The University Senate of Michigan Technological University

Proposal 17-13

(Voting Units: Academic)

“Proposal to Amend University Senate Policy 418.1:

Graduate Scholastic Standards”

Proposed Amendment:

· Replace Current Language:

“Must have a grade of “B” or better.  This requirement can be adjusted at the discretion of a student's graduate program to allow for use of “BC/C” grades in up to six (6) credits from outside the student's primary field of study.”

· With new language:

“Must have a grade of “B” or better. This requirement can be adjusted at the

discretion of a student's graduate program to allow for use of “BC/C” grades in up to six

(6) credits.”

Justification of Amendment:

The Graduate School receives periodic requests from programs to allow students to use BC/C grades from within their primary field of study because not allowing the students to use those grades would cause great difficulty. For example, if a required course is offered only one time per year, a student might need to continue in their degree program for an additional 3 semesters in order to retake a course. The programs in some cases feel that this is excessively inconvenient for students - particularly for students who have good grades in all other courses and are successfully maintaining the required B average overall. 

The change will allow students to use up to 6 credits of BC/C grades from either inside or outside the student's primary field of study - at the discretion of a student's graduate program. Currently students can only use BC/C grades from outside their primary field of study (at the discretion of the student's graduate program).

This proposed amendment comes with the recommendation of the Instructional Policy Committee, the Dean of the Graduate School, and has been approved by the Graduate Faculty Council (November 2012)

Introduced to Senate: 23 January 2013
Approved by Senate: 6 February 2013

Approved by Administration: 11 February 2013