Academic Policies and Regulations

University policies and regulations generally apply to all undergraduate students and provide a framework within which schools and colleges may specify further conditions or variations appropriate to students in their courses or programs.

Academic Residency Requirements

Students who transfer into the College of Liberal Arts must complete at least 30 semester hours of course work as a student registered through the College and at least half of the courses required in the major at Temple.

Course Eligibility

All College of Liberal Arts undergraduate courses are divided into two kinds:

• Lower-Level courses numbered 1000-1999: open to all students including non-matriculated students who are in the process of completing or who have completed appropriate course prerequisites.
• Upper-Level courses numbered 2000-4999: open to all matriculated students who have completed all appropriate course prerequisites.
  

Courses Taken Elsewhere by Liberal Arts Students

Matriculated Temple students must always petition for the prior approval of their Dean or Dean's designee to take courses at another institution. (See Permission to Take Courses at Another Institution under Academic Policies and Regulations.) Petitions are available in the College of Liberal Arts Academic Advising Center.

Dean's List

Each semester, undergraduate students who achieve a grade point average of 3.5 or above for the semester with 12 or more graded credits toward the degree and with no grade of Incomplete or "R" are selected for the Dean's List. Letters of congratulation are sent to each of these students.

Declaration of Major

Students in the College of Liberal Arts must declare their major before completing 60 credits, which includes credits transferred from other institutions. Undeclared students with 45 or more credits are required to meet with an advisor in the Academic Advising Center before registering. Students who wish to Intra-University Transfer (IUT) into the College of Liberal Arts from other colleges and schools at Temple must have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Students will not be permitted to IUT as undeclared majors if they have completed, or are in the process of completing, 60 or more semester hours.

Graduation Procedures

Upon completion of 80 semester hours, all students are required to review with an advisor in the Academic Advising Center a summary sheet indicating the degree requirements that remain to be completed. Students can schedule this review in the Academic Advising Center.  Students who miss or arrive late to this appointment will not be granted a second appointment and must make alternate arrangements to discuss their remaining requirements.

Graduating students are responsible for confirming their final semesters' registrations with an academic advisor prior to the start of that semester.  Graduating students who in any way change their final semesters' registrations after previously confirming their registrations with an advisor are responsible for ensuring the changes will fulfill all degree requirements.  Graduation is contingent upon completion of all Core, College, Major, and grade point average degree requirements.

Notice of Anticipation of Graduation

Early in the semester in which students will complete their degree requirements, they must apply for graduation by completing an application titled "Application for Graduation," available at the reception desk of the Advising Center or online (prospective graduates will be notified via Temple e-mail with instructions on applying online for graduation). Students are responsible for ensuring their intended graduation date is up-to-date. Forms to change intended graduation dates are available at the Advising Center.

Placement Tests

All incoming freshmen must take diagnostic English and mathematics placement tests. Transfer students who have not completed English 1002 or a college-level math course are also required to take placement examinations. The results of these tests determine if students are required to enroll in introductory composition and mathematics courses. Students assigned to English 0701/0711 must register each semester for that course until the requirement is completed. Only upon successful completion of English 0701/0711 can such students enroll in English 1002/1012. Students assigned to courses designed to remedy deficiencies in mathematics are required to complete those courses before enrolling in the mathematics component of the University Core. Incoming students must also take a foreign language placement examination if they plan to continue a language previously studied or if they wish to place out of the foreign language requirement.

Plagiarism and Academic Cheating

Plagiarism and academic cheating are unacceptable in College of Liberal Arts courses. The development of independent thought and a respect for the thoughts of others is essential to intellectual growth. The penalty for plagiarism or cheating as a first offense is normally an F in the course in which the offense is committed.  In such cases, the instructor will write a report to the Dean.  The CLA Grievance Committee will adjudicate appeals made by students and serious cases, or repeat offenses, referred to the Committee by an instructor or the Dean.  The Dean may recommend suspension or expulsion from the University when warranted.  Instructors may also refer the offense to the University Disciplinary Committee (UDC) for adjudication.

The prohibition against plagiarism and cheating is intended to foster this independence and respect. For more information, see Academic Honesty under Student Responsibilities.

Academic Warning, Probation, Dismissal, and Reinstatement

To remain in Academic Good Standing in the University, a matriculated or non-matriculated undergraduate student must achieve a semester Grade Point Average of at least a 2.0 for each semester.

The academic actions of Warning, Probation, Dismissal from Degree Candidacy, and Reinstatement to Degree Candidacy are guided by a number called the grade-point deficiency, which is standard across all schools and colleges. Grade-point deficiency points identify students who are achieving cumulative grade point averages below 2.0, establish the point at which students will be warned that they are in academic difficulty, define the limit at which students are dismissed from degree candidacy, and define their eligibility for reinstatement. See the University Policy on Academic Warning, Probation, Dismissal, and Reinstatement.

Withdrawal from Classes

During the first two weeks of the fall or spring semester, students may drop a course with no record of the class appearing on the transcript. In weeks three through nine of the fall or spring semester, or during weeks three and four of the summer sessions, students may withdraw with the permission of the Academic Advising Center. Instructors' signatures are not required to withdraw. The course will be recorded on the transcript with the instructor's notation of "W," indicating that the student withdrew. After week nine of the fall or spring semester, or week four of summer sessions, students may not withdraw from courses.

Students may not withdraw from more than five courses during the duration of their studies to earn a bachelor's degree effective as of fall 2003, and students may not withdraw from the same course more than once.

For the complete drop/withdrawal policy, please refer to the Academic Policies section of this Bulletin.