Graduation Resources

Tracking Your Degree Requirements

Your academic journey through Cornell won't be the same as anyone else's, so it's important to take some time to review your academic progress ahead of pre-enrollment.

Schedule a meeting with your Academic Advisor to review your major progress or an advisor in CALS Student Services to review your college degree progress.

You can also monitor your progress toward meeting your college degree requirements by checking your DUST (Distributed Undergraduate Student Tracking) reports. The DUST report is updated soon after the end of each semester. To monitor your progress toward meeting your major requirements, please contact your major department. 

Diplomas

Information regarding diplomas is available on the Cornell University Registrar Diploma Information page.

Latin Honors

Honor level (Summa, Magna, Cum Laude) is calculated on final cumulative GPA after final grades post for the student’s graduating semester. Honor will be noted on the student’s official transcript and diploma.  

Bachelor of Sciences with Honors

Students must meet one of the following sets of criteria to receive a Bachelor of Science degree with Honors:

• Summa Cum Laude: Students who receive a cumulative GPA of 4.00 or greater after the final semester will graduate with “Summa Cum Laude.”
• Magna Cum Laude: Students receiving a cumulative GPA of greater than or equal to 3.75 and less than 4.00 after the final semester will graduate “Magna Cum Laude.”
• Cum Laude: Students receiving a cumulative GPA of greater than or equal to 3.50 and less than 3.75 after the final semester will graduate “Cum Laude.”

How to compute Latin Honors eligibility in your final semester for a Bachelor of Science with Honors

S = the number of letter-graded credits completed

T = the number of letter-graded credits enrolled for in the current semester

Q = Quality points completed (A quality point for one course would be the number of credits you took the course by, multiplied by the quality point assigned to the grade). i.e. if you took a 3 credits course and received an A, you would have 12 quality points

Quality-point equivalents

The grades of INC, R, S, and U do not have quality-point equivalents.

Plugin the numbers from your record to compute the following Latin Honors Eligibility:

SUMMA

4.0 x (S + T) – Q = total number of quality points needed to attain SUMMA standing. To figure out the GPA needed you would take the Quality Points needed and divide it by T (the number of letter-graded credits you are enrolled for).

MAGNA

3.75 x (S + T) – Q = total number of quality points needed to attain MAGNA standing. To figure out the GPA needed you would take the Quality Points needed and divide it by T (the number of letter-graded credits you are enrolled for).

CUM LAUDE

3.50 x (S + T) – Q = total number of quality points needed to attain CUM LAUDE standing. To figure out the GPA needed you would take the Quality Points needed and divide it by T (the number of letter-graded credits you are enrolled for).

CALS Honors Society

As the senior honor society of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the CALS Honor Society is awarded to students in the top of their class. The purpose of the CALS Honor Society is to aid members in the pursuit of their goals and to the student body in their endeavors to benefit our community through volunteering. The membership is comprised of the top ten percent of the CALS senior class as determined by grade point average. Seniors will be contacted regarding their eligibility.

Services

As members of the CALS Honor Society, we believe in giving back to our community through tutoring CALS students who need help in their academic courses. Although it is not a requirement, it is encouraged all CALS Honor Society members to contribute to the CALS Tutoring Program - email cals-studentservices [at] cornell.edu for more information - or other volunteer activity. Members can also seek tutoring opportunities through the Learning Strategies Center, Takton Center, faculty, and other resources. Tutoring is not the only way you can provide service. We encourage all CALS Honor Society members to volunteer in any way they can, whether it's volunteering at a local retirement home, hospital or another medical facility, animal shelter, or other places needing volunteer help.