Middlebury Handbook

1. Degree Requirements

a. Credits. Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree must complete 36 credits. At least 18 of these credits must be Middlebury credits. Credits earned at all Middlebury programs including Middlebury Language Schools, Middlebury Schools Abroad, School of the Environment, and Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey will count in the 18-credit total and the grades will count in the undergraduate grade point average. No more than six credits with a D grade may be applied to degree requirements.

Students may count toward graduation no more than a total of five courses with non-standard grading.  The category of "non-standard grading" includes courses elected under the Pass/D/Fail option (before Fall 2022); courses elected under the Credit/No Credit option (Fall 2022 or later); AP, IB, A-Level, and other pre-college testing credits; and credit-bearing internships. Of these five credits, no more than two may be taken under the Pass/D/Fail or Credit/No Credit option (specific guidelines concerning the Pass/D/Fail or Credit/No Credit option can be found in the College Handbook under Course Registration and Conduct of Courses), and no more than two may be from AP, IB, A-level or other pre-college testing credits.

A minimum of two winter term credits are required. A maximum of four Winter Term and a maximum of three Summer Study credits may count toward the graduation requirement of 36 credits.

b. Residency. First-year students must be enrolled in a Middlebury course during their first winter term at the College. This includes both September and February matriculates. Residency in Middlebury, VT, for the fall and spring semesters of the student's senior year is required for all students unless excused by the Administration Committee.

c. Courses. Each student must successfully complete the following course requirements:

i. A writing-intensive seminar for first-year students must be completed during the first year at Middlebury, normally during the first semester.

ii. A second writing-intensive course taken either by the end of the sophomore year at Middlebury or as advised by the student's major department or program. A college writing course should not be taken concurrently with a first-year seminar, and if taken concurrently, will not satisfy the second college writing requirement. Writing-intensive classes devote special attention to the process of writing and revision and are designated in the Middlebury College Course Catalog as CW.

iii. The distribution requirements described in section B of the Degree Programs and Projects section of this Handbook.

iv. A major as described in section C of the Degree Programs and Projects section of this Handbook. Minors are optional.

v. Two physical education units prior to graduation unless excused by the Administration Committee, normally upon recommendation of the College Health Service. See the Middlebury College Catalog for details on physical education courses.

d. The normal pattern for earning the baccalaureate degree at Middlebury College is four consecutive years of study. The requirements must be completed within ten calendar years from the initial date of matriculation. Students who do not complete the degree within that time frame will be held to the curriculum and degree requirements listed in the Catalog in the year in which they are readmitted, or as determined by the Administration Committee. Students are normally graduated upon completion of all degree requirements.

e. Staff members at Middlebury College who are accepted as baccalaureate degree candidates will meet all Middlebury College BA degree requirements in place at the time that the period of degree-candidacy begins, with the following exceptions:

i. The senior residency requirement is waived;

ii. The 36 credit total may include, but need not include, up to four winter term courses;

iii. The staff member’s ad hoc admission committee may consider proposed substitute courses for those required for distribution or for the major requirement when, in the judgment of the committee, such changes enable the applicant to achieve the goals of the proposed program of study and when the proposed adjustments maintain the integrity of existing curricular requirements.

2. Advanced Placement Credit

Middlebury College cooperates with the College Board's Advanced Placement Program. At the discretion of individual departments, Middlebury College will award college credit for scores of 4 or 5 in subjects covered in the Middlebury curriculum in which Advanced Placement examinations are given. The registrar will notify first-year students and their advisers of advanced placement credits early in the fall semester.

a. One Middlebury College course credit will be awarded for each qualifying AP exam score up to the maximum allowed as specified above in section A. Degree Requirements. Two credits will be awarded in those instances in which the department has demonstrated to the Curriculum Committee that the AP examination adequately covers material in two separately numbered Middlebury College courses that students would normally take sequentially.

b. Advanced Placement credits may be used to anticipate course work at Middlebury. AP credits applied toward graduation will be counted toward the 16-credit limit in the department granting the credit unless the department specifically states that the credits do not count toward the major.  The maximum number of Middlebury College course credits that may be accumulated through AP exams is specified above in section A. Degree Requirements.  A student may not earn credit for a Middlebury College course that is equivalent to an AP exam for which the student has received credit as described above.  Departments will be responsible for submitting to the registrar lists of these equivalent courses.  In exceptional circumstances, the prohibition on registering for a course that is the equivalent of an AP exam may be waived by a department chair.

c. Advanced Placement scores must be reported directly to Middlebury College by the College Board. In order for Advanced Placement credits to count toward the 36 credit requirement for graduation, the examination scores must be received no later than the end of the student's second semester at Middlebury College.

Students may receive a limited number of credits from the major European examination certificates, such as the French Baccalauréat, International Baccalaureate, Swiss Maturité, Artium Examination, British A levels, and German Abitur, if they receive scores that indicate excellent performance. The maximum number of Middlebury College course credits that may be accumulated through these examination certificates is specified above in section A. Degree Requirements. Students who receive such credit may not then receive credit for Middlebury introductory courses in subjects covered on the examination. Questions regarding credit for examination certificates may be directed to the Registrar's Office.

3. Acceleration

With approval from the major department chair or program director, a student with at least 27 earned credits may propose an accelerated program to the Office of the Registrar.

In order to accelerate graduation, students may apply extra credits from courses taken at Middlebury, credits transferred from courses taken elsewhere, and/or pre-college testing credits, provided all degree requirements are met as stated above in section A. Degree Requirements. Once a student is advanced in class standing, it is not normally possible to return to the previous class standing.

The Office of the Registrar may forward to the Administration Committee petitions for which the registrar requests faculty review and a committee decision.

4. The Physical Education Requirement

As part of Middlebury's degree requirement, each student must complete two physical education courses prior to graduation. Each season of varsity athletic participation counts as one unit of physical education. PHED courses do not count in the total of 36 academic course credits required for graduation.

Students are encouraged to complete the physical education credits by the end of their fourth semester at Middlebury. In the case of transfer students, students are encouraged to complete the requirement by the end of their second semester at Middlebury. Students who have not completed their requirement by the end of the second semester of their senior year will not be eligible to graduate.