USF 1995-96 Undergraduate Catalog - Pages121 - 123

COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS BACCALAUREATE-LEVEL DEGREE PROGRAMS

Programs Leading to the Baccalaureate Degree

The College of Fine Arts offers programs leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree in the fields of Art, Dance, and Theatre, a Bachelor of Music degree in Music, and a Bachelor of Science in Music Education.

Admission to the College

A freshman student may elect to enter the College of Fine Arts as a major in one of the four departments as early as his/her initial entry into the University provided he/she has successfully completed an audition or portfolio review in the appropriate department/school. At that time, the new freshman should file a Declaration of Major or Change of Curriculum code form indicating the choice of degree program within the College of Fine Arts. However, any continuing student in the University in good standing, upon acceptance by the department/school, can apply to change from another major to a major in the College of Fine Arts.

The student desiring to make this change must initiate a Change of Major form in the college of the present major and transfer his/her current academic records to the College of Fine Arts' advising office.

Transfer students and students from other units within USF with previous college or university fine arts course credits (art, dance, music, theatre) must have such credits evaluated and meet appropriate portfolio or audition requirements when seeking admission to the College of Fine Arts. These students are urged to make early arrangements for any necessary portfolio reviews or auditions, as well as appointments for advising, since these must take place prior to course scheduling and registration. Further, students are required to provide copies of their transcripts showing all previous college or university coursework for advising, portfolio review and/or audition appointments. Additional information may be obtained and appointments may be made by telephoning or writing the College's advising office or the office of the department/school of particular interest.

Advising in the College

The College of Fine Arts operates a central advising office located in the Fine Arts Building. It maintains the records of all major students in the College (art, dance, music, theatre) and provides on-going academic advising, referral services and assistance to all present and potential students. Academic advisers are provided for each of the departments /school in the College.

Any student in the University, regardless of major, may enroll in courses offered by the College of Fine Arts when prerequisites are met and space is available. Where applicable, these courses may be used to satisfy elective or General Distribution Requirements.

In all cases, the responsibility for meeting all graduation requirements rests entirely upon the student.

Graduation Requirements

The College of Fine Arts currently offers three undergraduate degrees, the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), attainable in the Departments of Art, Dance, and Theatre, the Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) in Theatre and the Bachelor of Music (B.M.) in Music. The University requirements are presented in detail elsewhere in this catalog, but are briefly summarized here along with the college and departmental requirements:

1. 120-124 credits for the B.A., 124-126 credits for the B.M., and 154 credits for the B.F.A. with at least a "C" average (2.0) in work done at the University of South Florida and in the major. At least 40 credits must be in courses numbered 3000 or above. Since 15 hours is considered a normal, full-time load, students are reminded that programs requiring more than 120 credit hours may require additional semesters for completion of the program.

2. General Education Requirements may be satisfied by (1) completing the University's General Education Requirements as explained in this catalog, (2) completing the A.A. degree from a Florida Junior or Community College, or (3) completing the general education requirements from another Florida state university. General education courses transferred from other accredited institutions will be evaluated based on USF General Education equivalencies. The A.A. degree is in no way a requirement for acceptance into the College of Fine Arts (or into any one of its upper-level degree programs), or a requirement for graduation from the University. Students admitted under the 1994/95 catalog must complete the Liberal Arts requirements of the University in lieu of the old General Distribution requirements.

3. Students admitted to the College of Fine Arts with transfer credits or former students returning with credits dating ten or more years prior to admission (or readmission) will have those credits reviewed by the College and department/schooland may be required to take specified competency tests in their major area.

4. Special Fine Arts College Requirement: All majors in the College of Fine Arts must take at least 6 credit hours in one or more of the other departments/school of the College.

5. A maximum number of ROTC credits totaling no more than the maximum allowed in the Free Elective Area for each major may be counted towards the B.A., B.M., or B.F.A. degree.

6. With departmental/school approval, a maximum of 4 credit hours of elective Physical Education credits taken at USF may be counted as general elective credit toward the B.A., B.M., or B.F.A. degree in the College of Fine Arts.

7. Satisfactorily complete the College Level Academic Skills Test CLAST and the writing and computation course requirement of 6A-10.30 (Gordon Rule).

8. Students applying for a B.A. degree must demonstrate competency in a foreign language as described under Foreign Language Competency Policy of this catalog.

9. Department Requirements:

   Art Requirements: Completion of a minimum of 46 credit hours in the major, 19 credit hours of Free Electives (of which 16 hours in art may apply), and 9 hours of non-major credits which may be distributed at the discretion of the Art Department.

   Dance Requirements: Completion of a minimum of 44 credit hours in the major, 21 credit hours of Free Electives (of which 17 hours in dance may apply), and 9 hours of non-major credits which may be distributed at the discretion of the Dance Department.

   Music Requirements: Completion of a minimum of 84-86 hours in the major.

   Music Education Requirements: For Instrumental Specialization, the completion of a minimum of 19 credit hours of Music Education courses and 52 credit hours of Music courses. For Vocal Specialization, the completion of a minimum of 15 credit hours of Music Education courses and 56 credit hours of Music courses.

