General Regulations

Admission Application for admission to the School of Continuing and Professional Studies’ courses and programs should be made at the center or program office where the student plans to study, or at the School of Continuing and Professional Studies’ main office in Zehmer Hall, on-Grounds in Charlottesville.

Academic Grievances Students who have a grievance related to a course, with a faculty member, or continuing and professional studies center, or program office director, are invited to discuss their grievance in the following manner:

Academic Progress Students should consult the policies for satisfactory progress from the school offering the program in which they are enrolled. Generally, a grade of B- is considered the lowest satisfactory grade for graduate credit leading to a degree. Students with a grade-point average below 3.0 are not considered to be making satisfactory progress.

Add/Drop The dates by which students may add or drop a course are established each academic year by the School of Continuing and Professional Studies centers and program offices. These dates may differ by center. Students should consult their center’s catalogs and program brochures to determine the deadlines for adding or dropping courses. After the last date for dropping a course, students must officially withdraw if they want to end their enrollment in a course.

Application of Courses to Degree Programs With the approval of the student’s school of enrollment, a course taken through the School of Continuing and Professional Studies may be counted toward degree requirements. These courses would typically be included in the computation of grade point averages. Approval is required in advance; otherwise such courses will not apply toward a degree.

Attendance Instructors establish attendance and participation requirements for each of their courses. Such course requirements as examinations, oral presentations, laboratory experiments, participation in class discussion, etc., are in no sense waived because of a student’s absence from class. Instructors may establish penalties when absences seriously hinder achievement in any course.

Auditors Students who wish to enroll in credit courses without receiving academic course credit may do so on a space available basis, with the permission of the instructor and center or program office director, by registering as auditors and paying the same tuition and fees as are paid by credit students. Credit or audit status must be indicated at the time of registration. Admission requirements are the same for auditors as for credit students. An AU (audit) cannot be changed to a letter grade. Auditing a class does not relieve the student of the responsibility for meeting the standards which the instructor has established for the course.

Continuing Education Unit Many noncredit activities are designated as Continuing Education Unit (CEU) programs. One CEU is defined as 10 contact hours of participation in an organized educational experience under responsible sponsorship, capable direction, and qualified instruction.

The university registrar permanently records successful participation in programs that have been authorized to award CEUs. Individuals may request a copy of their record from the Office of the University Registrar, University of Virginia, P.O. Box 400203, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4203.

Course Load Each school at the University has established a minimum and maximum number of credits for which students are normally expected to register. Registration for fewer credits than the minimum or more credits than the maximum requires special permission from the appropriate dean’s office. Students who register for fewer than their school’s minimum number of credits have a notation placed on their academic records indicating that they were enrolled for a reduced course load during that semester.

Special permission is required for students to enroll through the School of Continuing and Professional Studies for more than 12 credits per semester..

Grades At the graduate level, each school determines its own grading system. Graduate courses that are part of a degree program follow the grading system of the school awarding the degree.

In addition to its own graduate-level professional development and certificate program courses, the School of Continuing and Professional Studies offers graduate courses from other schools of the University. Although offered through the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, these courses follow the grading system of their associated schools, as outlined in each school’s chapter of the Graduate Record. Courses carrying a School of Continuing and Professional Studies mnemonic use the following grading system: A+, A, A-; B+, B, B-; C+, C, C-; D+, D, D-; F. The lowest grade that can apply to a degree is B-.

For noncredit courses, grade notations are S/U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory). Students who audit courses receive the designation AU (audit). The symbol W is used when a student officially withdraws from a course before its completion.

Credit/No Credit Students enrolled in graduate degree programs should consult with the dean of their school before selecting the credit/no credit (CR/NC) grading option since restrictions may apply. Students enrolled in courses for professional development may select the CR/NC option. Courses taken with this grading option may not be transferred into a degree program. The use of CR/NC in certificate programs is governed by the academic policies of the individual program.

Grade Changes No grade for a course may be changed after it has been submitted to the university registrar without the approval of the dean of the school offering the course. That dean is authorized to change a grade submitted to the university registrar when the course instructor certifies in writing that, because of an error in calculation or transcription, an incorrect grade had been previously submitted.

