Academic Policies and Procedures
As an incoming first-year or transfer student at Ohio University, you will participate in Precollege Orientation. You will meet with faculty, administrators, and other students who will acquaint you with university policies, academic requirements, and student services, as well as help you register for your first quarter classes. Precollege Orientation for fall quarter first-year students is held in one-and-a-half-day sessions from mid-July to early August. For transfer students, two one-day sessions are held the third week of July. A one-day session is held in September for students who cannot attend during the summer. Your parents or spouse are also encouraged to attend. Information will be mailed to you in early May.
If you are entering the university for other than fall quarter, anorientation and registration program will be conducted before the beginning of the quarter. Information will be sent to you from University College.
Further information about Precollege Orientation is available from University College, Chubb Hall 140, telephone 740-593-1951.
As noted above, if you are an incoming freshman or transfer student, you will receive information and advising about class preregistration along with other information during Pre-college Orientation.
If you are a current or re-enrolling student at Ohio University, you will find procedures for using the Touch-Tone Registration and Information Processing System (TRIPS) in the Schedule of Classes, available in the registrar's office approximately two weeks before the beginning of preregistration each quarter.
Unless late changes are judged by the registrar as being delayed by the university, you will be charged a retroactive registration correction fee beginning with the third calendar week of each quarter. The fees are: third week, $40; fourth week, $60; fifth week, $80; and sixth week, $100.
The card is issued free of charge according to these guidelines:
CNS charges a card replacement fee under these circumstances:
You must report address changes to the university. Address changes can be made to most student services offices, including your dean's office and the registrar's office. You are responsible for any university communication sent to you at the last address reported to the university.
You must declare a major by the beginning of your third year in school. You must be registered for at least 12 hours during the season of competition and not drop below that level.
In addition, if you entered the university on or after August 1, 1992, a specific percentage of your degree program requirements must be completed. By the beginning of your third year of enrollment, you must have completed at least 25 percent of your specific degree program credits; by the beginning of your fourth year, 50 percent; and by the beginning of your fifth year, 75 percent. This provision also applies if you transfer from a two-or four-year institution, even if you have not completed a year in residence or a season of eligibility at Ohio University.
Some programs of study have higher admission requirements than those set by the university in general, and admission to the university does not automatically grant admission into those programs. Consult the academic area or the Office of Admissions for further information on limited or selective admissions policies for specific programs.
Sometimes a change in major will necessitate transferring to another college (e.g., from Arts and Sciences to Communication). You then make application for transfer in the dean's office of the college to which you would like to be admitted. The change must be processed through the dean's office of both colleges within the first 14 calendar days of the quarter (the specific date is published in each quarter's Schedule of Classes), or you will remain enrolled in the initial college for that quarter. You must fulfill degree requirements of the college into which you transfer. You may, however, pursue programs in more than one college simultaneously. Consult your dean's office about double degree and dual major opportunities.
If you drop a class during the first two weeks (14 calendar days), you will have no record of that class on your transcript. When you drop a class after the 14th calendar day of the quarter, your instructor will assign a grade of Withdrawal Passing (WP) or Withdrawal Failing (WF), indicating that you were passing or failing at the time the class was dropped. This grade will appear on your grade report, your quarterly DARS report, and your official transcript. It does not affect your g.p.a.
If you drop hours through the 14th day of the quarter, you are entitled to a 100 percent refund of the reduction if the change results in a reduction of registration fees. Changes made after the 14th day of the quarter will result in no refund. If you are receiving financial aid, a change in enrollment status may result in your having to repay programs from which you received aid. (See "Refund of Fees" for more information.)
Your change in enrollment status may result in your having to repay programs from which you have received financial aid. See the Refund of Fees and Financial Aid sections for further information.
After the first 14 calendar days of the quarter pass, your schedule becomes official. Your final tuition charges are based on your enrollment as of the 14th calendar day (the 10th class day). If you drop a course after the 14th day, you must still pay the fees and will receive a WP or WF grade.
Only in extreme instances in which circumstances beyond your control make you unable to have your registration in order by the 14th day will the university consider making an exception to this policy. Even then, such decisions are made by a special review panel and require formal documentation such as a doctor's statement. Your dean's office can help you present an appeal to the review panel.
To arrange for a medical withdrawal, contact the medical director of the Student Health Service (for physical health problems) or the director of Counseling and Psychological Services (for mental health problems). The director will make a written recommendation to your academic dean for a medical withdrawal.
It is possible to withdraw medically through the ninth week of a quarter or the fourth week of a summer session. After that, the appropriate director and the dean of your college must agree on the withdrawal.
