Regents Bachelor of Arts (RBA)

The RBA Degree Program is a non-traditional program that is designed for adults who are interested in obtaining a bachelor's degree.

The RBA Degree Program may be appropriate for persons who have gained knowledge outside the traditional classroom. For example, knowledge gained through professional experience may be comparable to that which is traditionally gained in the classroom. Students may demonstrate experiential knowledge through a written portfolio that is evaluated by appropriate faculty members.

Based on these evaluations, recommendations are made to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for the award of experiential credit.

Admission to the RBA Degree Program is accomplished in accord with the following regulations:

Admission is not available to those who have earned an accredited U.S. four year bachelor's degree or equivalent.

Applicants may not be admitted to the RBA Degree Program until four years have elapsed since the graduation of their high school class.

Applicants currently under suspension from any college, university or institution may not be admitted to the RBA Degree Program until the suspension period has expired.

Applicants may not be simultaneously enrolled in the RBA Degree Program and in another degree program.

A student is considered for admission by submitting the statewide undergraduate admission application form to Concord University.

The applicant must also complete the Concord RBA application.

The RBA Coordinator will consider and rule on all applications for admission to the program.

Upon admission to the program, a student may earn credit in several ways:

Credit earned in regular degree work at Concord University or other accredited institutions of higher learning may be transferred into the RBA Degree Program. (State policies regarding transfer of credit between institutions will apply to students in the RBA Degree Program.)

PEP, CLEP, College-Level GED, USAFI, DANTES, and similar testing results may be acceptable for credit.

Distance education credits earned from regionally-accredited institutions may be accepted.

Credit may be awarded based on professional experience when requested by a student. The credit is awarded based on an evaluation of a portfolio which includes documentation of these experiences. The portfolio is submitted to the Program Coordinator. There is a fee of $300 for this evaluation regardless of the number of hours of credit which may be awarded. This fee will be charged each time a student submits any subsequent assessment of work not included in the initial submission.

A $10 per credit hour transcript fee, in addition to the evaluation fee, will be charged for each awarded and accepted hour. There is no upper or lower limit of credit awarded by this method.

Regents Bachelor of Arts Degree Graduation Requirements

Total Credit Hours: 120

1. Upper Division Hours:

(300 level courses or above): 39

2. General Education:

36 Hours

Which must include the areas listed below:

Communications: 6

Humanities: 6

Natural Sciences: 6

Social Sciences: 6

Mathematical Sciences or Computer Applications: 3

Electives from the above areas: 9

3. Elective Hours:

45 Hours

4. Hours earned from West Virginia state supported institutions of higher education:

24 Hours

Note: At least 12 credit hours must be earned from Concord University. (An Institution grade point average of 2.00 or better is required).

5. Cumuluative grade point average of 2.00 or better is required.

Additional Information

"F" grade forgiveness for college-level courses is afforded to persons admitted to the RBA Degree Program. This policy will be applied to failing grades received no less than four (4) years prior to the RBA Degree Program admission date.

All prerequisites for courses must be met according to the Concord University Catalog at the time of application to the Program.

Regents Bachelor of Arts Degree Area of Emphasis

Any student graduating with a RBA Degree from Concord University may be eligible to receive an "Area of Emphasis" on the transcript for any of the degree granting programs in the University. Eligibility requirements include completion of a minimum of 15 hours of upper division courses (300 level or above) in a program of study with a grade of C or better in each course. At least 9 of these hours must be from Concord University. A request for an Area of Emphasis should be made in writing to the Concord University RBA Coordinator who will provide a form to initiate this process. The Coordinator will transmit this form to the appropriate discipline for approval. It should be noted that each area may have its own requirements for this designation, and some may choose not to participate because of the nature of their degree programs. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs of Concord University will make final approval of the Area of Emphasis.