2009-2010 Undergraduate Academic Catalog

Academic Information Academic Information 28 Cedarville University 2009–10 Adding and Withdrawing from a Course Students are responsible to verify the accuracy of their course registration at the beginning of each semester. All registrations must be finalized by the end of the second week of the semester. No classes may be added after this time unless approval is granted from the course instructor, chair of the department that offers the course, and the dean of the respective school. In the absence of the dean, the academic vice president may approve a late registration. A late registration fee of $50.00 will be charged to process a registration or add a class after the deadline. Changes in a student’s course schedule must be made through the drop/add process. This may be completed online within seven calendar days after classes begin. After this time, a drop/add form is required to complete a schedule change. Forms for course changes are available in the office of the registrar and must be signed by both the course instructor and the student’s academic advisor. The student is required to make up any work missed due to late entrance. Changes in a schedule caused by cancellation of courses will not result in financial penalty. When a course is dropped, the action is recorded as follows: Week Course Is Dropped Action Before the end of the 1st full No record on transcript calendar week During 2nd full calendar week W – Withdrawn through 9th calendar week 10th and 11th calendar weeks WP – Withdrawn Passing or WF – Withdrawn Failing Week 12 through the end of Drops not permitted the semester Course changes are complete when the office of the registrar receives the completed drop/add form. The effective date of the course change is the date the office of the registrar receives the completed form. Failure to properly drop a class will result in a grade of Z, which counts the same as an F. Refund information is listed in the financial information section of the catalog. This information is also available on the registrar’s webpage. Auditing Auditing involves attending and participating in a course without earning credit. A course may be changed from credit to audit before the end of the first week of the semester. Courses may be changed from audit to credit, with permission of the instructor, before the end of the first week of the semester. A student may not test out of a course already audited. Registration to audit a class will not be processed until the first day of the semester to accommodate students requiring regular registration status. Independent Study Independent study allows students to develop a high degree of independence in their ability to choose and investigate problems. The objectives of the program include providing opportunities to explore areas not covered in normal course structure, recognizing foreign travel experiences, rewarding self-motivated students, and encouraging joint study by faculty and students on specialized projects. Individual students and faculty members develop the specific criteria that must be met for the successful completion of specific independent study projects. However, the following guidelines govern the independent study program: 1. Only one independent study project may be undertaken in an academic term, unless permission is granted from the department chair and dean of the student’s primary major. 2. The maximum credit that may be earned for an independent study project is three semester hours. 3. The faculty member supervising the independent study, the student’s advisor, and the department chair must sign the student’s independent study form. Registration for the independent study must occur at the beginning of the semester in which the work is to be completed. 4. No more than six semester hours in independent study may be counted toward the major field, no more than three semester hours toward a minor field, and no more than 12 semester hours toward graduation. Independent study taken outside major and/or minor fields must be approved by the department chair and the dean of the supervising faculty member. 5. Supervising an independent study is a privilege a faculty member may extend to a student. It is not a right that a student has. 6. Supervising faculty members determine the grade (letter grade or credit/no credit) for the independent study. Internships Many of the major fields of study include opportunities to receive credit for supervised, on-the-job activities. Interested students should contact the respective department chair for details. Out-of-Class Courses In order for students with irreconcilable conflicts to be able to complete graduation requirements on schedule, it is sometimes necessary to allow instruction in an out-of-class setting. To take a course out of class: 1. The course must be 2000-, 3000-, or 4000-level. 2. Students must obtain approval from the department chair, the faculty member teaching the class, and the advisor. Out-of-class course approval forms are available in the office of the registrar. Exceptions to the course level requirement listed above must be approved by the respective faculty member, advisor, and department chair. Course Numbers and Designations The course numbers are designed to help students select courses at the appropriate level. The University uses the following system: 1. The first number indicates the year in which the course is usually taken. Freshmen normally take 1000-level courses; sophomores, 1000-level or 2000-level courses; juniors, 2000-level or 3000-level courses; and seniors, 3000-level or 4000-level courses. Courses beyond the student’s classification should be taken with the consent of the instructor and academic advisor. 2. The alphabetical prefixes in the course designations indicate content divisions within academic departments. For example, the prefix “BETH” indicates that the course is a theology course in the department of biblical and theological studies. The semester that the course is offered is shown following the course title as follows: Fa – fall; Sp – spring; and Su – summer. The number to the right of the course title indicates credit given in semester hours. The University reserves the right to offer or withhold any of the courses listed. Alternate Year Courses Some departments offer courses on alternate years. These are designated as “even years” or “odd years” based on the first school year number. Example: 2008-09 is an even year.