If you are granted a medical withdrawal, you will receive notification in the mail from the medical director. A refund of fees, if applicable, will be based on the effective date of your withdrawal and will be made according to the schedule in the Refund of Fees section. A medical hold will be placed on your records, and to re-enroll you must request a medical clearance from the appropriate director. Once the clearance is approved, the hold will be released.
If you are returning to class after a legitimate absence, you can expect your instructors' assistance (makeup work, excused absences, change of grade computation) within the limits of their established attendance makes it necessary to limit the number of excused absences or the availability of makeup work, particularly for examinations or such special events as field trips or outside speakers. Such limitations should be explained in the instructor's attendance policy at the beginning of each course. If you are involved in university activities that may conflict with your class schedule, check with your instructor as early as possible to make satisfactory arrangements. You may document reasons for your absence as follows:
If you are participating in an authorized university activity (departmental trip, music or debate activity, ROTC function, or athletic competition), you can obtain notification from the sponsoring office. If you are hospitalized at O'Bleness Memorial Hospital, you are not issued a notification of class absence. However, you may request that your instructor call the Student Health Service to verify your hospitalization. If you receive out-patient care at the Student Health Service, you will not be issued a notification of class absence. However, if you give written permission for the information to be released, you may request that your instructor call for verification that you received outpatient care. It is assumed that, whenever possible, you will visit the health service as an outpatient without missing class.
If you receive medical care from personnel or facilities other than the Student Health Service, you are required to provide verification of the dates you received care.
If your grade has been affected by a legitimate absence or absences that your instructor does not excuse, you may appeal through the normal grade appeal process (first through the instructor, then the department chair or school director, and then the dean of your college). If satisfaction is not achieved through this process, the dean will appoint a faculty committee of five members, including the chair or director of the department or school in question, to consider your case and render a decision. The decision of this committee is not subject to further appeal.
Note: If the instructor does not admit you to the class, you still must drop the class from your schedule using TRIPS. Otherwise, you will receive an F or an administrative incomplete (I*) for the class at the end of the quarter.
Your instructor may set up specific requirements for auditing the class, and if you do not meet the requirements, you may be removed from the class at your instructor's discretion. Be sure to discuss your auditing status with your instructor at the first class meeting.
Request this option through the Office of Graduate Student Services before registering. A $10 application fee is charged, and admission is granted for one quarter only.
The final examination for departmental honors work must be taken before the opening of the regular examination period. Consult your departmental honors program coordinator for more information.
Your g.p.a. is figured only on credit hours attempted-courses for which you receive a letter grade (A-F) or an administrative incomplete (I*), which has the same value as an F. Grades that are considered hours earned but are not figured into the g.p.a. are listed in the following section.
A 4.0 B+ 3.33 C+ 2.33 D+ 1.33
A- 3.67 B 3.00 C 2.00 D 1.00
B- 2.67 C- 1.67 D- 0.67
F 0.00
A report of credit may be made for certain preapproved courses. This is credit without grade points, which means credit is added to the hours earned but not added to the hours attempted for grade-point calculation. Credit is to be used for certain courses and only by prior approval of the Curriculum Council or, in certain special cases, by the dean of the college. Some colleges may limit the number of CRs applied to majors and degrees.
When you apply for graduation, any Incompletes on your record will be calculated as F grades for the purpose of determining eligibility for graduation. If the I is not completed within six weeks after graduation, the grade converts to an F.
Other grade reports that may appear on your grade slip but are not assigned by a faculty member:
Removal of the grade from the record (treating the course, for tuition and grade purposes, as though it had been dropped by the 14th day of the quarter) requires action by the late course withdrawal review panel. Until removed, an administrative incomplete will be computed as an F in your g.p.a.
As a rule, a course designated as a prerequisite may not be retaken to affect the g.p.a. after you have completed higher-level coursework in the same subject area. Courses taken at Ohio University and retaken at another university are not eligible for grade-point adjustment under this policy. Some departments limit the number of times a course may be retaken, so check with your dean's office regarding restrictions.
Retaking a course after graduation will not change your graduation g.p.a., honors status, or rank in class.
The pass/fail option is subject to the following restrictions: (1) No course taken pass/fail may be used to fulfill any graduation requirement (college, school, or department) other than the total-hours requirement. For example, courses taken pass/fail cannot be used to satisfy distribution requirements, minor or certificate requirements, requirements of courses above a specified level, a specific course established as a major requirement, or any other such requirements. (2) You may take no more than one course per quarter by pass/fail. (3) You may complete no more than 20 quarter hours under this option. (4) The instructor is not to know who elects his or her courses on the pass/fail option. A letter grade will be turned in and then converted to a P or F on the transcript. The original letter grade cannot be retrieved.
