2018-19 Undergraduate Academic Catalog

Grade Points and Point Averages Cedarville University uses the “four-point system” to determine academic averages. Grade points are awarded as follows: Grade Grade Points A 4.0 A- 3.7 B+ 3.3 B 3.0 B- 2.7 C+ 2.3 C 2.0 C- 1.7 D+ 1.3 D 1.0 D- 0.7 F 0.0 The GPA is computed by dividing the total grade points earned by the total hours attempted. Grades are issued at the end of each semester. The student is responsible for discussing their academic achievement with their instructor. Grade Appeal Process A student who believes that a grade received is incorrectly recorded, inaccurate, unfairly awarded, or based on criteria different than that applied to other students in the same class may initiate a grade appeal. The process for grade appeals is available on the website of the Vice President for Academics ( cedarville. edu/vpa ) using the “Policies” link from that page. Students may also obtain the same information directly from the office of the Vice President for Academics. Petitions and Student Complaints Student complaints about any aspect of an undergraduate program or requests for exceptions to an academic regulation should first be discussed with the appropriate office, faculty member, dean or department chair. If those discussions fail to resolve the complaint, a written request must be initiated by the student and must be submitted to the Dean of Undergraduate Studies. Academic Progress, Warning, and Suspension To satisfy the minimum graduation requirements, a student must earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0. The minimum cumulative GPA needed to maintain good academic standing is also 2.0. The University recognizes that some students may have difficulty earning and/or maintaining the minimum cumulative GPA required for good standing and for graduation. To assist them, the following academic progress chart outlines the minimum cumulative GPAs needed according to the credit hours earned. Academic Progress Chart Credits Minimum Cumulative Minimum Cumulative Attempted GPA for Academic GPA for Academic Probation Warning 0–18.99 1.00 1.45 19–36.99 1.25 1.60 37–64.99 1.50 1.75 65–96.99 1.75 1.90 97–112.99 1.90 _ 113–128.99 1.95 _ Some academic programs have stricter academic progress requirements than those listed above. Students should check academic department sections of the catalog for the specific grade point requirements of their majors. Students who are not in good academic standing will be notified by the dean of their school or the dean of undergraduate studies. First-semester freshmen who do not meet the 1.0 average will usually not be academically suspended in order to provide some additional time for them to make the adjustment to college life. Any student who does not meet the minimum cumulative GPA required for academic probation will be suspended for at least one semester. Any student on academic probation for two successive semesters who is not making satisfactory academic progress is subject to academic suspension. Any student whose term GPA is not above 1.0 for two successive semesters and who is not making satisfactory academic progress is subject to suspension. The school dean or dean of undergraduate studies may make exceptions to the academic progress guidelines when appropriate. A student receiving veterans benefits who is on academic probation for two successive semesters without making satisfactory progress will be reported to the Veterans Administration. The veterans benefits for such a student will be terminated unless the student is making progress toward meeting the minimum academic requirements for graduation. Faculty members and other counselors are available to discuss student progress. The student experiencing academic difficulty should utilize these personnel, as well as resources available in the academic assistance center, to help find solutions to academic problems. Students on academic warning or probation may be required to take a special study skills course as a condition for continuing at the University. Academic warning may preclude involvement in certain University activities. Students facing academic warning or probation should consult with the coaches, advisors, or directors of their activities to learn of academic requirements or restrictions that may apply to those activities. A student must maintain satisfactory academic progress to receive financial aid. Students receiving aid should check the financial aid section of the catalog to obtain the academic progress requirements that pertain to particular aid programs. A student suspended for academic reasons may apply for readmission during any semester in the regular academic year following the semester of suspension. A student who is subject to suspension for a second time may be permanently dismissed. Repeating Courses While adjusting to academic life at Cedarville, some new students earn grades they consider to be unsatisfactory. Consequently, any first year freshmen students who earn an unsatisfactory grade in their first two regular semesters of enrollment may repeat the course at Cedarville University before the end of their fourth consecutive semester of enrollment. Under this freshman repeat policy, the cumulative GPA will be recalculated using the second grade instead of the first, even if the second grade is lower. A similar policy applies to a transfer student. Under the transfer repeat policy, courses taken during the first semester of attendance may be repeated within the succeeding two regular semesters. The cumulative GPA will be recalculated using the second grade instead of the first. Under these repeat policies, any course may be repeated. Although the first grade is no longer calculated into the cumulative GPA, the course and grade information does remain on the student’s transcript. In all other cases when a student repeats a course, both grades are calculated into the cumulative GPA. However, credit hours for a repeated course may count only once toward the credits needed for graduation. Academic Integrity Honesty and integrity are marks of Christian character. One way students live out this commitment to excellence is by adhering to very high standards of academic integrity. Cedarville’s academic integrity policy and pledge encourage honesty from students and provide an atmosphere of accountability. The Academic Integrity Pledge is a commitment to live with integrity in all areas of life, including the classroom. All forms of academic dishonesty violate this pledge and could result in dismissal from this community. All students at Cedarville pledge the following: With my pledge to affirm the Cedarville Covenant, I attest that all work I submit in person, online, or in any other format as my own is my own work and is in accordance with the standards of the Academic Integrity Policy.As a member of the community, I will love God and others, live with integrity, and pursue excellence in all that I do. Failure to act with academic integrity includes, but is not limited to, the following: • Cheating on examinations or quizzes • Plagiarism • Knowingly furnishing false information by forgery, alteration, or misuse of documents, records, or identification within the course activities, requirements, or responsibilities • Knowingly providing correct information to another student concerning exams and other future individual work is a violation of academic integrity. This includes, but is not limited to, questions to be asked on exams or answers for questions that will be asked • Representing another’s work as one’s own Typical penalties assigned by faculty for a lack of academic integrity include, but are not limited to, the following: • Reducing the letter grade for the work involved • Reducing the letter grade for the course • Giving a failing grade for all work involved • Giving a failing grade for the course The assignment of penalties for lack of academic integrity shall be at the discretion of the faculty member of record for the course in consultation with the chair or dean of the faculty member’s academic unit. All cases of academic dishonesty shall be reported to the office of the Vice President for Academics in writing within six (6) instructional days of the resolution of the incident. Any student involved in academic dishonesty may be subject to suspension or dismissal. The procedure and process for appeals of decisions related to academic misconduct is available on the website of the Vice President for Academics ( cedarville.edu/vpa ) using the “Policies” link from that page. Students may also obtain the same information directly from the office of the Vice President for Academics. Academic Honors Dean’s Honor List Until final awards are announced at commencement, the highest academic honor possible to attain at Cedarville University is to be included on the dean’s honor list. This list of high-ranking students is published at the end of each regular semester. Lists are not published following the summer sessions. The requirements for the dean’s honor list are as follows: 1. A student must have a 3.75 GPA or higher for the semester. 2. A student must have no grade for the semester lower than a “B.” 3. A student must carry a minimum of 12 semester hours, excluding CR hours. Exceptions are made for those enrolled in field experiences or internships granting credit/ no credit, provided they take at least two regularly graded courses. 4. A student must complete every course being taken by the end of the semester when grades are turned in by the faculty. Page 30 2018–19 Undergraduate Academic Catalog 2018–19 Undergraduate Academic Catalog Page 31 Academic Information Registration for Courses Academic Information Academic Honors