Issue 1--Effect of changing majors
Consider those students who stay with the quarter catalog and change major after semesters begin. Do they meet the requirements for semester majors or do the normal quarter transition (using the transition tables) as those who had some courses towards their major before the switch to semesters?
Policy:
A department may require students to change catalogs when they
declare a major. But, if the
department does not require that, and students choose to stay on the
quarter
catalog, then they must
meet the quarter-program major requirements using the semester courses and
the transition
tables.
Issue 2--BusA 2106 and the Academic Residence Requirement
LglS 300, Legal & Ethical Environment of Business, is currently in
our junior business core.
Under the semester system, it will be BusA 2106, Environment of Business,
and will be in core
area F. We currently take transfer credit from two-year schools for this
course and upgrade it, on
an exceptions basis, to LglS 300 because it is an allowed elective in the
business core area IV
and our accrediting body permits this topic to be at the sophomore o r
junior level. The content
of our course is not going to change. It is substantially more rigorous
than most of the transfer
credit we are forced to take for it because of the core curriculum
obligations. We were going to
label it LglS 2950, to direct students to take it toward the end of their
sophomore year, but the
Regents mandated a common course prefix and number. Hence, BusA 2106. The
question:
Continuing students who stay under their quarter-system curriculum will
have the LglS 300
requirement to satisfy but will do so with a 2000-level course. If BusA
2106 is taken at GSU and
used in our junior business core does it count toward the student's
academic residence
requirement?
Policy:
Yes, but only for transition students. Not for those who have taken
no quarter-system courses.
Issue 3--Residence Requirements
Suppose that a transition student needs less than 5 quarter hours to
satisfy their residence
requirement, their 180-hour requirement or the A&S 75-hour
upper-division requirement. How
do we make the adjustment?
Policy:
The basic model of course-by-course conversion with a 3 semester-hour
course being equivalent
to a 5 quarter-hour should be respected. For example, suppose a student
needs 6 quarter-hours to
meet their 180-hour requirement. If we had not converted to semesters,
this student would not
have been able to graduate by taking one 5 quarter-hour course. So after
the move to semesters,
they should not be able to graduate by taking one 3 semester-hour course.
They would have to
take a 3-hour semester course and then another course or a directed
reading. (Or take a 4
semester-hour course.) The same would hold true for a students who needed
7, 8 or 9 quarter-
hours to meet the 180-hour requirement. They would need more than one 3
semester-hour
course to graduate. Someone who was 10-quarter hours short of the
180-hour requirement would
need two 3 semester-hours courses. Someone who was 15-quarter hours short
of the requirement
would need three and so forth. Another way to say the same thing is that
the OAA offices may
treat a 3 semester-hour course as a 5 quarter hour course (not a 4.5
quarter-hour course).
Issue 4--Courses Taken as Transients at System and Non-system
Institutions
After the conversion to semesters FA98, will we only forgive hour
shortages created by resident
course work (GSU and Cross Registration credit), or will we also forgive
hour shortages that
occur when our students attend as transients at other semester schools?
The same question arises
with regard to students with 30-hour majors, i.e., will we forgive hours
shortages in the major
area for our students who might take major course as transients at other
semester schools?
Example: A B.B.A./marketing student, who has a 30-hour major and is following the quarter curriculum, goes as a transient from GSU to Tulane University for fall semester 1998 and takes four courses, each for three semester hours of credit: two marketing courses as marketing major electives, French II and History of Louisiana as College of Arts & Sciences Electives. Since the work will be treated as transfer work back to GSU at 4.5 hours each, will GSU hold the student to a one-hour shortage in the major and a one-hour shortage in Col. Of A&S Electives, or will we treat it as we do our own work earned under the semester system , i.e., course-for-course substitution with no hour shortages? Will the fact that the major the student is completing is only 30 quarter hours (the minimum amount under the quarter system) make a difference in the answer?
Policy:
We will treat work earned at other institutions as we do our own work
earned under the semester
system , i.e., course-for-course substitution with no hour shortages. The
number of hours
required for the major will not affect this policy. In general, as noted
above under issue 3, the
basic model of course-by-course conversion with a 3 semester-hour course
equivalent to a 5
quarter-hour should be respected.
Issue 5--Double Major/Dual Degree
Consider those students who are currently in a quarter program and
then declare a second major
or dual degree after Fall 98. Which program should those students
follow for their second
degree? Should they follow the Catalog that is in effect when they
declare the second degree or
the one in effect when they declared the first degree?
