Academic Progression & Review

Progression in the certificate program is based on satisfactory scholarship in required and support courses and adequate progress in the project. The policy related to academic progression in the doctoral program in nursing is based on the Graduate School’s policy stating that one or more failing grades or a cumulative grade point average below 3.0 for any semester or combination of semesters may be considered as evidence of failure to maintain satisfactory scholarship and may result in the student being dropped from the University. Beyond a failing grade and/or the cumulative/semester GPA, the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing considers all quality grades (including grades in required core courses and other courses) as indicators of satisfactory academic progress in the program in Nursing. When a student drops a course after the regular drop/add period, it is considered a late drop. This action will be reflected on his/her record with the symbol LD. 

It is expected that all graduate students will be properly registered at a credit level appropriate to their degree of activity.

 If a student will not be registered for an extended period for compelling reasons, the Dean of the Graduate School will consider a petition for a waiver of the continuous registration requirement. The petition must come from the doctoral committee chair and carry the endorsement of the Associate Dean for Graduate Education. 

Graduate faculty perform a formal review of academic progress annually. A student who fails to make satisfactory progress toward program completion will meet with the adviser and the Director of the D.N.P. Program. A remediation plan will be developed, and the student will receive a letter from the Associate Dean for Graduate Education incorporating the recommendations. If the student does not follow the recommendations, the student may be dismissed from the program. 

A formal review is also initiated when a student fails to meet The Graduate School’s GPA requirements; achieves a quality grade of B- or lower in any required core course; or achieves a quality grade of B- or lower in any other course. In these cases, the adviser or the Director of the D.N.P. Program counsels the student and a remediation plan is developed with guidance of the Graduate Admissions and Standards Committee, if needed. The remediation plan will be addressed in subsequent annual evaluations to describe the student’s progress until the remediation has been successfully resolved. 

Updated by the Graduate Affairs Committee April 6, 2009