Undergraduate Studies

A major is your primary field, requiring the deepest course sequence and typically your degree's focus. A minor is a smaller, related sequence (usually 20–24 credits) students add alongside a major. "Area of study" refers to something else — programs like Pre-Health Professions, Pre-Law, or certificate programs that aren't majors or minors themselves but shape coursework and advising around a professional or academic goal.

Of Emmanuel's 128-credit minimum: General Education covers a two-course writing sequence, four Essential Values courses (Diversity & Multiculturalism and Social Justice), and one or two courses in each of nine Areas of Knowledge — Ethical Reasoning, Historical Inquiry, Language & Culture, Literary Inquiry, Quantitative Reasoning, Religious Inquiry, Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, and Visual & Creative Inquiry, many of which double-count toward Essential Values, a major, or a minor. The major itself requires a minimum of 40 credits, plus a Capstone (minimum 4 credits) and an internship. Remaining credits are free electives, often used to complete a minor.

Nursing is the only major with direct admission. Every other major follows the standard path: explore with an advisor, then formally declare by spring of sophomore year — no GPA gate to get in the door.

Yes, when the program is pre-approved through the Office of International Programs — those courses count toward your in-residence credit total, so study abroad doesn't add time by default. The one limit: study-abroad courses can't substitute for the 50% of your major or minor that must be completed through actual Emmanuel courses, so plan your abroad semester around your major's sequencing with your advisor.

Generally yes, within limits. Emmanuel accepts transfer credit from accredited institutions for courses comparable in content and rigor — up to four courses total over your time here — and an approved AP, IB, or transfer course can also satisfy the Intro to Academic Writing requirement specifically. Whether a given course counts toward your major depends on department-level review, and at least 50% of major credits must still come from Emmanuel courses.

93% of Class of 2025 graduates seeking employment had found a job within one year of graduating. Beyond outcomes, 90% of Class of 2026 graduates said Emmanuel broadened their knowledge and sharpened their intellectual skills, and 92% said it deepened their personal, social, ethical, and civic responsibility.