Policy:
They follow the catalog in effect when they declared their first
degree. This follows the general
principle that no student should be under more than one catalog at any
one time. (If we were to
follow the second option there would be students who meet the quarter
system requirements for
one degree and the semester requirements for the second and thus would
be under two catalogs.)
Issue 6--Core Curriculum
If a student has partially completed the quarter program core and
decides to update to a semester
system catalog, will all courses previously taken be applicable to the
semester core?
Policy:
Yes. This follows the general principle that transition students
should lose no credit and not be
penalized because of semester conversion. Example: Math 105 is taken
under the quarter
program and the student updates to the semester program. Math 105
stills applies to the semester
core even though the course is no longer an option for students who
enter the university after
Summer 98.
Issue 7--System Transfer/Transition Students
Will the core be satisfied for system transfer students who have
previously completed their core
under the quarter system and will now pursue their degrees under the
semester system
requirements at GSU? What about those students who have not completed
the core?
Policy:
All students transferring to GSU after summer 1998 will be under
the semester catalog. Those
students who have completed the quarter core at another USG institution
will be given credit for
the semester core. A student who has not completed the quarter core
will be given credit for
those quarter courses that match up with the semester core. This
policy gives transfering
transition students two choices. 1) They can remain at their current
institution and complete the
quarter core using semester courses. When they transferred to GSU, we
would then given them
credit for the semester core. 2) They can choose to transfer to GSU
before completing the
quarter core. In that case, they may or may not need to take
additional courses to complete the
semester core (depending on how well the quarter courses they have take
match our semester
core). Students will obviously need to consider their options
carefully to decide which is best for
them. The only other option would be to allow students who transfer to
GSU after summer 98
and have some quarter hours to come in on an old catalog--the last
quarter catalog (96-98). It is
better to move students off the old catalog as fast as possible and it
would be confusing for
students to transfer to GSU in 1999 or 2000 and use the 96-98 catalog.
Issue 8--Academic Standing
Currently, we might tell a student he's "10 hrs of B" away from a
2.0 GSU GPA--meaning two
courses. Once we change to semesters, two 3-SH courses won't be quite
enough to fix the GPA.
Example: a student has earned ten hours of D and ten hours of C by
the end of 983--20 quarter
hours, 30 quality points for a GPA of 1.50. Divided by 1.5 (the
standard conversion factor for
converting quarter hours to semester hours), gives the student 13.33
semester hours and 20
quality points and the GPA is still 1.50. If the student took two
three-semester-hour courses and
received got two Bs, for 18 quality points, the student would have
19.33 semester hous and 38
quality points for a GPA of 1.96. As this is below 2.0, the student
would still be on probation. If
the student had taken two 5-quarter-hour classes and received two Bs,
the student would have
had 30 quarter hours and 60 quality points for a GPA of 2.0 and would
thus be off probation.
This issues comes up because, for many conversion issues, we have
decided to use "course by
course" equivalents rather than "hour by hour" equivalents. Do we
wish to do the same for
GPA?
Policy:
No. This is a fundamentally different issue than those for which
we have adopted a "course by
course" policy. In those cases, we are certifying that a student has
completed an area (or degree
program) by taking the correct number of courses. The GPA issue is
different. GPA is based on
credit hours, not on the number of courses. The BoR has told us what
the formula will be (2SH =
3QH). Because GPA is based on hours, not courses, and because there is
no body of information
that we wish students to have before they have a certain GPA while
there is a body of information
we wish students to have before they complete an area or degree
program, it is not unfair to have
a student remain on probation for more courses. There are also
practical matters to be
considered. Adjusting GPAs to account for this issue cannot be done by
a computer. It would
have to be hand-checked and this would be very difficult and
time-consuming. It is to be
emphasized that no student will find themselves on probation as a
result of conversion or this
policy. For those students already on probation, while they may have
to take more courses than
they would have had to take if we had not converted to semesters, (if
they decide not to take a 4
semester hour course), they will only have to take the equivalent
number of hours to get off
probation.
Issue 9--Maximum Number of Ds (two parts)
Part One
The quarter catalog allows a student to use up to 20 quarter hours
of D credit towards a BBA.
The semester catalog allows a student to use up to 12 semester hours of
D credit. 5 quarter hours
transfers as 3.3 semeser hours. (Note that 3.3 x 4 = 13.2) Will a
student who has 20 quarter
hours of D credit be able to use the 1.2 semester hours over the 12
semester hour maxmimum
towards the BA?
