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The Gateway Technical College District has procedures that govern the graduation requirements for certificate, technical diploma, associate degree and advanced technical certificate programs. In order to graduate, you must fulfill the following requirements: 

  • All the course requirements on the official curriculum sheet must be completed successfully. Any course substitutions must be approved and documented on your student record. 
  • 25 percent of your program credits, as well as 25 percent of the major course credits designated with an asterisk (*) on the curriculum sheet  must be earned at Gateway. Courses which were earned through the credit for prior learning process and PR credit was awarded, or transfer courses where TR credit was awarded, are not counted as credits earned at Gateway. 
  • The following grade point average (GPA) requirements must be met: 
    • Effective with the 2021-22 catalog year, a cumulative GPA of 2.000 or above is required to graduate (2.000 on a four-point grading scale is a C).
    • For 2020-21 and prior catalog years, a program GPA of 2.000 or above is required to graduate (2.000 on a four-point grading scale is a C).
    • A Major GPA of 2.000 or above is required.
    • Some programs require a minimum grade of “C” (2.0) in some courses; verify these requirements by reviewing your curriculum sheet. 
    • Individual programs may have additional requirements to meet accrediting agency requirements. Refer to the program curriculum sheet for additional graduation and grade point requirements. 
  • It is your responsibility to check your degree audit and/or transcripts prior to your last semester of study to ensure that all the requirements for graduation are met. All requirements must be completed by the last day of the semester, including removal of incomplete grades and submission of transcripts with transfer credits. 

Computation of GPA and Honors Status

Honors for purposes of the commencement ceremony are determined by your program GPA using grades posted to your transcript on or before April 1st. Your final program GPA is used to determine official honors status which will be recorded on your transcript. The appropriate honor seal is attached to the diploma/degree after final graduation verification. The program GPA listed on the program degree audit is the official GPA used to determine honors. GPAs are not rounded.

Cumulative GPA

  • All associate degree and technical diploma level courses that you have taken at Gateway are used to calculate this GPA. 
  • General college, pre-college and pre-technical are developmental and/or remedial classes and do not count toward graduation or GPA calculations. 
  • This GPA appears on your transcript and program degree audit. 

Program GPA

  • All courses on the program curriculum sheet are used to calculate this GPA. 
  • This GPA is used to determine graduation honors. 
  • This GPA may also be used to determine other department or campus awards. 

Major GPA

  • All courses that are designated with an asterisk (*) on the program curriculum sheet are used to calculate this GPA. 
  • This GPA is used to determine if the minimum GPA requirement has been met for these selected courses. 
  • This GPA may also be used to determine other department or campus awards. 

Graduation with Honors

There are three categories of Honors Graduates for students who complete an associate degree or technical diploma. Two of them are grade point average (GPA) driven. Effective with the 2021-22 catalog year, cumulative GPA is used to calculate Honors. For 2020-21 and prior catalog years, program GPA is used. Honors criteria are as follows:

  • District Honors: 3.750-3.899
  • President’s Honors: 3.900-4.000

Provost’s Honors graduates are students who receive honors credit for 12 or more credits in their program. Provost’s Honors graduates must complete a contract with their instructor for a special learning project that will elevate their coursework to a Provost’s Honors level.