Academic Eligibility - Graduate

Graduate probation and retention standards

All graduate students, including those in non-degree study, are expected to meet and maintain the academic standards below.

Good standing

  1. Students admitted unconditionally who maintain at least a 3.00 cumulative GPA will be in good standing.
  2. Students admitted on probation who achieve and maintain at least a 3.00 cumulative GPA upon completion of nine graduate credits1 will be in good standing.
  3. Students who have been on probation and subsequently achieve and maintain at least a 3.00 cumulative GPA will be returned to good standing.
  4. Programs may have more prescriptive policies including requirements for appropriate professional or clinical conduct, for sufficiency in professional skills, or other requirements that must be clearly documented in their program guidelines and provided to students upon admission. For a list of programs with such policies students are encouraged to consult the Office of Graduate & Extended Learning.

Probation

  1. Students admitted unconditionally who have a cumulative GPA less than 3.00 upon completion of nine graduate credits, or any time after, will be placed on probation. Such students must raise their cumulative GPA to at least 3.00 within the next nine credits or two terms (whichever comes first) in order to continue in graduate study.
  2. Students admitted on probation must have at least a 3.00 cumulative GPA after completing nine graduate credits in order to continue in graduate study.
  3. Students who have been on probation and subsequently removed from probation will be returned to probationary status if their cumulative GPA falls below 3.00. Such students must raise their cumulative GPA to at least 3.00 within the next nine credits or two terms (whichever comes first) in order to continue in graduate study.
  4. Programs may have more prescriptive policies and other conditions that could trigger probation (see #4 under "Good Standing" above).

Dismissal

  1. Students admitted unconditionally, who subsequently were placed on probation, will be dismissed from graduate study if their cumulative GPA is below 3.00 after completing nine graduate credits or two terms (whichever comes first) while on probation.
  2. Students admitted on probation will be dismissed from graduate study if their cumulative GPA is below 3.00 after completing nine graduate credits.
  3. Students will be dismissed from graduate study if their semester GPA is less than 3.00 at any time while on probation after completing the initial nine credits.
  4. Students who earn a "D" or "F" in a graduate course will be dismissed from graduate study.
  5. Programs may have more prescriptive policies and other conditions that could trigger dismissal (see #4 under "Good Standing" above).
1

Graduate credits are defined as course credit offered at the 500-level or above, or any course accepted as part of the requirements for a graduate degree.

Readmission to a program after dismissal

A student who has been dismissed from their graduate program may request readmission. The student should consult with their program director and/or the Office of Graduate & Extended Learning for advice and help with how to proceed.

The student's request for readmission must be stated in a formal letter addressed to the program director, outlining the rationale for the request and plans for improved performance. The student should follow any guidance regarding the request that is provided by the program. The program will follow their own process to decide whether to readmit the student.

If the student’s program finds compelling evidence to warrant the student's readmission, the program director will inform the college office. The academic services director will formalize the readmission, informing the student, the graduate program, the Office of Records and Registration, and the Office of Graduate & Extended Learning. Readmission may result in a student being placed on probation.

If the program is unwilling to support readmission, the student may consult the college office and/or the Office of Graduate & Extended Learning to discuss the possibilities for any further action.

Appeals process for graduate students not re-admitted by graduate programs 

  1. The decision of a graduate program on readmission of a student that has been dismissed is considered to be final.
  2.  If a student feels that their graduate program did not follow its written procedures in not supporting their request for readmission, that student may appeal to Graduate Council for a hearing on due process.
    1. The Graduate Council will only consider due process appeals (i.e., cases where a graduate program is thought to have acted contrary to its written procedures), and does not consider any other evidence for exceptions to the dismissal policies of a graduate program.
    2. For the purposes of due process appeal, a graduate program is assumed to use the standards of the graduate catalog for probation or dismissal, unless the program has additional prescriptive policies documented in their program guidelines, bylaws, or other equivalent documents that supersede those of the catalog. Such documents should be available to students in the program and on-file in the office of the dean of the college for that graduate program, and provided to the Graduate Council prior to any due process appeal.
    3. If the Graduate Council finds that a program’s decision was inconsistent with that program’s written procedures, then the program must reconsider the request for readmission and base a new decision on the program’s written procedures.
    4. If the program’s decision is deemed by Graduate Council to be consistent with written procedures, then that program’s decision remains final.
  3. Students who have been dismissed from a graduate program can apply to the Office of Graduate & Extended Learning for “special non-degree status” or seek admission to another graduate program. However, being accepted to special non-degree status or to another graduate program after dismissal is rare and should not be expected.
  4. Students who are not accepted for special non-degree status or accepted to another program are dismissed from the university.  

The Graduate Council

Duties and responsibilities of the committee shall include:

  1. In partnership with programs, departments, schools, and colleges, regularly establishing, monitoring, and revising academic policies pertaining to graduate education, including policies for graduate student admission, honors recognition, retention, probation, dismissal, and readmission, and reviewing those policies at least every five years.
  2. In partnership with the Dean of Graduate and Extended Learning, sharing responsibility for graduate education strategic planning to ensure:
    1. on-going review, assessment, and revision of the strategic plan; and
    2. implementation of recommendations resulting from strategic planning activities.
  3. Overseeing membership in the graduate faculty.
    1. Determine procedures and criteria for selecting members of the graduate faculty.
    2. Review new graduate faculty applications through a standing subcommittee.
    3. Periodically approve and updated roster of members of the graduate faculty,
  4. Formulating procedures for hearing graduate student appeals and petitions on academic policy matters not resolved by administrative offices of the university.
  5. Reviewing Research, Service, and Education Leadership (RSEL) grant applications through a standing subcommittee.

Membership of the committee shall consist of nine graduate faculty. The faculty membership shall include one representative from each of the College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities, the College of Science and Health, and the College of Business Administration, one representative from or affiliated with the School of Education, Professional and Continuing Education, and five at-large members. Any Instructional Academic Staff appointed to the committee shall have been employed by the University for the previous four consecutive years. At least one representative from each college shall be either a graduate program director or a member of a department participating in a graduate program. In addition, the chair of the Graduate Curriculum Committee and two graduate students shall serve as members. The academic deans, the Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the Dean of Graduate and Extended Learning, the Director of the Library, the chair of the Graduate Academic Program Review Committee, and the Registrar, or their designees, shall serve as administrative consultant

Revised 2019 by Faculty Senate.