INDIANA UNIVERSITY SOUTH BEND 2000 - 2002 BULLETIN

Academic Regulations and Policies

Absences from Scheduled Classes

Policies regarding absences from scheduled classes are generally determined by the instructors of the classes in which they occur. Students are expected to explain to their instructors the causes of these absences and to make up all work to the satisfaction of their instructors.

Absences from Final Examinations

A student who fails to attend the final examination of a course and who has a passing grade up to that time may, at the discretion of the instructor, be given a grade of I.

Academic Standing

The university has established levels of competency, according to grade point average and semesters completed, which determine whether a student is in good
standing, certified to an upper-division, on probation, or ineligible to continue studies.

• Good Standing Those students who consistently maintain minimums of 2.0 on their cumulative and semester records are considered to be in good standing.
• Probation Students are on probation for the duration of the next regular semester or summer session following the one in which they failed to attain a 2.0 GPA. They are also on probation whenever their cumulative grade point average falls below a 2.0. Additionally, several academic units of the university have specific grade requirements that affect probationary status. (Consult appropriate sections of this Bulletin.)
• Dismissal Students may be dismissed from the universityif they:
  1.  make less than a 1.0 (D) average for a semester, or
  2.  are on probation two consecutive semesters and have a cumulative grade point average less than 2.0 (C).

Addition of Courses

Students are permitted to register late or add courses only during the first two weeks of the semester (first week in summer sessions). Students who register late or add a course during the first week of classes must get a registration card or add slip from their academic unit. The form must be signed by the student’s advisor and brought to the Office of the Registrar where the late registration or add will be processed.

Students who wish to register late or add a course during the second week of classes must get a registration card or add slip from their academic unit and secure the signature of the  instructor.

Students who wish to register late or add after the second week of classes (first week in summer sessions) must provide a written statement clearly indicating:

1. the reason for the late registration or late course addition, and
2. how the course work which has been missed will be completed.

This statement, together with the necessary registration card or schedule adjustment form, must be presented to the following persons for signatures:

1. Dean or chairperson of the student’s academic unit;
2. Instructor(s) for the added course(s);
3. Dean or chairperson of the academic unit offering the course(s);
4. Vice chancellor for academic affairs.

If and when these authorizations are given, the student may then complete the registration or add process as described above.

NOTE: SPECIAL FEES WILL BE ASSESSED FOR ALL LATE  REGISTRATIONS.

Assessing Student Outcomes

• The goal of assessing student outcomes at IUSB is to help the university realize its mission to the student body.
• The objective of the assessment process is to involve the faculty, the students, and the community in the effort to review student outcomes.
• The purpose of assessing student outcomes is to identify program strengths and elements in need of improvement.

Students are expected to assist in the assessment process as defined by their academic departments and the campus assessment committee. Assessment processes may include activities as varied as opinion surveys, focus groups, portfolios, and capstone courses.

Audit Policy

Courses may be taken on an official audit basis. No credit will be given for the courses, but the audited courses will be indicated on the student’s transcript. Any work required of auditors must be agreed upon by the instructor and the auditor. Any academic unit has the option to exclude auditors from a particular course. Changes from audit status to credit status and vice versa can be made only with the permission of the instructor and no later than the deadline for midterm grades. Auditing students pay the same fees as credit students, and incur a program change fee beginning the second week of classes. Please contact the registrar for details on auditing procedures.

Class Standing
Class standing is based on total credit hours that count toward minimum degree requirements. Credit hours required are as follows:
 
 

The grade assigned by a course instructor at the end of a term is the student’s final grade for that course. Only in exceptional circumstances will this final grade be changed. Any student who has a question concerning a grade received should consult the instructor immediately. If there are further questions, the student should consult the chairperson of the academic unit in which the course was taught.

Course Numbers

Courses numbered 100-199 are primarily for freshmen, 200-299 for sophomores, 300-399 for juniors, and 400-499 for seniors. While courses are usually not taken before but may always be taken after the year indicated, there are numerous exceptions. Students are advised to check course descriptions for statements concerning prerequisites and class standing.

Credit by Examination

Students may receive credit for College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests; and by successful performance on appropriate examinations while at IUSB. Students who believe they are eligible for special credit because of superior preparation or independent study are urged to accelerate the college program in this manner.

