To obtain a graduate degree, a student must achieve a cumulative graduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.0.  Students will be placed on probation if their cumulative GPA drops below 3.0 in any semester or if they earn less than a grade of B in more than the maximum allowed credit hours:

  • six (6) credit hours for programs that require less than 50 total credit hours

  • fifteen (15) credit hours for programs that require 50 or greater total credit hours with a minimum of 75% didactic credits

The College of Graduate Studies will notify the student and the relevant department of this action.

If a student succeeds in raising his/her cumulative GPA to 3.0 or higher in the first semester after being placed on probation he/she will be removed from probation.  The College of Graduate Studies will notify the student and the relevant department of this action.

If, at the end of the first semester after being placed on probation, a student earns a semester GPA of 3.0 or higher but the cumulative GPA is still below 3.0, the student will be allowed a second semester to raise the cumulative GPA to at least 3.0, but the student will remain on probation. The College of Graduate Studies will notify the student and relevant department of this action.

If at the end of the first semester after being placed on probation, a student in a degree program does not earn a GPA of 3.0 or higher, the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research will ask the department to make a recommendation as to whether the student should be allowed a second semester to raise his/her cumulative GPA to a minimum of 3.0. The dean will notify the student of the decision. If the student is a non-degree student, then he/she must petition the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research to be allowed to continue taking graduate classes. The dean will make a decision on whether or not to extend probation and will notify the student.

All students are expected to raise their cumulative GPA to 3.0 within two semesters of being placed on probation. If they do this, they will be removed from probation and be notified by the College of Graduate Studies. If a student does not raise his/her cumulative GPA to a minimum of 3.0 within two semesters of being placed on probation, the student will be dismissed from all graduate level programs and not be allowed to register for graduate courses.

Courses with grades below a “C-“ are not accepted for degree requirements.  Students are not allowed to repeat more than two graduate courses.  A course may be repeated only once.

Given the time it takes to implement these review procedures, it is possible that a student could be dismissed after he/she has registered for classes and perhaps started attending them. If that is the case, the student will be dropped from the classes with a full refund.

Students who do not meet the professional standards established by their department may be dismissed from their graduate program. In cases where a student fails to satisfy departmental program requirements, the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research, upon the recommendation of the adviser and the department head or the college dean, may dismiss the student from their graduate program and/or all graduate level courses.

Students dismissed from a specific graduate program or all graduate level courses may petition for readmission no sooner than one academic year after the semester in which they were dismissed. Decisions regarding a student’s dismissal may be appealed to the Graduate Programs Committee.