• Introduction to WPI
• Section 1: The WPI Plan
  • WPI Degree Requirements
  • Major Areas of Study
  • Professionally Accredited Programs
  • Academic Advising
  • Degree Options
  • Projects
  • The Major Qualifying Project (MQP)
  • The Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP)
  • Global Perspective Program
  • Humanities and Arts Requirement
  • The Social Science Requirement
• Section 2: Department and Program Descriptions
• Section 3: Course Descriptions
• Section 4: Academic Policies and Procedures
• Section 5: Resources and Special Programs
• Section 6: Career Development & Graduate School
• Section 7: Admission, Expenses, Financial Aid & Housing
• Section 8: Trustees, Administration & Faculty
• Supplement
• Search

WPI Degree Requirements

(Effective for students matriculating after August 1, 2008)

WPI’s academic requirements are specifically designed to develop an overall educational experience which meets the goals of the college. Each requirement plays a supporting role as follows:

• To provide intellectual breadth and a better understanding of themselves and the diversity and creativity of human experience, every WPI student must complete a Humanities and Arts Requirement;
• To provide an understanding of the priorities of other sectors of society, develop the ability to communicate effectively with disparate groups, organize and derive solutions to complex problems, and gain an awareness of the interrelationships between technology and people, every WPI student must complete an Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP);
• To provide a capstone experience in the professional discipline, to develop creativity, instill self-confidence and enhance the ability to communicate ideas and synthesize fundamental concepts, every student must complete a Major Qualifying Project (MQP);
• To provide for learning through an academic program with fabric and course balance while encouraging individual student choices within that framework, every student must fulfill Distribution Requirements.

WPI Terms and Credit Units

The Bachelor degree from WPI normally is based upon a residency at WPI of 16 terms. WPI operates on a system with four seven-week terms, two in the autumn semester (Terms A and B) and two in the spring semester (Terms C and D). A summer session, Term E, is also available. The normal academic load for each term is defined as one unit of work, usually divided among three courses or projects. Thus, the usual credit unit for courses or independent study/projects is 1/3 unit. Qualifying Projects, defined on pages 38-39, require one full unit of activity which may be concentrated into a single term (especially if conducted off-campus) or spread throughout an academic year. The degree will be awarded upon completion of the following:

Degree Requirements

1. The Humanities and Arts Requirement (See page 26) 
   Qualification by overall evaluation of two units of work in the humanities and arts. To provide intellectual breadth and a better understanding of themselves and the diversity and creativity of human experience, every WPI student must complete a Humanities and Arts requirement.
2. The Interactive Qualifying Project (See page 17)
   Successful completion of a qualifying project relating science and/or technology to society (the Interactive Qualifying Project, or IQP) representing at least one unit of credit in project or independent study work. The format of the documentation is to be in accordance with current WPI policy on such documentation.
   An IQP shall address a topic relating science and/ or technology to society. In this context, both “society” and “technology” should be construed as broadly as possible. Technology refers to the application of rational and efficient principles to a body of knowledge or to the control of space, matter and/or human beings. Thus, the IQP encompasses not only techniques of production embodied in tools and machines, but also advances in methods of social and economic organization, in managerial techniques, and in methods of analysis in science, mathematics, and engineering. Society refers not only to a grouping of individuals but also to the culture, values, laws, customs, and institutions shared by these individuals.
3. The Major Qualifying Project (See page 16)
   Successful completion of a qualifying project in the major area of study (the Major Qualifying Project, or MQP) representing at least one unit of credit in project or independent study work. The format of the documentation is to be in accordance with current WPI policy on such documentation.
4. Distribution Requirements (See program description for specified departments - page 31) 
   Satisfaction of published academic activity distribution requirements in or relating to the major area of study. These requirements total no more than ten units (including the MQP) and are specified by general topical subject area, not by specific courses. Completion of distribution requirements will be certified by the appropriate departmental or Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Division (IGSD) Program Review Committee (PRC), upon recommendation by the student’s academic advisor. For students desiring designation of a major area for which a determination regarding distribution requirements has not previously been made and published, a faculty committee will be appointed by the department head or IGSD dean to review and approve the student’s program of study.
5. Social Sciences (See page 30)
   Completion of 2/3 unit of work in the social sciences, exclusive of qualifying project.
6. Residency Requirement
   A minimum of eight units must be completed satisfactorily in residence at WPI. (It is anticipated the normal residence at WPI will be 16 terms.)
7. Minimum Academic Credit
   The minimum academic credit required for the Bachelor degree is 15 units. Credit accumulated beyond the published distribution requirements shall be accomplished by the addition of “free elective” work.
8. Physical Education (See page 93)
   Qualification in physical education shall be established by completing 1/3 unit of course work (four PE classes) or its equivalent. Such an equivalent, for example, may be participation in club or varsity sports.

Maintained by webmaster@wpi.edu
Last modified: January 23, 2008 08:59:36