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Should the student repeat a Course they have failed, or in
which they have done poorly?
In most cases, this is
recommended. If a student repeats a course this will help improve their
cumulative GPA. This is especially important for students on academic
censure (probation), because they will need to raise their
cumulative GPA to a 2.0. In addition, the student should research
whether or not they need to pass this course to continue. This is true
of all core courses (except IC101) and many courses within their major.
In some cases (CJ101, SR201 for example) students need to achieve a
grade of "C" or better to continue on to upper-level courses.
What if a student failed or did poorly in the first half of a two-semester sequence?
Students are usually already registered for the
second half of the sequence when they find out for sure if they have
failed, so it is important for them to change their schedules so that
they do not continue in the sequence. Common sequence classes
include science, college writing, and some math courses. In the case of
college writing, both College Writing I and College Writing II are
offered every semester. Students should retake the failed course the
following semester. Science and math usually follow a schedule whereby
the first sequence is offered in the fall and the second in the spring.
In that case, students will need to wait a semester to retake the course
in which they have done poorly.
What if a student failed a core course?
Students need to follow the sequence of core
courses, especially in the first two years. If they do not pass IC106,
for example, they cannot continue to the sophomore level courses,
without the permission of Karen Brown, Assistant Dean. Students
are often confused about why they need to wait to continue. With the
upper-level core courses, there is an expectation about the level of
writing skills that students have achieved. Students who do not pass
College Writing usually do not possess these skills, either because they
struggled with the work, or because they missed too many classes.
How many credits should the student carry?
Students in academic difficulty tend to do one of two
things: either they try to overload their schedule because they
feel that they are behind in credits, or they decrease their credit load
to the minimum for full time status. While either of these options may
be right for any one student, most students would probably do best by
maintaining a regular course schedule and building in times for seeking
additional support - tutoring, writing, organization or time management
assistance.
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