You can initiate the option by completing a pass/fail application and returning it to the dean's office of your college by the 14th calendar day of the quarter. After this date, no changes can be made. You cannot process pass/fail applications through TRIPS.
The new g.p.a. after segmentation will be used for determining your probationary status and liability of being dropped (see the Academic Probation section). The new g.p.a. also may be used, at the discretion of relevant officials or committees, to determine your eligibility for entrance to academic programs or for scholarships and honor societies, although they also have the option of using both the current and previous g.p.a.
However, the g.p.a. for determining the 2.0 minimum overall g.p.a. for graduation and in the major, as well as honors status at graduation, will be based on all hours attempted at Ohio University, including those attempted before segmentation. Upon your graduation, all grades are returned to the originals and recalculated into the g.p.a.
Subsequent gaps of six or more years will not result in further segmentation of your transcript.
You must petition your college dean to have your transcript segmented; further information about and application forms for the segmented transcript policy are available from the dean's office of your college.
Normally, adequate progress is based on the number of deficiency points you have, which is determined by multiplying your total number of hours attempted by two and subtracting this from all points earned. For example, if you have attempted 40 hours and have earned 65 grade points for those hours, first multiply hours by 2 (40 x 2 = 80). Then subtract the number of grade points (80 - 65 = 15 deficiency points). Increasing your grade points for additional hours can decrease your deficiency points and show that you are making adequate progress. This can be done by earning grades of C+ and above in the hours you attempt.
Some colleges require higher standards of performance than the university's 2.0 minimum. If you have been dropped from a college because of failure to meet such additional standards but are not subject to dismissal according to the university rules below, you are still eligible for admission to other programs in the university.
You may petition the dean of your college for reinstatement, but normally a petition will not be considered for at least 12 months after your dismissal. As a condition for reinstatement, the dean of your college may suggest remedial steps you can take, usually in the form of courses to be taken at other institutions or through Independent Study by Correspondence or Course Credit by Examination. However, such steps will not constitute sufficient grounds for waiving or shortening the waiting period for reinstatement.
If you have been dropped from the university for a second time, reinstatement is possible only under extraordinary circumstances and cannot be considered for at least 24 months after the second dismissal.
If you have committed any act of academic misconduct as determined by the judgment of a faculty member or by the procedures of the Office of University Judiciaries, serious action, which may include failure of work undertaken, failure in the course, and formal disciplinary action, including suspension or expulsion will be taken against you.
In cases of academic misconduct, a faculty member has the authority to grant a failing grade. If your course grade is lowered by an instructor who has accused you of plagiarism, you may appeal this grade first through the instructor, then the department chair or school director, and then the dean of your college. If satisfaction is not achieved through this process, the dean will appoint a faculty committee of five members, including the chair or director of the department or school in question, to consider your case and render a decision. The decision of this committee is not subject to further appeal. The faculty member also has the discretion to refer your case to the director of judiciaries. The director of judiciaries, the University Hearing Board, and the University Appeal Board have the authority to take formal action that includes, but is not limited to, suspension or expulsion from the university. However, the director of judiciaries, the University Hearing Board, and the University Appeal Board have no authority to modify a grade given by a faculty member.
If you wish to appeal an action of University Judiciaries or the University Hearing Board, such as suspension or expulsion, you can take the matter to the University Appeal Board. Details of appeal procedures are included in the Student Handbook.
Further information on academic misconduct is available from the Office of University Judiciaries, telephone 740-593-2626.
To order an official transcript of your academic record, submit a signed release form (available in Chubb Hall) or a letter of request, along with a $5 processing fee for each transcript, to the registrar's office. You can pick up transcripts the next business day or arrange to have them sent to a designated address.
The replacement diploma will carry current titles and signatures of university officers and the notation "official replacement." Allow 10 weeks for delivery.
Please e-mail comments or suggestions to "ucat@www.ohiou.edu."
AU - Audit.
Indicates formal participation in a course, but not for credit or a regular grade. If you register for an audit, you are expected to attend and participate in classes according to the instructor's policy. Failing to do so can result in removal of the Audit from your record. (If this action results in a change of fees, the university policy on refund of registration fees will apply.) Audited courses are not computed in the g.p.a. or hours earned.
I* - Administrative Incomplete.
This report is given when you do not officially drop a course for which you registered but did not attend or stopped attending without permission. Like any other undergraduate grade in a nonrepeatable course, the I* may be replaced in your grade-point average by the last grade earned if you retake the course.
NC - No Credit.
Used only in segmented transcripts as a temporary designation for failed courses while the transcript is segmented.
NR - No Report.