Incomplete Circumstances beyond a student’s control sometimes arise that necessitate requesting an IN (incomplete) from the instructor. IN indicates that the grade for the course is being withheld until the student completes all course requirements. The student must initiate the request for an IN, and the instructor must agree. The student must complete and submit all course work to the instructor by the end of the semester following the term in which the IN was received, at which time the instructor replaces the IN with a grade. An incomplete that is not removed by the conclusion of the next semester will be converted to a grade of F (failure). Only course instructors may remove incompletes. Students with an incomplete pending are not awarded a degree or certificate.

Students who receive an IN (incomplete) or an F (failure) in any course cannot enroll in another course unless the Dean of the School of Continuing and Professional Studies grants permission.

No Grade On occasion, an instructor assigns an NG (no grade) to a student at the conclusion of a course. Unless the student eliminates the conditions that resulted in the NG by the conclusion of the next consecutive semester, it is automatically converted to a grade of F (failure). No student with an NG pending is eligible to receive a degree or certificate.

Honor System The Honor System is one of the University’s oldest and most venerated traditions. Based on the fundamental assumption that anyone who enrolls at the University subscribes to a code of ethics forbidding lying, cheating, and stealing, the Honor System allows students the kind of personal freedom possible only in an environment where respect and trust are assumed. For nearly 160 years, students have administered this system at the University.

Although the Honor System applies to students enrolled off-Grounds, in courses and programs through the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, as it does to students on-Grounds, some procedures for administration of the system to continuing and professional studies students differ from those governing on-Grounds full time students. Off-Grounds students may consult with the School of Continuing and Professional Studies regional center in their area for a copy of the Honor Committee bylaws.

Leave of Absence Graduate students enrolled in professional development or degree programs offered by the School of Continuing and Professional Studies may voluntarily request a leave of absence from the University at the end of any semester for up to three semesters. Students should recognize, however, that taking a voluntary leave of absence does not alter time limitations for the completion of their degree. Students who wish to take leave for longer than three semesters must provide written notification to the director of the center or program office in which they are enrolled. If students do not notify the director in writing and do not re-enroll for three semesters, they will be required to reapply for admission to the program.

Repeated Courses Students may repeat courses for credit only after receiving the permission of their dean’s office. The grade initially earned in the course appears on the official academic record and counts in the calculation of the grade point average. Regulations applying to repeated courses may vary by school and are detailed in each school’s chapter of this Record.

Suspended Students Individuals who have been suspended from the University of Virginia or from any other college or university are not eligible to enroll through the School of Continuing and Professional Studies as long as the suspension remains in force.

Teacher Relicensure Teachers and school administrators who wish to take courses or professional development offerings for relicensure may register without submitting academic transcripts. Individuals seeking relicensure are responsible for determining the acceptability of such courses or professional development programs by consulting with their school/division superintendent or the Virginia Department of Education.

Transcripts The university registrar records the credit for University courses taught at the School of Continuing and Professional Studies centers. Transcripts are available from the Office of the University Registrar in Carruthers Hall.

Transfer of Credit Students wishing to transfer credit from the School of Continuing and Professional Studies to another educational institution should consult that institution as to the acceptability of the courses and their credit prior to registering with the School of Continuing and Professional Studies.

Students interested in transferring courses into an SCPS credit certificate program are generally allowed to transfer a maximum of six credits. Course work must not be older than eight years, have been completed at an accredited college or university, and the student must have earned at least a "C" in the courses. Transfer credit determinations are made by the individual centers. Courses for which transfer credit has been awarded will not appear on the student’s transcript until the completion of the certificate program. No transfer credit is allowed in the certificates of Technology Leadership, Information Technology, and E-Commerce.

Withdrawal Students enrolled in a graduate degree program should refer to the withdrawal policy of the school awarding the degree.

Students enrolled in graduate courses for professional development, certificate programs, or as community scholars may withdraw under the following conditions: