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Academic Standing

Academic standing refers to a student’s academic status.

To remain in good academic standing at the end of each semester you must:

• Complete no fewer than four course credits,
• Achieve a minimum grade average of “C-“ (1.67 on Trinity’s 4.0 scale), and
• Not fail the equivalent of one-half course credit or more.

Students who do not maintain good academic standing will incur academic probation, may be required to withdraw from the college, may lose financial aid, and may have difficulties transferring to another school or securing jobs or internships where transcripts are required.

For more information on academic standing see the Student Handbook.

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Adding or Dropping a Class

During the first week of a term students may add courses with the permission of the instructor or drop a course from their schedule. All Add/Drop schedules must be

1. Signed by the faculty advisor (even if no changes are made) and
2. Submitted to the Registrar’s Office by the Add/Drop deadline.

The last day to add or drop a course is posted prominently by the Registrar's Office. Amendments properly made at this time will be changed on the student’s transcript: e.g., if a student drops a course during the Add/Drop period, the dropped course will be deleted from his or her transcript and no grade will be recorded.

Note that any student with a course load that exceeds 5.75 course credits will be charged an additional course fee.

Also, to avoid a $100 late fee, turn in your Add/Drop schedule on time!

For more information on Add/Drop see the Student Handbook or call the Registrar, x 2116.

For more information about additional course fees call the Financial Aid Office, x2028.

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Attendance

Students are expected to attend all classes. Specific attendance policies for each course are determined by the professor of that course. Be sure to ask your professor and check the syllabus to clarify expectations, as failure to attend class may affect your grade in the course. Permission to excuse an absence to attend an athletic or other competition or event must be secured from the professor of each individual course: absence from class is not automatically excused and may affect your course grade.

Please check the academic year schedule and make travel arrangements accordingly. To avoid misunderstandings and/or grade penalties, talk to your professors about their attendance policies before you miss a class!

For more information on class attendance see the Student Handbook.

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Dean’s Letters

Graduate programs and transfer applications often require a letter from your dean indicating your enrollment status and/or academic standing. Often these forms ask the dean to note your G.P.A. (grade point average), your rank in class, and your major; and they ask if you have been subject to any disciplinary action.

If you are applying to transfer,

1. Make an appointment to see Dean Reuman, and
2. Bring in an addressed, stamped envelope together with the form(s) provided with your application for admission to the schools to which you are applying.

If you are applying to law school, no appointment is necessary: you can just bring your forms to the Dean of Students Office, together with appropriately addressed/stamped envelopes, and a note explaining what you need.

To ensure that your Dean’s Letter arrives by your application deadline, be sure to get your forms in early.

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Earned Credit Hours

Earned credit hours are credits you have earned for a given course. You cannot earn credit for a course you are repeating or have taken before for credit unless you failed the course in your first enrollment. You do not receive credit if you earn below a “C-“ in Math 101. Earning fewer than four credits in a semester will place you on Academic Probation, unless your petition for a waiver of the four-course credit rule has been approved by the Academic Affairs Committee. Petitions for waivers must be submitted in writing to the Academic Affairs Committee by the end of the Add/Drop Period.

For more information on credits see the Student Handbook or call the Registrar at x2116.

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Grading Policies

Faculty members determine grading policies and evaluation of work for their individual courses. Check your syllabus and/or ask your professor how grades are determined in his or her class. Usually attendance and class participation as well as quizzes, tests, exams, lab reports, papers, and homework assignments are assigned weighted value and figure into your final course grade. Late submission of work or academic dishonesty usually will affect your grade for the individual assignment and may affect your final grade.

Students earn Faculty Honors by:

• Achieving a semester G.P.A. of at least 3.67 (“A-“) with no individual letter grade below “B-“,
• Completing a minimum of four course credits and receiving letter grades for at least four course credits taught or supervised by Trinity faculty
• Having no courses for the semester under consideration in which the final grade is pending

Questions about your grades should be directed to the professor of the course. You should expect high standards in grading, but if you feel an error has been made in grading for a particular course, first talk with the faculty member. You should not pressure a faculty member nor should you expect him or her to adjust your grade if you simply did not do well in your courses for the semester and are trying at the last minute to avoid the consequences of a low semester G.P.A. If, however, after talking with your professor, you feel grading was improper or unfair, talk to the Department Chair and/or Dean of Faculty. The Dean of Students Office does not change course grades.

For more information on grades see the Student Handbook and the Bulletin.

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Graduation Requirements

To receive a B.A. from Trinity, you must:

• Earn a minimum of 36 COURSE CREDITS
• Complete Trinity’s GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
• Writing Proficiency
• Math Proficiency (4 areas)
  1. Numerical
  2. Statistical
  3. Algebraic, and
  4. Logical
• Complete Trinity’s liberal arts Distribution requirements (5 categories)
  1. Arts
  2. Humanities
  3. Natural Sciences
  4. Numerical and Symbolic Reasoning
  5. Social Sciences
• Complete the REQUIREMENTS OF A MAJOR
• Pass a General Examination if it is required of your major
• Earn a MINIMUM CUMULATIVE G.P.A. OF C-.

