Non-degree Admissions

Attending ODU for Certificates or Individual Courses

What is a non-degree student? Non-degree simply means that you are intending to complete a certificate program or enroll in individual courses outside of a degree program. Some students only need one or two summer courses and many of our online courses transfer to your college. 

Are you planning to take one course? We recommend contacting our enrollment team to confirm that the course is available in the term you desire. Some courses may have prerequisites.

Contact Our Enrollment Team

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Ready to Apply

Choose the undergraduate or graduate application based on your intended program or course. Select "non-degree" for your student type on the application.

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General Information

  • You may apply as a non-degree student in any academic term.
  • Graduate students can earn up to 12 credit hours as a non-degree student. If you want to continue beyond 12 credits, you will need to apply and be admitted to a degree or certificate program.
  • We recommend undergraduate students take no more than 24 semester hours as non-degree students.
  • Admission to ODU as a non-degree student does not guarantee admission to a specific degree program as degree-seeking student.
  • Official transcripts are not required to apply to ODU as a non-degree student. If you choose to apply to a degree program and become a degree-seeking student, you will need to submit your transcripts.

Continuing Education & Professional Studies

ODU also offers non-credit courses and bootcamps that can help you gain new skills and improve your career options. Some courses may count as Continuing Education Credits toward maintaining a professional license.

To take non-credit courses, you don't have to apply to ODU. Just sign up for the course you want to take through the Continuing Education website.

Visit the Continuing Education Site

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Contact Our Enrollment Team

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