What is academic standing?

A student is assigned an academic standing after every semester in which a student finishes at least one course. This means that grade changes that happen mid-semester or after grades are posted do not affect academic standing until the next semester concludes.

  • A cumulative GPA of 2.00 or higher is needed to maintain good academic standing.
  • A student whose cumulative GPA is less than 2.00 is no longer in good standing.

Students are given up to three semesters to raise their cumulative GPA so long as they continue to achieve 2.00 or higher semester GPAs. The purpose of this system is to allow students three semesters to incrementally repair low cumulative GPAs by achieving higher semester GPAs.

  • Students not in good standing must achieve a semester GPA of 2.00 or higher or will be academically disqualified.
  • Students who have not raised their cumulative GPA to 2.00 by the end of the third semester are academically disqualified.
Cumulative GPA Semester GPA Academic Standing
2.00 or higher 2.00 or higher Good Standing
2.00 or higher Below 2.00 Academic Warning
Below 2.00 Below 2.00 First Semester on Probation (1P)
Below 2.00 2.00 or higher Second Semester on Probation (2P) if previously on 1P
Below 2.00 2.00 or higher Third Semester on Probation (3P) if previously on 2P
Below 2.00 2.00 or higher Academic Disqualification if previously on 3P
Below 2.00 Below 2.00 Academic Disqualification if previously on 1P or 2P

Options for students who are academically disqualified

There are only two options for students who have been academically disqualified to return to College as degree-seeking students. These options are:

  1. Successfully appeal the academic disqualification (details below) or
  2. Take off at least six consecutive terms (e.g., Spring, Summer, Fall, Spring, Summer, Fall) from Fort Lewis College and then request Academic Renewal when reapplying to Fort Lewis College.

Academic standing consequences of withdrawing entirely from a semester

When a student has Withdrawal grades (AW, CW, or SW) in all fall, spring, or summer courses, this does not affect academic standing.

After every semester (fall, spring, summer), all students will receive an email informing them of their updated academic standing. The only academic standing that may be appealed is Academic Disqualification.

A student must submit the appropriate paperwork to the Academic Standards Committee to appeal Academic Disqualification.

Process to appeal Academic Disqualification

A student who has been academically disqualified may appeal if:

  1. there are documented compelling and unforeseen reasons why academic standards were not met and
  2. there is a high probability that the student’s cumulative GPA can be raised to 2.00 or higher in no more than one additional semester of coursework. This is determined by having a Quality Point Deficiency of no more than 10 points, as determined by the GPA repair calculator.

Students appeal by submitting an Academic Standing Appeals package to the Registrar’s Office. The deadline to submit this appeal package will be specified in the notification letter and email sent to the student.

The appeals package must include the following:

Only complete appeals packages will be considered.

The Academic Disqualification Appeals form is available for download. You can save the form to your computer and type it right into the form. You can copy and paste the results of your GPA worksheet analysis into the space provided and copy/paste scanned documentation into the appeal form.

If you have any questions about preparing the Academic Standing Appeals package, please contact:

Tessa Creatini, Coordinator
academicstanding@fortlewis.edu
970-247-6550

Review of Academic Standing Appeals

The Academic Standards Committee hears appeals five times each year.

The Academic Standards Committee will consider appeals on a case-by-case basis. The committee will review the appeals package submitted by the student and the educational records of the student, including the disciplinary record. Additionally, the committee may seek input from faculty and professional staff in other relevant campus offices.

If the appeal is approved, the student’s academic standing will be “Reinstated from Academic Disqualification,” the student will have one additional semester to raise the cumulative GPA to 2.00. If this does not happen, the student will again be academically disqualified.

Students will be notified of the committee’s decision by email to the Fort Lewis College account as soon as possible. If the FLC email account is inactive, the student will be asked to provide an alternative email address.

The committee’s decision may be appealed to the Provost or designee.