Where credit by examination is awarded by the university, that credit will be recorded with a grade of S on the student’s transcript unless the examination clearly merits an A grade. Failure to pass the examination carries no penalty and is not recorded.

The credit hour fee for credit by examination is waived for freshmen during the first two regular semesters (fall and spring) following their matriculation at IUSB. Undergrad-uate transfers from other institutions can receive credit by examination during their first semester in attendance at IUSB. The fee is also waived for first semester transfer students. All other fully admitted undergraduates and all fully admitted graduate students who apply for university credit by examination will be assessed at $16.80 per credit hour.

Credit Transfer Policy

Courses completed at an accredited institution of higher education before admission to IUSB may be applied toward graduation requirements. It is expected, however, that a substantial part of every student’s work, especially in the major field of study, will be completed at IUSB.

Ordinarily, a maximum of 90 transfer credit hours (including credit earned at other IU campuses) may be counted toward the minimum 120 credit hours necessary for graduation. Students wishing to transfer from another IU campus to IUSB must present a letter of good standing from that campus.

Dean's List

All IUSB students who complete at least 6 credit hours of graded course work in a semester will be eligible for an academic unit's Dean's List. If they complete at least 12 credit hours of graded course work in a semester they will be placed on the Dean's List if they have a grade point average of 3.5 or greater in that semester. If they have completed between 6 and 11 credit hours of graded course work in a semester they will be placed on the Dean's List if they have a grade point average of 3.5 or greater and they have a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 or greater.

Deferred Grades

The deferred grade of R is assigned for research courses in which the student’s work is evaluated when the research is completed. It may also be used at the end of the first term of a two-term course or a course that overlaps two terms if the course is announced as a deferred grade course in the Schedule of Classes.

If work is interrupted due to extenuating circumstances, a special arrangement between student and instructor must be made on a term-to-term basis. If a student drops out of a course before the work is complete, the instructor will assign a regular grade (A, B, C, W, etc.) for the course.

Degree Requirements
Students are responsible for understanding all requirements for graduation and for completing them by the time they expect to graduate. Information about a specific academic unit can be found in the IUSB Bulletins.
Requests for deviation from academic unit requirements may be granted only by written approval from the respective chairperson, director, or dean (or their respective administrative representative). Disposition at each level is final.

Enrollment Restrictions
No undergraduate student, except those who have declared business as their major, is allowed to take more than 23 percent of his/her coursework credit in business courses under any circumstances. The undergraduate business program shall assume the responsibility of monitoring the implementation of this requirement. Any minor in business chosen by a student is subject to approval by the undergraduate business program office.

Final Examination Scheduling Policy

Students are to be notified by the instructor of any deviation from the published final examination schedule no later than six weeks prior to the beginning of the final examination period. In the event a student is scheduled to take more than two final examinations on the same day, the student may exercise the following options:

1. Take final examinations as they are scheduled.
2. Consult with the instructors or the academic units giving the final examinations to determine if any make-up examination(s) is or can be scheduled. If no makeup examination is available, then the student must notify the instructor or academic unit of the course scheduled for the third (and additional) final examination of the day. That instructor or that academic unit will then be obligated to adjust the student’s final examination schedule, provided the student has notified that instructor or academic unit 30 calendar days or more prior to the date on which the final examination scheduling conflict exists.

Grade Grievances

If a student disputes his/her final course grade, the student must discuss the matter with the faculty member assigning the grade no later than the end of the next regular semester.

If the faculty member disagrees with the student’s case for changing the grade, the student may appeal to the chairperson of the department that offered the course. If the chairperson disagrees, the student may appeal to the dean or program director of the area that offered the course. If the faculty member, chairperson, dean, or program directors all disagree with the student’s request, the student may then appeal to the Academic Affairs Committee of the IUSB Academic Senate. That committee then makes its recommendation to the vice chancellor for academic affairs, who makes a final resolution.

In those instances where either the faculty member, chairperson, dean, or program director supports the student’s appeal, the student and the person supporting the appeal must submit a written appeal to the Academic Affairs Committee of the IUSB Academic Senate. That committee will review the appeal and make a recommendation to the vice chancellor for academic affairs, who makes a final resolution.

Grading Code

The official grade code of the university is as follows: A (highest passing grade), B, C, D (lowest passing grade), F (failed), I (incomplete), P (pass), S (satisfactory), and W (withdrawn).