For more information on graduation requirements see the Bulletin talk with your advisor/department chair, and/or call the Registrar, x 2116.

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Incompletes

Incompletes are granted only under verifiably extenuating circumstances and only with the permission of the instructor and approval of the Academic Affairs Committee. Too much work at the end of the semester or simple failure to complete final course work is not grounds for an Incomplete. Requests for Incompletes must be submitted in writing to the Academic Affairs Committee through the Dean of Students by the last day of classes.

For more information on Incompletes see the Student Handbook.

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Required Withdrawal From the College

Students are required to leave the College for one year if they have incurred Academic Probation two semesters in a row or three times in their tenure at Trinity, or if the Academic Affairs Committee agrees by a two-thirds majority that a student has neglected his or her work. If a student incurs Academic Probation any semester after Required Withdrawal, s/he will again be required to withdraw from the College for one year. Required Withdrawal indicates that you are not in good academic standing and it appears as a permanent notation on your transcript.

Students who wish to petition to return to Trinity use their year away constructively by identifying and addressing the issues that prevented them from performing at their peak while at Trinity and by taking courses elsewhere--a good way to show that they can apply themselves and to gain confidence in their abilities. Pre-approval of transfer credit by the Registrar at Trinity is required.

Readmission to Trinity after Required Withdrawal is not automatic. Those who wish to return to Trinity should obtain a readmission form from the Registrar’s Office or Dean of Students Office and address their petition to the Academic Affairs Committee (c/o the Registrar’s Office or the DoS Office), demonstrating that they understand the circumstances surrounding their Required Withdrawal, how they have met all of the conditions of return voted by the Academic Affairs Committee when they were required to withdraw, what has changed to indicate success if they return, and their preparedness to return to Trinity by proposing their academic plan of study for the upcoming year. When they return to campus they must (1) participate in the Required Withdrawal re-orientation program, and (2) meet on a weekly basis with one of the deans in the Dean of Students Office.

Students who have been required to withdraw from the College may explain mitigating circumstances to the Academic Affairs Committee. It is important to note, however, that you should bring such circumstances to the attention of professors and deans when they occur, not wait until the end of the semester, and that generally, Required Withdrawal is waived only if circumstances were unforeseeable, extreme, and beyond your control. Seniors with just one semester to complete in order to graduate may petition to have the Required Withdrawal waived if all other graduation requirements have been met.

Written petitions to waive Required Withdrawal should be submitted to the Academic Affairs Committee, c/o the Dean of Students Office. Call Mrs. Murphy in the Dean of Students Office (x2156) to find out the exact date of the appeals meeting so that you can get your petition in on time. If a waiver of Required Withdrawal is granted, the student can return to the College but will remain on Academic Probation and is subject to all the conditions of probation as described in the Handbook.

For more information on Required Withdrawal see the Student Handbook.

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Transfer Credit

Course work accepted for transfer credit must parallel Trinity’s liberal arts course offerings and must not duplicate other work credited. If you are transferring to Trinity from another accredited institution, you may transfer up to 18 course credits. If you have matriculated at Trinity and wish to receive credit for courses you plan to take at another institution, prior approval by the Registrar’s Office is required. Before taking courses elsewhere for credit, be sure to talk with you advisor and/or department chair for your major as well to confirm whether or not the courses you want to take can be counted toward your major requirements.

For more information on transfer credit see the Student Handbook or call the Registrar, x 2116.

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 Voluntary Withdrawal From the College

Voluntary Withdrawal is departure from the college by a student’s own choice. Only students in good academic standing are eligible to withdraw from the College voluntarily. To withdraw voluntarily, you must

1. meet with one of the deans in the Dean of Students Office, and
2. complete a Voluntary Withdrawal form (available in the Dean of Students Office and in the Registrar’s Office).

If you voluntarily withdraw before the end of the semester, you will not receive academic credit for the semester during which you leave. Notation of your voluntary withdrawal will appear on your transcript permanently.

If you leave after the fifth week of classes, no portion of your tuition and fees will be refunded. (See the Student Handbook, page 115.)

For more information on Voluntary Withdrawal from the College see the Student Handbook.

For information about fees see the Student Handbook.

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Withdrawal From a Course

After the Add/Drop deadline (up to and including the Friday of the fourth full week of classes), you can still withdraw from a course, but you cannot drop it: i.e., the course from which you withdrew will appear as a “W” on your transcript; it will not be deleted. (See the Handbook for special information about Physical Education courses.)

The deadline to withdraw from a course is posted prominently by the Registrar's Office.

Note: if withdrawing from a course means that you will be enrolled in fewer than four courses and/or earning fewer than four credit hours, you will incur Academic Probation, unless you also secure permission for part-time status (granted only in extenuating circumstances) from the Academic Affairs Committee through the Dean of Students Office. Note also that there may be some financial repercussions.

Note that any student with a course load that exceeds 5.75 course credits will be charged an additional course fee. To avoid this, students must have their course schedule finalized before the end of the Add/Drop period.

For more information regarding student accounts see the Student Handbook. Also ask the Financial Aid Office if this will affect your aid in any way.

For more information about additional course fees call the Financial Aid Office, x2028.