Although each student will be assisted by an adviser and other members of the professional staff, final responsibility for compliance with Graduate School policies rests with the student.

Grade Requirements

• At the time of graduation a student must have a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 and must have no incompletes (I’s), Not Reported (NR), or Missing (MG) grades on his or her transcript.

•  The only grades given in graduate courses are A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, and F. Grades of B-, C+, C and C- carry academic credit; however, receipt of such grades is an indication that the student is doing substandard work.
•  Undergraduate courses will not count for graduate credit, unless approved by the student's course instructor, major adviser, and the Dean of the Graduate School prior to registration. Students must register for these courses for graduate credit and pay graduate fees.

The GPA is determined by grades earned in the following:

• Courses taken at Temple University following matriculation (except those taken on the credit/no credit option).
•   Courses taken at Temple University prior to matriculation and accepted toward satisfaction of graduation requirements. A maximum of nine semester hours taken prior to matriculation may be counted towards a graduate degree.

Grounds for Academic Dismissal

•  Failure to make academic progress.*
•  Failure of comprehensive or preliminary examinations, in whole or in part, twice.
• The receipt of more than two grades   below B- or more than one F.

Students who wish to petition for reinstatement must do so through the Graduate Board.

* Appeals concerning academic progress must start at the program/department level, then can move to the college level, and finally can be pursued at the Graduate Board level for substantive review.

Course Repetition Guidelines

•  Students may, with permission of their program, retake any course once to improve the course grade.
•  The higher grade replaces the lower grade for the purpose of GPA calculations. Retaking a course in this way will not yield additional credit toward graduation.
•  Both grades remain on the transcript and are applicable to substandard performance with respect to grade requirements.
•  Students may repeat an independent study and other courses for additional credit if the course content varies semester to semester, as documented in this Bulletin and appropriate departmental publications.

Incompletes

"I" indicates that the requirements for a course have not been completed. This notation is allowed only upon the signing, by the instructor and graduate student, of a written contract for the completion of the work. Incompletes must be completed within one calendar year of the end of the semester in which they are given. An "I" may be changed to an "F" upon the expiration of the contract if the required work has not been completed.

Except by permission of the Graduate Dean, no graduate student who has two or more incompletes, each of which is at least one year old, may register until the total number of incompletes has been reduced to no more than one.

Having two or more Incompletes that are more than two years old is evidence of failure to make academic progress and, therefore, is grounds for dismissal.

A student may not graduate with an "I," "NR," or "MG" on his or her Temple University record.

Grievance Procedures

Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act requires that each college or university establish due procedures for the resolution of grievances. For copies of the department/program policy or school/college procedure, students should contact their department.

Transfer of Credits into Master's Programs

All graduate credits taken prior to matriculation are subject to evaluation and approval by the student's departmental faculty and the assistant/associate dean of graduate studies.

Transfer of Credit guidelines are:

• Students must complete a Transfer of Credit Form, available in the student’s college or department.
• This form must be documented by an official transcript sent directly to the department by the Registrar or the appropriate authority at the institution where the credits were earned.
• A master's student may, with departmental approval, satisfy a maximum of 20 percent of his or her course work requirement through transfer credit.
• All transfer credits must be of "B"  quality or better.
• All transfer credits must be from an  accredited institution.
• A maximum of nine credits earned at Temple University prior to matriculation may be counted toward satisfying degree requirements.

Transfer of Credit into Doctoral Programs

With the permission of the student's department or program, graduate credits taken at other accredited institutions may be counted towards completion of a Temple doctoral degree. The amount of advanced standing may not exceed the number of credits required for a Temple master's degree in that discipline.

•  The department will establish the amount of advanced standing to be awarded for previous graduate work.
•  In addition to transfer credit, a maximum of six semester hours of credit for a master's thesis written at Temple University, as reflected on an official transcript, may be awarded as advanced standing toward a doctoral program.

Currency of Courses

Courses taken at Temple or elsewhere more than five years before matriculation cannot be used to meet that program's degree requirements. Some programs have shorter time limits.

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