Quality points are assigned for purposes of determining the cumulative grade average as follows:
A+ or A=4; A-=3.7; B+=3.3; B=3; B-=2.7; C+=2.3; C=2; C-=1.7; D+=1.3; D=1; D-=0.7; F, I, P, S, and W=0.

Grade Point Average Requirements

A minimum cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 2.0 (C) is required for undergraduates. A CGPA of 3.0 (B) is required for graduate students. Grades of A, B, C, D, and F are included in the grade average. Transfer students admitted from other institutions with deficiencies in credit points are expected to overcome those deficiencies with IUSB grades.

An undergraduate student must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C) to graduate; graduate students must have a minimum of 3.0 (B).

Graduation Requirements

It is expected that a substantial part of the course work done by students who intend to graduate from IUSB, especially in their major field, will have been done on this campus. Candidates ordinarily will not be recommended to receive the bachelor’s degree from IUSB unless they have earned 30 hours of credit at this campus. Specific academic unit requirements for graduation should also be noted in the respective sections of this Bulletin.

Degrees are conferred in December, May, and August. Commencement is conducted in May. Students who intend to complete their degree work within a given year should contact their academic unit early in that year. All credit of candidates for degrees, except for the work of the current semester, must be on record at least six weeks prior to the conferring of degrees.

Graduation with Distinction

Graduates whose minimum grade point averages (GPA’s) are 3.9 and who complete at least 60 credit hours at IUSB are graduated with highest distinction; those whose minimum GPA’s are 3.8 and who complete at least 60 credit hours at IUSB are graduated with high distinction; and those whose minimum GPA’s are 3.65 and who complete at least 60 credit hours at IUSB are graduated with distinction. Graduates receiving these honors have them so noted on their diplomas and in the commencement program and are eligible to wear the cream and crimson fourragére at commencement.

Honors for excellence in scholarship are awarded at commencement to a limited number of students graduating with the degree Bachelor of Science in Business. The number so honored will not exceed 10 percent of the graduating class in the School for that year.

Incomplete

A grade of I (incomplete) may be given when a substantial amount of the course work is satisfactorily completed by the end of the semester. The grade of I may be given only when the completed portion of the student’s work is of passing quality. The grade of I should be awarded only under circumstances of hardship, when it would be unjust to hold a student to the time limits ordinarily fixed for completion of course work.

A student must remove the I within a calendar year from the date of its recording or, if required by the instructor, in a shorter time period. The academic unit head may authorize adjustments of this period in exceptional circumstances. If the student fails to remove the I within the time allowed, authorization will be given for the grade to be changed to F. Students may not register for credit in a course in which they have a grade of I.

Pass/Fail Option

During the undergraduate program, a student in good standing (not on probation) may enroll in up to a maximum of eight elective courses to be taken with a grade of P (pass) or F (fail). The pass/fail option may not be taken when otherwise restricted by academic unit regulations.

The pass/fail option is open for a maximum of two courses per year, including summer sessions; for this option, the year is defined as August 15 to August 14. A course selected for pass/fail must be an elective; it may not be used to satisfy academic unit requirements. Part-time students may select two pass/fail courses per 30 credit hours.

A student must file a pass/fail option request by the end of the eighth week of class. This is done by consulting the student’s academic unit and completing an option form. Once the option request has been processed, it is final and cannot be reversed. At the end of the course, the letter grade given by the instructor is converted by the records office into a final grade of either P (A, B, C, or D) or F. A grade of P cannot be changed subsequently to a grade of A, B, C, or D. A grade of P is not counted in computing grade averages; the grade of F is included.

Readmission

In special cases, a student who has been dismissed may petition a faculty committee, through the head of the appropriate academic unit, for readmission. Because petitions must be submitted sufficiently in advance of the semester or session to which readmission is sought, students should consult with appropriate academic unit head as early as possible.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. These rights include:

1. The right to inspect and review the student's education records within 45 days of the day the University receives a request for access. Students should submit to the registrar, dean, head of the academic department, or other appropriate official, written requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The University official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records are not maintained by the University official to whom the request was submitted, that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.
2. The right to request the amendment of the student's education records that the student believes are inaccurate or misleading. Students may ask the University to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading. They should write the University official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading. If the University decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the University will notify the student of the decision and advise the student of his or her right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.
3. The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student's education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. One exception which permits disclosure without consent is disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom the University has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility. Upon request, the University may disclose education records without consent to officials of another school in which a student seeks or intends to enroll. Finally, “public information” may be released freely unless the student files the appropriate form requesting that certain public information not be released. This form is available at the Office of the Registrar. Public information is limited to name; address; phone; major field of study; dates of attendance; admission or enrollment status; campus; school, college, or division; class standing; degrees and awards; activities; sports; and athletic information.
4. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by Indiana University to comply with the requirements of FERPA.

