Grades and Academic Standing

6.1 Grades

Minimum Grade Requirements

6.2 Academic Standing

Good Academic Standing
GPA Calculation
Academic Probation & Suspension
Re-admisison to Graduate Degree Programs


6.1 Grades

Graduate students admitted fall 2016 and forward will adhere to the following policy:

MINIMUM GRADE REQUIREMENTS — A course listed on a Program of Study must receive a grade of “C” or higher to be counted. If a course receives a grade lower than a “C”, a student must retake the course and earn a “C” or better.


Note: The department may have additional minimum grade requirements.


Another course may be substituted on the Program of Study if the original course is not offered in either of the two (2) subsequent terms. The original course will remain on the Program of Study and the new course will be noted as a substitution by The Graduate School. A letter from the department head to The Graduate School will be sufficient to The Graduate School to support a course substitution.


Note: A student must still maintain a program GPA of 3.00 or higher.


Graduate students admitted prior to fall 2016:

MINIMUM GRADE REQUIREMENTS — A course listed on a Program of Study must receive a grade of “C-“ or higher to be counted. If a course receives a grade lower than a “C-“, a student must retake the course and earn a “C-“ or better.

Note: The department may have additional minimum grade requirements.

Another course may be substituted on the Program of Study if the original course is not offered in either of the two (2) subsequent terms. The original course will remain on the Program of Study and the new course will be noted as a substitution by The Graduate School. A letter from the department head to The Graduate School will be sufficient to The Graduate School to support a course substitution.

Note: A student must still maintain a program GPA of 3.00 or higher.

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6.2 Academic Standing

GOOD ACADEMIC STANDING — A degree-seeking graduate student is expected to obtain a 3.00 Grade Point Average (GPA) to be in Good Academic Standing.

A student must maintain:

  • A minimum 3.00 GPA each term,
  • A minimum 3.00 GPA in the entire Program of Study, and
  • A cumulative 3.00 GPA overall.

Any student whose cumulative or term GPA is less than 3.00 at the end of any term may be placed on probation or suspended from their degree program.  See Academic Probation & Suspension.

GPA CALCULATION — See Grade-point average (GPA) (includes information on repeated courses)

See Pass/Fail grades

See N grades

See “I” Grade Eligibility


Note:  All “I” grades need to be replaced by a standard letter grade no later than the term of graduation.


See “W” Grade Eligibility

ACADEMIC PROBATION & SUSPENSION

Probation —

College: Term GPA falls below 3.00 and cumulative GPA remains at 3.00 or above.

University: Cumulative GPA is below 3.00.

A student may be placed on University Probation for either of the following reasons:

  • The cumulative GPA or Program of Study GPA has fallen below 3.00.
  • The Graduate School or academic department provisions of admission have not been met.

Suspension — A student may be suspended from a degree program for any of the following reasons:

  • Cumulative or program GPA falls below a 3.00 after being placed in University Probation status.
  • Provisions of admission not satisfied.
  • Unsatisfactory progress in a degree program.
  • Cumulative or program GPA falls below 3.00 for any two (2) terms.

Suspension Appeal — If a degree-seeking student wishes to appeal their suspension they must follow the steps in the timeline outlined below:

Step 1) Notice of Appeal. The student must notify the Office of Student Services (OSS) in The Graduate School, their intent to appeal within five (5) business days of receiving the suspension letter.

Step 2) Submission of Appeal. The student has an additional ten (10) business days to provide a letter and any supporting documents to the OSS.

Step 3) Plan of Action proposal. The submitted appeal can be accepted or denied. If the appeal is accepted, the student will be sent a Plan of Action from the OSS to be completed with their committee chair/graduate coordinator. The committee chair/graduate coordinator and the department will make a determination if they are willing to support the student’s Plan of Action proposal. If the Plan of Action is supported, the plan must enumerate the items to be completed for the student to return to good standing.

Final approval of a suspension appeal resides with The Graduate School.

RE-ADMISSION TO GRADUATE DEGREE STANDING — To be considered for re-admission to degree-seeking status within The Graduate School, a student must:

  • Complete a minimum of nine (9) credits at the 4XX-level and higher courses, and
  • Achieve a minimum 3.00 GPA of the 4XX-level and higher courses.

See Re-admission.

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