate.

Checklist for Proper Graduation

  • Applied for graduation
  • GPA requirement:
    2.25 or higher for all communication majors except multimedia, which is a 2.5 or higher.
  • Completed a minor or second major
  • Writing requirement fulfilled. See writing requirement form for details here.
  • Took the exit survey and submit. Survey form located here.

 

Yes this is a small checklist… BUT YOU NEED TO CHECK THEM ALL TO GRADUATE!