2012-2013 Graduate Academic Catalog

Page 9 2012–13 Graduate Catalog Introduction Experience Admissions Academic s Financial Info. Campus Services M.Ed. M. S.N. Pharmacy Course Descriptions Appendix K The notation “K” signifies credit and accompanies courses transferred from other colleges or universities. It has no affect upon cumulative grade point average. CR The mark of “CR” means that credit hours have been earned for a course for which a letter grade was not deemed appropriate during development of the course. Courses for which a “CR” is possible must be so designated prior to the offering of the course. That is, a teacher cannot award a “CR” in a course in lieu of a grade unless that course has been administratively declared as having a “CR” option before the course began. Courses for which a “CR” is awarded do not count in the computation of the grade point average. NC The mark “NC” means that no credit has been earned. Credit hours for which an “NC” has been earned are not used in the computation of grade point averages. W The mark “W” is used to indicate that the student withdrew from the course during the second, third, or fourth week. Z The mark “Z” indicates that the student did not complete the course but did not officially withdraw. A “Z” is treated in the same manner as the “F” grade when figuring the grade point average. 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 *Grades of C- to D- are used only for professional practice programs. The grade point average is computed by dividing the total grade points earned by the total hours attempted. Grades are issued at the end of each semester. It is the responsibility of each student to discuss his/her academic achievement with his/her 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 Academic Vice President ( cedarville.edu/ academics/avp ) using the “Policies” link from that page. Students may also obtain the same information directly from the Office of the Academic Vice President. Petitions and Student Complaints Student complaints about any aspect of a graduate program or requests for exceptions to an academic regulation should first be discussed with the appropriate faculty member, Director or Associate Academic Vice President of the program. If those discussions fail to resolve the complaint a written request must be initiated by the student and must be submitted to the Office of the Associate Academic Vice President or Director of the program. Probation and Suspension Policies Students placed on academic probation or dismissal will be notified in writing by their academic department. The School of Pharmacy provides pharmacy students with remediation (progression, probation, and suspension) policies in the School of Pharmacy Professional Student Handbook. For other programs, the following standards apply: Academic Probation status refers to any student whose cumulative graduate grade point average falls below 3.00 and is no longer in good academic standing. Students placed on academic probation are expected to return to good academic standing (overall GPA of 3.00 or above) within the attempting of 15 additional graduate credits. Failure to return to good academic standing may result in academic dismissal. Academic Suspension status refers to any student who fails to make satisfactory progress toward declared goals or who accumulates six semester credits of “C+” or below. A student who is suspended from a graduate program may not be readmitted for one calendar year and then only if evidence for expecting satisfactory performance is submitted and found to be acceptable. A student receiving veterans benefits who is on academic probation after half of the hours for a given degree program are completed, or whose cumulative grade point average falls below a 2.5, 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. Attendance Regular attendance is necessary for the student to receive full benefit from the University experience. University policy allows each faculty member to determine and develop reasonable attendance standards which will meet the particular needs of the course. See syllabi for attendance requirements for individual courses. Course Load A student’s academic load for any given term is subject to reduction or limitation by the associate academic vice president or director of a particular graduate program for poor scholarship or excessive work responsibilities outside of college hours. Students who wish to take more than 12 credit hours in a given term must obtain permission from the associate academic vice president or director of their graduate program. Repeating Courses Any graduate course may be repeated once with the approval of the associate academic vice president or director of the program. When a student repeats a course only the most recent grade is calculated into the cumulative grade point average. Credit hours for a repeated course count only once toward the credits needed for graduation. Students have up to 2 years from the end of the original course to repeat a course. Students repeating courses are required to pay all applicable tuition and fees for those courses. Other program-specific requirements may be listed under the academic program. Independent Study On occasion special student circumstances may suggest that an independent study course option should be considered. Such an option might recognize opportunities to explore areas not covered in normal course structure, reward self-motivated students, and encourage joint study by faculty and students on specialized projects.