Academic Warning and Dismissal

Satisfactory progress toward an advanced degree as determined by the faculty is required at all times. The graduate program director/chair will inform students who fail to make satisfactory progress.

Graduate programs take factors other than satisfactory grades and adequate GPAs into consideration in determining a student’s qualifications for an advanced degree. A student’s overall academic performance, specific skills and aptitudes, and faculty evaluations will be considered in decisions regarding a student’s continuation in a certificate, master’s or doctoral degree program. The faculty has the right to recommend at any time after written warning that a student be dismissed from a graduate program for academic reasons or that a student be denied readmission. For additional information, review the warning, probation and dismissal standards for the relevant graduate program.

Process for Dismissing a Graduate Student:

• The appropriate director/chair of the relevant graduate program informs a student in writing that they are not making satisfactory progress toward the degree. This letter will indicate that the student is on probation and include what deficiencies have led to this action, corrections that need to be made, and the timeframe the student has to improve their performance.
• A review is made after the specified timeframe. If the student is making satisfactory academic progress, the program director/chair sends a letter to the student informing them that probation is lifted. If the student has not met the standards specified in the first letter, the program director/chair sends a letter to the student, references items in the first letter that are still deficient, and informs the student that they are dismissed from the program.
• The program director/chair processes the dismissal with the College.