Special Degree Programs

Departmental Honors

Nearly every major in the College of Arts and Science offers an honors option for their most high-achieving students. Candidates are nominated by their department in their junior year and must have earned a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300 and a minimum major GPA of 3.300 (departments may raise these GPA minimums as their discretion). Beyond the major requirements, students conduct independent honors research and are required to demonstrate some degree of originality and maturity in the methods of independent investigation, analysis, and criticism, and skill in the written presentation of independent work. To earn departmental honors, students write a thesis and present an oral defense to the faculty in second semester of their senior year. Students that successfully complete the program can graduate with the distinction of “Honors” or “Highest Honors” in their major.

Combined BA/MA (4+1) Programs

The College of Arts and Science’s 4+1 programs give students the opportunity to earn both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in just five years. The following programs are available:

• Architecture and the Built Environment
• English Literature
• Creative Writing
• History
• History of Art
• Mathematics
• Medicine, Health, and Society
• Philosophy
• Psychology

Undergraduates with a strong academic record may apply for admission to the program through the relevant department after the first semester of their junior year.

Teacher Licensure

College of Arts and Science students may combine their academic majors with appropriate education programs through Vanderbilt’s Peabody College to satisfy various licensure requirements for teaching.

Five-Year B.M. in Musical Arts/Master of Business Administration

The five-year joint program between the Blair School of Music and the Owen Graduate School of Management allows interested musical arts degree students to overlap their undergraduate course work with work toward the MBA. By combining three and one-half years in Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music with one and one-half years of study in the Owen School, students may obtain both the bachelor of musical arts degree and the master of business administration in five years. Students must apply to the Owen School for admission to the five-year program during their junior year.

Fifth-Year Early Enrollment Master’s Program

In as few as 12 additional months of study, current Vanderbilt undergraduate students can earn a career-enhancing master’s degree. Students may apply to several of Peabody’s master’s programs in the spring of junior year.

Early Start Program

As a Vanderbilt University senior in a bachelor's program you may qualify to enroll in courses approved for master's-level credit and get an early start on your Peabody master’s degree. You will need to apply for admission should you decide to continue a master's program at Peabody College after graduation, but if you have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher when you graduate the GRE requirement will be waived. Ten Peabody master’s programs participate in the Early Start Program.

Peabody Scholars Program

Peabody Scholars is the college-wide honors program for Peabody. The program is designed to attract Peabody’s brightest and most intellectually engaged students across all Peabody departments, to provide them with a community of like-minded scholars and numerous opportunities for academic and social enrichment.  Students apply to Peabody Scholars in the fall of their first year and, if accepted, begin the program in the spring semester. 

Integrated Bachelor and Master of Engineering

On the basis of recommendations containing favorable appraisals of professional promise, undergraduate students in the School of Engineering who have completed at least 75 hours with at least a B average may be accepted into an integrated Bachelor of Engineering-Master of Engineering program. This program is currently available in chemical, civil, environmental, and mechanical engineering.

Bachelor’s and Master’s in Civil Engineering with a concentration in Construction Management

Undergraduates in civil engineering who want to fast track their professional career may choose to spend a fifth year to earn a Master of Engineering in Civil Engineering with a concentration in construction management. Students should meet with the director of graduate studies in the department for more information.

Accelerated Graduate Program in Engineering

Students who enter Vanderbilt with a significant number of credits (20 to 30 hours), earned either through Advanced Placement tests or in college courses taken during high school, may be eligible for the Accelerated Graduate Program in Engineering. Through this program, a student is able to earn both a bachelor’s degree and an M.S. degree in about the same time required for the bachelor’s degree or slightly longer.