Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies Degree

The Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) degree is designed for adults who seek a flexible program that enables them to complete their undergraduate degree while balancing work and family commitments. Rooted in the UVA liberal arts tradition, the BIS degree offers a broad interdisciplinary education that prepares students to advance in their current jobs, transition to a new career, or pursue graduate studies. Regardless of their area of concentration, BIS students strengthen highly desirable skills in critical thinking, communication, problem solving, team work, analytical reasoning, and time management. Students choose a concentration from options in business, technology, healthcare management, and the liberal arts.

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Students enter BIS having completed up to 60 credits transferable to UVA. A total of 120 semester credits are required for the degree; at least 60 credits must be completed in UVA course work. Our pre-admission advising team is ready to answer questions, provide feedback based upon a preliminary review of transcripts, and help recommend strategies for a strong application.

On average, working BIS students take two courses per semester and complete the degree in about three years to four years. However, the degree offers flexibility to those whose lives permit them to handle a heavier course load and complete the degree more quickly. Ultimately, we care about student success and are happy to discuss individual circumstances. 

When you graduate from SCPS, you'll be a part of the UVA community for life. 

Customize Your Learning to Meet Your Needs

At UVA, you can choose from multiple, flexible learning pathways to achieve your preferred balance of convenience and personal connection and ensure your education fits into your life. Learning options include:

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Live, Online Together: 

Learn primarily in live online evening classes. If an issue occasionally arises, students can coordinate with professors for recordings and guided follow-up work.

Online, On Your Schedule:

Learn primarily on your schedule while meeting structured deadlines. Supplement with optional live online engagement.

When you apply, you will indicate your preference for learning mode. But rest assured, we can help you if you change your mind as you journey through your degree program. 

Your Learning Experience

Curious about the learning experience for each pathway? Read more details about these choices:

Live, Online Together

The program is built around live, online evening classes that prioritize discussion, shared inquiry, and real-time engagement with faculty and peers. These scheduled sessions provide the core instructional experience and foster a strong learning community. While attending class is the expectation, when work, family, or other obligations prevent live attendance, students can coordinate with professors for guided follow-up work.

Online, On Your Schedule

Courses are delivered primarily through asynchronous instruction, allowing students to complete most coursework independently on a flexible schedule within clearly defined weekly deadlines. Instructional materials, assignments, and discussions are designed for sustained engagement throughout the week rather than reliance on a single meeting time. Each course includes a brief, regularly scheduled live online session that provides opportunities for discussion, clarification, and connection with faculty and peers. Participation in the live session is encouraged but not required; students who are unable to attend may view the recorded session and complete associated activities to ensure continuity, accountability, and progress toward course learning outcomes.

For more details on learning pathways, please see our FAQ page. 

Hear more from our BIS faculty, students and alumni:

Transcript for Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies Video

A liberal arts degree from the School of Continuing Professional studies is a degree that will change your life. You are going to see and experience the world in a way you never thought possible. The BIS program introduces you to new religions, people, cultures, and places. The breadth of its courses really opens up the world to you. The BIS program changed my life in many ways. It made me love learning again. It helped me with my career and it made me excited for what's next for my education. Students in the BIS program are inquisitive. They wanna be challenged and they're really ready for us to open the doors of exploration through our curriculum. The program helped me become a better writer, a better thinker, a better teacher, uh, and, uh, helped me understand my students better. The bulk of our courses are taught live online so you know your professor, you speak with them on a weekly basis, you interact with your fellow students. This doesn't feel like remote learning. You are in a classroom. The in class experience is very much like uh an actual in person classroom uh people sort of bond over the difficulty of the work and uh help each other with problems. You get a chance to meet with the same people every week uh you get to know what they think and meet their families so it doesn't feel far away at all. The student diversity in our classes is amazing. There is diversity in age, in experience, in culture. That diversity helps bring everyone closer together. Students in the BIS program do create strong bonds with one another, bonds that are strong enough that last past graduation and lifelong friendships. I feel really close with my fellow BIS alumni from group texts to emails, we talk still almost every week. When you finish your degree, you will walk the lawn with every other student at the University of Virginia and leave prepared for your new life. When you walk the lawn at UVA, you really feel like a wahoo and everyone is rooting for you. The BIS program has been offering flexible and accessible education for working adults for over 25 years. The program was really, uh, allowed me to tailor it to my own needs. I could go at my own pace and I could construct the experience that was good for me. I work full time, so being able to take classes at night was really beneficial for me and my family. The professors in the BIS program are passionate about what they teach, and they bring this energy to the classroom. Our professors at BIS are amazing. They are really invested in our success, so it's like having a group of champions that really are wanting to lift you up. The BIS program will not only broaden your worldview, it will prepare you to be more engaged in your own community. Students take coursework that's accessible, it's flexible, it's challenging, it's rigorous, and it helps to awaken that scholar within. If you're considering the BIS program, just do it. If you're a student who's ready to be challenged and see change in your life, then the bachelor of Interdisciplinary studies is the program for you really will help you catapult your life.

Key Takeaways

• Start dates in August and January
• Transfer up to 60 credits into UVA
• Undergraduate study designed around the lives and schedules of working adults
• Online courses from established faculty
• Individualized academic advising
• Options to learn primarily "live, online together" (synchronous) or "online, on your time" (asynchronous)

How it Works

This program is developed to be flexible. Our instructors understand adult learners are balancing many demands. Classes are held primarily synchronously online in the evening so you can ask questions, dig deeper, and develop long-lasting relationship with your classmates and instructors.