This grade is assigned when the instructor leaves the grade blank on the grade report. The NR also may be the result of a faculty member's assigning a grade that is not coded as legitimate for the course or submitting the grades too late to be processed. NR is not computed in the g.p.a. or hours earned.
P - Pass.
Conversion of grades A through D- under the pass/fail option. Credit is awarded, but the g.p.a. is not affected. The fail (F) grade counts in the g.p.a. the same as any F. A course for which graduation credit is not allowed or that has been retaken will be identified on the transcript. Grades for these courses do not affect the g.p.a., and credit hours do not count toward graduation.
Retaking a Course
A regular course with fixed content can be retaken to affect your g.p.a. Retaking the course removes the hours and the effect of the earlier grade from the calculation of the g.p.a. However, all grades are printed on your permanent record (transcript). The later grade is the one calculated in the g.p.a., even if it is lower than the first, and duplicated credit hours are not accepted toward the credit-hour requirement for graduation. Some graduate and professional schools will include all grades in their calculation of your g.p.a. when determining your eligibility for admission, even though Ohio University calculates only the last grade in a retaken course.
Pass/Fail Grading Option
Taking a course pass/fail is an option designed to encourage you to explore areas of study in a way that will not negatively affect your g.p.a. To be eligible, you must have a g.p.a. of 2.5 or better for your latest quarter of full-time enrollment, or have an accumulative g.p.a. of 2.0 or better. If you are a first-quarter freshman, you automatically qualify.
Segmented Transcript Policy
The segmented transcript policy was developed as a way to allow students who leave the university with low grades and re-enroll after an absence of six or more years to begin coursework without the threat of academic probation. Under this policy, all of your courses will be reflected on your transcript, but the grades you have earned earlier will be temporarily changed to CR and NC, which removes them from the calculation of your accumulative g.p.a., while the hours earned will be carried forward.
Dean's List
The Deans List, compiled at the close of each quarter, includes the names of all students whose g.p.a. for the quarter is at least 3.3 on a minimum of 16 quarter hours of credit earned, including at least 12 hours attempted for letter grades.
Academic Disciplinary Actions
Academic Probation
To remain in good academic standing with the university, you must maintain an accumulative g.p.a. of at least 2.0. At the close of each quarter in which you are a full-time student, your record will be reviewed to verify your g.p.a. If you are a part-time student, the review will take place at the close of the quarter in which your accumulative number of hours of enrollment since your initial enrollment, or since your last review, exceeds 10.
Probation and Continuation.
If at the time of the review you do not have the required 2.0 minimum g.p.a., you will be placed on academic probation. If you are already on probation, you may be allowed to continue at the university until the next review if, in the opinion of the dean, you are making adequate progress toward attaining a 2.0 g.p.a. A continuance can be granted a maximum of three times; thus, there is a limit of four consecutive quarters on academic probation if you are a full-time student.
Removal from Probation.
If you are a full-time student, removal of probationary status is automatic at the close of the quarter of review when your accumulative g.p.a. rises to 2.0 or above.
Dismissal (Drop) and Reinstatement.
If you are denied continuation of probation, you will be dropped from the university. A status of "Drop I" means you were dropped because of an increase in deficiency points. "Drop L" means you reached the limit of four probationary quarters. If you have been dropped, you are not able to enroll for regular courses on any Ohio University campus.
Academic Misconduct
All forms of academic misconduct are prohibited by the Student Code of Conduct. Academic misconduct refers to dishonesty in assignments or examinations (cheating); presenting the ideas or the writing of someone else as your own (plagiarism); or knowingly furnishing false information to the university by forgery, alteration, or misuse of university documents, records, or identification. Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, permitting another student to plagiarize or cheat from your work; submitting an academic exercise (written work, printing, sculpture, computer program) that has been prepared totally or in part by another; acquiring improper knowledge of the contents of an exam; using unauthorized material during an exam; submitting the same paper in two different courses without the consent of your professors; or submitting a forged grade change slip.
Student Records Information
Students Records Policy
Consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, all of Ohio University's policies and practices governing the collection, maintenance, review, and release of student records will be based upon the principles of confidentiality and your individual right to privacy. The specific policy is detailed in the Appendix of this catalog.
Obtaining Transcripts
Replacement of Diploma
To obtain a replacement diploma, file a notarized affidavit attesting that the original diploma has been lost or destroyed, or verification of a name change, to the registrar's office along with a request for a new diploma. In the case of a name change, you also must return the original diploma. Instructions for verifying a name change are available from the registrar's office. The fee for diploma replacement is $15.
University Publications and Computer Services revised this file (https://www.ohio.edu/~ucat/97-98/general/policy.htm) on August 20, 1998.