Matriculated Students

Matriculated students are those who have fully met the requirements for admission and have registered for courses in the quarter for which they were admitted. Undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate definitions assume that students have been admitted to the University. Matriculated students are classified at the beginning of each quarter according to the following designations:

Undergraduate Students

Freshman

1–44 earned credits, including SPU credits and accepted transfer work.

Sophomore

 45–89 earned credits, including SPU credits and accepted transfer work.

Junior 

90–134 earned credit, including SPU credits and accepted transfer work.

Senior

Minimum 135 earned credits, including SPU credits and accepted transfer work. (Senior status does not necessarily ensure graduation with the senior class of students.)

Post-Baccalaureate Students

Students who have already received a baccalaureate degree and are seeking a second bachelor’s degree or initial teacher certification are considered post-baccalaureate students. Admission to this classification is by application only.

Graduate Students

Graduate students are master’s or doctoral candidates, or students enrolled in a graduate certificate program. Admission to this classification is by application only. Seattle Pacific offers a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees and graduate certificates. 

Non-Matriculated Students

Students not seeking a degree who are allowed to attend SPU without submitting the credentials required for admission with regular status are non-matriculated. The maximum credit load per quarter is 18 credits of undergraduate coursework, or 6 credits of graduate coursework.

Non-matriculated students who wish to take graduate coursework must obtain the advance approval of the director of graduate studies of the program from which the course is to be taken. Permission to register as a non-matriculated graduate student is always on a space-available basis. 

No more than 45 credits taken as a non-matriculated student may apply toward an undergraduate degree, and no more than 15 such credits may be applied to a post-baccalaureate degree, nor can more than 12 such credits apply toward some graduate degrees. A later decision to work on a degree or certificate program will necessitate formal application and admission to the University as a matriculated student.

If a student who has completed SPU graduate credit as a non-matriculated student later applies and is accepted for admission to a graduate certificate or graduate degree program, the credits earned as a non-matriculated student may be used to meet program requirements only if:

• A grade of B or better was achieved in the course.
• The course was taken within the three-year period prior to admission to the program.

Non-matriculated students who are not native speakers of English must meet stated criteria or prove English proficiency before enrolling.

Find more information about policies governing non-matriculated students in the Non-Matriculated Students section of this catalog.