Non-Degree Seeking Students

Applicants who are not interested in working toward a degree while taking classes may, under certain conditions, be approved to do so upon submitting an application for admission. Degree-seeking students attending part-time or as an “undeclared major” should not confuse their status with this special, non-degree seeking category. Students who are admitted provisionally and placed in a non-degree seeking status until they earn a minimum 2.0 GPA on 12 credit hours should also not confuse their status with this special category. The Office of Admissions reserves the right to determine the proper category of admission and to determine what credentials may be required.

Classification as a special student permits enrollment in credit classes (or as an auditor) on a space-available basis; however, special students are not eligible for financial aid, and the university incurs no particular obligation to provide academic advisement.

Admission as a special, non-degree seeking student is not intended to serve as a means of access to regular, degree-seeking status nor is it intended for a person who has earned unsatisfactory grades in previous high school or college course work. Students who have been denied regular undergraduate admission are not eligible for this status. All special students are subject to the same regulations concerning scholastic probation, suspension, and dismissal as other undergraduate students. Students who have previously been assessed developmental course requirements or high school course deficiencies will retain that status as a special non-degree student.

Non-degree seeking students must meet course prerequisites and should be prepared to verify to the department by official documentation that university course prerequisites have been met, if appropriate. Students planning to enroll in any upper-division education courses should verify admission to the Teacher Education Program prior to registration. A non-degree seeking student may not enroll for more than nine hours of courses in a term without approval of the student’s academic dean. No more than 24 semester hours earned while in a non-degree seeking status will apply to a degree at the university.

Unless otherwise specified, students with non-degree seeking status who wish to be admitted into a degree program at the University of Arkansas must apply for admission as such prior to the beginning of the term for which the change of status is requested. All requirements for admission to regular status must then be met, except for students in the provisional non-degree-seeking status.

When to Apply

Non-degree seeking students must meet the same application deadlines as other students. See the Deadlines for Admission Consideration on the previous page for deadlines.

How to Apply

The following students may be considered for non-degree seeking status:

1. Visiting students who attend other colleges or universities and wish to enroll at the university to earn credits that they plan to transfer back to their home institution. It is the student’s responsibility to verify with his or her college that courses taken here will be acceptable as transfer credit.
   Application procedure: Submit a completed application, a non-refundable application fee, and a letter of good standing verifying eligibility to return to the home institution.
2. Students who want to take courses of special interest for personal or professional development but who are not interested in working toward a degree. Applicants in this category are normally expected to have been out of high school for five or more years.
   Application procedure: Submit a completed application and non-refundable application fee. Students who have been out of high school less than five years should submit a transcript and test scores verifying that admission requirements have been met.
   The application fee is not required for residents of Arkansas who are 60 years and older and wish to participate in the senior tuition waiver program.
3. Students who already have a college degree and who want to take credited classes but not earn credit toward another degree at this time. Credits earned under this classification will not count toward a graduate degree.
   Application procedure: Submit a completed application and non-refundable application fee. Students who wish to enroll for successive terms should submit a transcript showing their degree.
4. Dually enrolled high school students. Dually enrolled high school students must have at least a 20 ACT score and a 3.00 high school GPA to enroll. Dually enrolled high school students are ineligible to enroll in remedial courses.
   Application procedure: Submit a completed application, a non-refundable application fee, ACT or SAT scores, and a high school transcript. Admissions applications should be submitted at least one month in advance of the term.

Dually enrolled high school seniors who plan to enroll in the fall as regular freshmen must submit a separate application for regular admission for the fall.