   Theatre Requirements: For the B.A., the completion of a minimum of 54 - 55 credit hours in the major with 24 credit hours of Free Electives of which a maximum of 10 - 11 credit hours may be in theatre. For the B.F.A., the completion of a minimum of 75 credit hours in the major with 29-30 credit hours of Free Electives of which a maximum of 10 - 11 credit hours may be in theatre.

10. Residency Requirements: A minimum of 20 credit hours in the major department must be earned in residence. This requirement, however, may be waived by the department/school based on examination (e.g., portfolio review, audition, etc.). Also, a student must earn 30 of the last 60 hours of credits in residence at the University of South Florida. However, any course work to be taken and any credits to be earned outside of the University must have prior approval from the appropriate department/school and the college in order to apply these credits toward graduation.

Waiver of prerequisite course work totaling no more than 12 credit hours in the major or Fine Arts College requirements is possible by demonstration of competence. Unless credit is awarded by approved official tests, i.e., A.P., CLEP, the credit hours must be made up according to departmental/school or college recommendations. The review for waiver is by faculty committee. Specific questions concerning program requirements for the B.A., B.M. and B.F.A. degrees in the College or other related problems, should be directed to the Coordinator of Advising, College of Fine Arts, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33620.

The responsibility for seeing that all graduation requirements are met rests with the student.

Courses for General Education and Liberal Arts Requirements:

Courses in the College of Fine Arts in the departments of Art, Dance, Theatre, and School of Music fall within Area II of the University's General Education Requirements. (See General Education Requirements and special policies for AA degree holders and other transfer students with "General Education Requirements" met.) However, a major in any one of the four departments/school in the College of Fine Arts may utilize only those courses in the other three departments of the College for General Education Requirements. Liberal Arts requirements can be met with designated College of Fine Arts courses.

College Policy for Academic Progress

The following criteria will serve as the basis for disenrollment from a major in the College of Fine Arts:

1. Grade-point average below 2.0 in the major.

2. Recommendation by major applied (studio) art, dance, music or theatre faculty with approval of respective department/school chairperson/director, or art education coordinator.

3. The department may recommend probationary status (rather than disenrollment) for one semester when academic progress is not maintained.

Contracts and Permission Procedures

Directed Studies Contracts:

All Directed Studies and other variable credit courses in the College of Fine Arts require contracts between students and instructors describing the work to be undertaken by the student and specifying the credit hours. These contracts are to be completed in quadruplicate and appropriately signed. It is the student's responsibility to obtain the necessary signatures and make the required distribution of all copies. Important: the student must have his/her signed copy of a contract at the time of registration.

S/U Grade Contracts:

The College of Fine Arts requires that any S/U grading agreement entered into between student and instructor be formalized by a contract in quadruplicate signed by the student and the instructor and distributed according to instructions.

"I" Grade Contracts:

Incompletes must be contracted for by mutual agreement between student and instructor, with the contract describing specifically the amount and nature of the work to be completed for the removal of the incomplete grade. This contract additionally clearly specifies the date that the work will be due (within legal limits) for grading. Both the student and the instructor must sign this contract and the four copies must be distributed according to instructions. A student must not register for a course again to remove an "I" grade.

Permission Procedures:

Admission into some courses is possible only by consent of instructor (CI), consent of chairperson (CC), consent of adviser, or by audition or portfolio review. When such special permission is required, it will be the student's responsibility to obtain any required permission prior to registration.

S/U Grading in the College

1. Non-majors enrolled in courses in the College of Fine Arts may undertake such courses on an S/U basis with instructor approval. See Contracts and Permission Procedures for information concerning S/U Grade Contracts.

2. Credits earned by a non-major student with an "S" grade will not count toward the student's minimum major course graduation requirement should that student ultimately decide to become a major student in one of the four departments in the College. Instead, such credits earned with an "S" grade will be assigned to the student's Free Elective category (with the exception of music which will become non-countable).

3. Although Fine Arts majors may take coursework in their major as Free Electives, they are not entitled to the S/U grading option for these courses taken in their major subject area, even when specifically used or intended to be used as Free Electives.

4. In the College of Fine Arts, the only S/U graded courses available to a major student in his major subject area are those curriculum allowable courses designated S/U (that is, S/U only).

5. With the exception of such courses as may be specifically required under the College's "Special Requirements" regulation, a maximum of 9 credit hours of S/U credits in non-major courses may apply towards a degree in the College of Fine Arts.

Please refer to Academic Policies section for more information concerning the University's S/U Grading policy.

Dean's List Honors

See Academic Policies and Procedures, Programs and Services.

Interdisciplinary Study

In spite of the fact that an undergraduate interdisciplinary degree program is not formally offered in the College of Fine Arts, it is possible for a student to pursue such a program of study in the College by utilizing free electives allowed in the major program. A student may also choose a double undergraduate major in two departments within the College of Fine Arts as a means of interdisciplinary study. See the major adviser in the programs of particular interest.

Minors Program

The College of Fine Arts offers minor programs in Art, Dance, Music, Theatre. Majors in the College of Fine Arts may pursue a minor in any certified minors program at USF except within the same department/school as the major. The requirements for these programs are located under the departmental/school academic program descriptions. For University Minor Policy, consult that section in Catalog.

Send comments to:
Margaret R. Martinroe - webCat@ugs.usf.edu
Publication Date: June 1, 1995