After many years of thoughtful discussion, research, and testing by various university committees, we are pleased to announce the new undergraduate academic calendar, which will take effect in fall 2025 for the 2025-26 academic year and beyond.
The highlights are:
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We will no longer have an undergraduate January Term (or j-term, after the 2024-25 academic year).
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We will start the fall undergraduate semester on the Wednesday after Labor Day, similar to our schedule prior to COVID.
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We will lengthen the May term to four weeks, that will neither overlap with the end of the spring nor the beginning of the summer terms.
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We will start the Spring semester on the Wednesday after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
We recognize that no single calendar can optimize every aspect of the student experience at Hamline. However, we believe the changes we are implementing will provide the most balanced and beneficial undergraduate academic calendar for the following reasons:
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Many community members, faculty, staff and students have asked that we consider moving our fall start date post Labor Day. Prior to COVID, this was our calendar. For the past four years, we started before Labor Day and have not seen a notable benefit.
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The J-term enrollment has been consistently declining for the past several years.
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Experimental courses in J-term that, among other goals, sought to increase retention, did not yield strong results.
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If students are not enrolled in J-term, they could be away from our campus for more than six weeks in the middle of the year. This is problematic for some students, especially those in their early years at Hamline.
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Our research shows that our students are more interested in short-term study-away opportunities than long-term. The expanded May term, along with potential two-credit possibilities between fall and spring, provide strong opportunities for such experiences.
Thank you all for putting so much time and effort into this discussion, especially over the last two years. Letting go of the January /J-term was a difficult decision, but I am excited for the new calendar and the opportunities it provides for our students.
For implementation and transition questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the University Leadership Team.
Andy Rundquist
Interim Provost