Repeating a Failed Course

There are policies under which undergraduates may repeat courses previously failed and have only the second grade in these courses count in the determination of a grade point average. At present these policies are not uniformly applicable in all academic units. Students should consult their own academic unit or the registrar to determine applicability.

Satisfactory/Fail Courses

A number of IUSB courses are offered with an S/F (satisfactory/fail) option. For a given semester, the course may be graded either S/F or with regular letter grades (A, B, C, D, F). All students in the course must be graded under one or the other options. A grade of S cannot subsequently be changed to a regular letter grade, nor can a regular letter grade be changed to an S. S/F graded courses are not counted as part of a student’s pass/fail option. S/F graded courses are noted in the  Schedule of Classes.

Second Degree

Normally the holder of a bachelor’s degree who wishes to pursue further education is encouraged to become qualified for admission to graduate study. In certain cases, however, a student may be admitted to candidacy for a second bachelor’s degree. When such admission is granted, candidates normally must earn at least 30 additional credit hours in residence and meet the requirements of the academic unit in which they are candidates.

Semester Load

A typical full-time undergraduate academic load is 12 to 18 credit hours with an average of approximately 15 credit hours for the fall or spring semesters.

Full-time enrollment in either the fall or spring semesters is a minimum of 12 credit hours for undergraduate and 8 credit hours for graduate students. Full-time enrollment for a summer session (SSI or SSII) is a minimum of 6 credit hours for undergraduate and 4 credit hours for graduate students.

An undergraduate student expecting to carry more than 18 credit hours should have a cumulative B (3.0) average or have earned a B (3.0) average in the last full semester.

A student may carry 6 credit hours in a six-week summer session.

Social Security Number

Students or applicants are advised that the requested disclosure of their Social Security number to designated offices is voluntary except in regard to financial aid application. The student has the right to refuse disclosure of this number or request its removal from records without penalty. A special nine-digit student identification number will then be assigned for use throughout the duration of the student’s involvement with the university. The student’s Social Security number is not disclosed to individuals or agencies outside Indiana University except in accordance with the Indiana University policy of release of student information.

Student Rights and Responsibilities
A statement of students’ rights and responsibilities is published in a handbook, Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct, which contains a description of due process hearings in the event of disciplinary action.

Transcripts of Credits

Students may obtain official transcripts of credits from the Office of the Registrar at IUSB. Requests for transcripts may be made in person or by letter. A fee will be charged for all transcripts. Two working days are required for processing. Transcripts will not be processed during registration. The registrar’s office has current fee and ordering information.

Withdrawals

A grade of W is given automatically on the date of withdrawal to the undergraduate who withdraws during the first four weeks of a regular semester or during the first two weeks of a summer session. The only exceptions are:

1. Students in music ensembles or applied music should contact the School of the Arts for information on withdrawals.
2. Courses dropped during the first week of classes will not show on the student’s permanent record.

Thereafter, a grade of W is given only when the student withdraws with the approval of the student’s academic unit head, granted only if there are urgent reasons related to health or equivalent distress and if the student is passing on the date of withdrawal. If the student is failing on the date of withdrawal, the grade recorded shall be F. Appropriate forms for processing withdrawals must be obtained by the student from the office of the academic unit head.

NOTE: TERMINATION OF CLASS ATTENDANCE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE OFFICIAL WITHDRAWAL AND WILL RESULT IN A GRADE OF F.

Withdrawal from the University

Students must notify the head of their academic unit if they intend to withdraw from the university during the semester. Students who fail to withdraw officially will receive grades of F in all courses in which they are enrolled at the time of their unofficial withdrawal.

acadaff@www.iusb.edu
Last updated: 24 January 2002 by EZ
URL: /regs.html