Academic Progress

Academic Progress Policy

Academic progress toward a degree must be maintained to continue study in Fordham College at Rose Hill. Satisfactory academic progress, as defined by the College, must be maintained to receive financial aid.

Full-time students are expected to complete their coursework in four years. Students who need additional time to complete their degree due to special circumstances, such as illness, death in the family, a change in major, etc., must complete their coursework in a period not to exceed six years.

Restrictions on the use of grades W, ABS, and INC are intended to preserve the character of a Fordham education. Permission to have such grades is the recognition by the University of a pressing need due to an individual’s circumstances. However, a pattern of reliance on these grades contradicts the intentions of a strong academic program. In addition, a pattern of reliance on grades of W, ABS, and INC will be taken as evidence of failing to maintain reasonable academic progress. Repeated courses will be calculated into a student’s GPA and will not replace the original grade.

Minimum Credit Completion Policy

Minimally acceptable standards for credits earned are outlined below. Independent of the student’s GPA, the satisfactory completion of fewer credits than stipulated in the table below may warrant dismissal for failure to maintain satisfactory progress toward the bachelor’s degree.

Year of Attendance/Semesters Until Graduation Percentage of Attempted Credits Completed 1 Percentage Completed 1
First: 6 semesters until graduation 65 18-20
Second: 4 semesters until graduation 70 42
Third: 2 semesters until graduation 75 69
Fourth: 0 or 1 semester until graduation 80 99-100
1

Transfer credits accepted by Fordham are counted in both credits attempted and credits completed, although the grades are not calculated in the GPA.

Please note: Academic progress standards differ slightly for students receiving funds from the New York State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). A schedule is available at the Office of Academic Records.

Academic Status

In Fordham College at Rose Hill, both the grade point average and number of credits earned are considered in determining satisfactory academic progress. For each of these criteria, the college has developed minimal standards.

The minimal GPA required for acceptable academic standing appears below, shown by year of attendance and by semesters until graduation. Use the expected degree term of the student to determine the number of fall or spring semesters until graduation. The expected degree term of transfer students is initially determined in their first month of study. Failure to meet this standard may result in academic probation, suspension or dismissal.

Academic Standing as Reflected in Grade Point Averages

First Year
Years of Attendance/Semesters Until Graduation Minimally Acceptable Academic Probation Academic Suspension Academic Dismissal
7 semesters until graduation 1.350 1.200-1.349 1.000-1.1999 less than 1.000
6 semesters until graduation 1.600 1.500-1.599 1.450-1.499 less than 1.450
Second Year
Years of Attendance/Semesters Until Graduation Minimally Acceptable Academic Probation Academic Suspension Academic Dismissal
5 semesters until graduation 1.700 1.600-1.699 1.550-1.599 less than 1.550
4 semesters until graduation 1.800 1.700-1.799 1.650-1.699 less than 1.650
Third Year
Years of Attendance/Semesters Until Graduation Minimally Acceptable Academic Probation Academic Suspension Academic Dismissal
3 semesters until graduation 1.900 1.800-1.899 1.700-1.799 less than 1.700
2 semesters until graduation 2.000 1.900-1.999 — less than 1.900

Appeals Process

Academic progress decisions may be appealed, in writing, to the dean of the college. The appeal must be made within three business days of the notification of academic standing. The decision of the dean shall be final.

Academic Probation

Probation (conditional promotion) is a serious warning that the student must improve his/her academic performance. Students on probation may continue to study at Fordham and may be awarded financial aid. Probationary status is not automatically acquired by the student but must be granted by the dean and is restricted to two consecutive semesters.

Students on probation for two semesters may be subject to dismissal if they are judged not to be making satisfactory progress. No student may enter her/his fourth year on probation or with a deficiency. Students who do not have a cumulative index of 2.000 at the end of their junior year may be permitted to raise their index to 2.000 but only by taking courses during the first session of Fordham University’s summer school.

Students on academic probation are prohibited from participating in extracurricular activities, serving on the University’s residence hall staffs, or representing the University in intervarsity athletic competition.

Academic Suspension

Suspension is an enforced termination of formal studies and will be granted to a student only once for a minimum of two semesters in the course of her/his college career. A student may be liable to suspension if

  1. He/she fails to maintain satisfactory academic standing as indicated by GPA.
  2. He/she receives three failing grades in any semester.

If, after a period of suspension a student wished to continue her/his studies in the college, she/he must formally apply for readmission to the college. In order to be readmitted to the college the student must achieve a 2.750 GPA at an approved baccalaureate institution and show that the deficiencies that caused her/his suspension have been addressed and remedied.

Academic Dismissal

Academic dismissal is the ultimate sanction imposed for failure to perform satisfactorily in a program of studies. A student may be dismissed from the College for any of the following reasons:

  1. He/she fails to maintain satisfactory academic progress as indicated by GPA.
  2. He/she attains an index of 1.000 in any semester.
  3. He/she is placed on academic probation for three successive semesters.

Once a student has been dismissed from the College for academic reasons, he/she may not take courses in Fordham College at Rose Hill.

Dismissal Appeal Policy

All academic progress decisions may be appealed, in writing, to the dean of the college. The appeal must be made within three business days of the notification of academic status. It should include documentation of any extenuating circumstances, such as a death in the immediate family or an illness. The dean will make a decision in consultation with appropriate colleagues, and that decision shall be final.

Academic Course Failures and Removal of Deficiencies

A student who has incurred a failure in a course prescribed for a degree in Fordham College at Rose Hill or in an elective must rectify the deficiency by taking a course approved by the class dean. If the failure is in the student’s major field, the deficiency must be rectified by taking an identical or equivalent course approved by both the department adviser and the class dean.

No grade lower than C will be accepted in rectifying a deficiency. Grades received by rectifying a deficiency through attendance at one of the colleges of Fordham University will be used in computation of the student’s grade index. Grades received at other universities will not be computed in the index. In both cases the original failing grade remains on the transcript and is computed in the index.

To rectify a deficiency, a student is normally obliged to attend a summer session of an approved college during the summer following the academic year in which the failure was incurred.

Students who, with prior approval of the class dean, register for an extra course to make up a deficiency, will be charged for the course.

Banner, which handles preregistration for courses, only allows students who failed a course to retake that course. If a student did not fail a course, but wants to retake it for a better grade, she/he needs to see both the department adviser and the class dean.