On average, students take two courses per term, including the summer, and take about three to four years to complete the degree. Depending on your unique situation, you may able to finish sooner or choose to move more slowly. Students are allowed take up to seven years.

What You Will Learn

• The BIS degree program offers concentrations in Art and Society, Business, Cybersecurity Analysis, Cloud Solutions and Operations, Early Childhood, Healthcare Management, History and Politics, Public Safety Management, Information Technology, Liberal Arts, Psychology and Writing. With permission of the BIS director, a student may also propose an individualized concentration.
• Students enroll in a required series of Liberal Studies Seminars and Conduct of Inquiry Seminars, supplemented by elective courses that complement academic, personal and professional goals.
• Students also conduct independent research for a two-semester Capstone Project, with guidance and support from a faculty member.
• Learn more about the BIS Curriculum and Student Success Resources

Tuition and Admission

Tuition & Fees

• Estimated cost: $499 tuition per credit hour and $12 fees per credit hour, or $30,660 for 60 credits. Students pay per course, per semester.
• Pay the same tuition rate whether you are in-state or out-of-state.
• This program is eligible for Active Duty Military Rate of $250 per credit hour
• Students have access to financial aid, scholarships and payment plans
• Additional fees may apply, including course materials. Tuition rates are adjusted annually.

See Tuition Details

Scholarships

BIS students may be eligible for both institutional and department scholarships, including:

• Achievement Award
• Dean's Promise Scholarship
• Enslaved Ancestors Scholarship
• Guttman Public Service Scholarship
• Osher Reentry Scholarship
• AccessUVA

A critical first step is for all students to apply for financial aid. This ensures you are being considered for all possible aid, including scholarships and grants. 

For more information about scholarships, please contact our Financial Aid team at scps_financialaid@virginia.edu or scps-scholarships@virginia.edu.

Admission Requirements & Deadlines

Deadline Information

• To begin in the fall (August): application must be submitted by May 15
• To begin in the spring (January): application must be submitted by November 1

Admission Requirements

Students are eligible to apply who have attained:

• A high school diploma, or equivalent
• 36 Transferable Credit Hours: A minimum of 36 transferable credits (C or better), to include:
  • English composition (your college’s full sequence)
  • At least 12 transferable credits applicable toward the general education requirements for the BIS degree.
• 2.0 GPA: A minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 from the institution attended most recently and good academic and social standing at that institution
• Academic, Social & Financial Standing at UVA: Good academic, social, and financial standing at UVA if previously enrolled.

Additional Information:

• Prerequisites for the business and psychology concentrations may be completed within the BIS curriculum as degree electives after admission; however, the prerequisites should be satisfied before students enroll in required concentration courses.   
• A maximum of 60 transferable credits from outside (non-UVA) institutions and test credits may be applied toward the BIS degree. Students who have previously attended UVA may be able to apply prior UVA credits toward BIS degree requirements and should submit a pre-admission advising form to understand the applicability of those prior credits.
• SCPS typically begins reviewing applications for Fall admission in mid-February and Spring admission in mid-September. Applications will be reviewed only once all required materials have been received; please check the application status page to ensure that all materials are in. Once SCPS begins its review, applicants usually hear within two weeks of the time their file is complete.

Guaranteed Admission Agreements

Guaranteed Admission Agreement (GAA) with Virginia Community College System

Under a Guaranteed Admission Agreement (GAA) with the Virginia Community College System (VCCS), applicants who have completed 60 transferable credits and an Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, or Associate of Arts & Sciences degree from a VCCS college, with 45 or more credits earned from VCCS, and have earned a GPA in VCCS coursework of 3.5 or better, will be eligible for consideration under guaranteed admission. Those applying under the GAA must submit a Letter of Intent and official transcripts to SCPS Admission Services by February 15. A completed online application for admission must be submitted by May 15.

Guaranteed Admission Agreement (GAA) with Richard Bland College of William and Mary

Under a Guaranteed Admission Agreement (GAA) with Richard Bland College (RBC), applicants who have completed 60 transferable credits and an Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, or Associate of Arts & Sciences degree from RBC, with 45 or more credits earned from RBC, and have earned a GPA in RBC coursework of 3.5 or better, will be eligible for consideration under guaranteed admission. Those applying under the GAA must submit a Letter of Intent and official transcripts to Admission Services by February 15. A completed online application for admission must be submitted by May 15.

Application Process

Before You Apply

• Connect with a Recruitment Specialist, who can help you with questions surrounding admissions requirements, financing, support for students and more.
  • Phone: 1.800.346.3882
  • Email: SCPSinquiry@virginia.edu
  • Schedule an appointment
• Submit the Pre-Admission Review form to begin a dialogue with our pre-admission advising team, who can answer questions, provide valuable feedback regarding transferable credits, and recommend strategies for a strong application.
• Speak with your current employer to explore tuition assistance and let them know you plan to finish your degree

How to Apply

• Gather the following materials for your application
  • One essay: Approximately 500 words
  • Unofficial Transcripts: Upload with your application; submit them through the pre-admissions form; or send to centralscpsadmission@virginia.edu
  • Standardized Test Scores: TOEFL, IELTS, AP or IB scores (if applicable)
  • Application for VA In-State Education Privileges: To determine residency (SCPS tuition is geographically neutral)
  • Letter of Recommendation: Ideally, a person who knows you in an academic capacity (professor, advisor) and can comment on the strengths and skills that will help you be a successful student. A work supervisor is also acceptable. Please, no friends or relatives.
• Apply for financial aid
  • The financial aid deadline is the same as the application deadline. 

Meet the Faculty