Policy:
Yes. This follows the general principle that transition students
should lose no credit and not be
penalized because of semester conversion.
Part Two
Will students who transfer in from other quarter institutions be
allowed to count those 1.2 hours?
Policy:
No. The crucial difference is that, while our students have must
complete their degrees here at
GSU under the semester system, transfer students are not obliged to
come to GSU at all. When
students transfer to another institution, they often lose some credits.
They must carefully examine
their options to see if transferring is in their best interests.
Issue 10--Completion of Core after Conversion
If a student completes the core (areas I, II and III) prior to fall 1998
and decides to update to the semester catalog, the semester core (areas
A-E) is automatically satisfied. If a student completes the quarter core
after fall '98, then decides to update to the semester catalog, does the
same rule apply?
Policy:
Yes. To do otherwise would be inconsistent and confusing. Note, however,
that the student receives credit for the semester core. The conversion of
the hours to the semester system may create a total hours shortage. In
that case, a student would have to take additional electives to reach 120
hours. For the GSU policy on hour shortages, see the previously enacted
Senate policy at: http://www.gsu.edu/~wwwphl/adandst/semtrans.html
Issue 11--Residency/120 Hour Requirements for Student Who Convert to
the
Semester Catalog
If quarter courses are converted to 3.3 hours each when a student selects
a semester program, does that mean that residency can be filled by fewer
than the 13 courses that would be required if the courses were taken on
the semester system and were worth 3 hours each (residency being 39 hours
of 3000-4000 level work taken at GSU)?
Policy:
Yes. If a student chooses to SWITCH from the quarter to the semester
catalog, then they receive 3.3 semester hours of credit for each 5-quarter
hour course. The same policy will apply to the 120 hour requirement as
well.
This issue is not to be confused with Issue 3 above. According to that previous enacted policy, students who choose to REMAIN on the quarter catalog complete the quarter residency requirements using semester courses by following the general rule that a 3-semester-hour course is equivalent to a 5-quarter-hour course.
The combination of policies 3 and 11 gives students an incentive to switch to the semester catalog. TRT feels that it make sense to design policies to give students an incentive to switch to the semester catalog. It also means that, in either case, students are treated in the way that is most favorable to them. This is consistent with the general rule that students should not be penalized by the transition to semesters.
Issue 12--Forgiving Fractional Hours
Student who updates from quarter to semester program who, because they
have converted quarter hours, falls between .6 and .9 hours short of a
requirement--must that partial hour be made up? In the past, up to .5
hours have been forgiven.
Policy:
The past policy of allowing OAA offices to waive up to .5 hours will be
preserved. A somewhat arbitrary line must be drawn somewhere and the .5
rule is consistent with past practice and the normal mathematical rules of
rounding.
Issue 13--Incorrect Awarding of the Associate Degree
A student is awarded the associate's degree by another system institution. However, the
institution made an error and should not have awarded the degree. For example, the student
might be one course short in an area of the core. The student is accepted as a transfer student at
GSU. Should we accept the core as complete?
Policy:
Yes. This situation is analogous to the acceptance of credit from a non-accredited source.
Regents' rules require that if we accept a student with a completed core, then we must accept the core as complete. If system institution grants transfer credit for unaccredited college work and the student transfers to GSU before completing the core, then we can disallow that credit. GSU is also free to decline to admit a transfer student with credit from non-accredited source on her transcript. However, if the AA degree is awarded and if we admit the student, Regents' rules require us to accept the core as complete.
We should not penalize the student we have accepted because the system institution from which she is transferring made an error in awarding her a degree.
The student should be strongly advised, but not required, to take the missing course(s).
The Admissions Office should exercise their professional judgment in considering whether a student awarded an AA degree in error or with non-accredited credit on their transcript should be admitted to GSU.
This policy applies only to an error made by the sending institution. It does not apply to an action taken based on fraudulent information provided by the student.
Issue 14--Differing Semester and Quarter GPAs
A student's GPA, as currently computed, may differ slightly from what his or her GPA would
have been if
1) we had remained on the quarter system and
2) the student had taken the equivalent courses.
This occurs because the 3 semester credit hour courses a student who chooses to stay on the
quarter system takes only earn 4.5 quarter credit hours while, if the courses had been take on the
quarter system, they would have earned 5 quarter credit hours. When this occurs, which GPA
should be used?
Policy:
The GPA as currently figured should be used--whether it is higher or lower than what it would
have been had we remained on the quarter system and the student had taken the equivalent
courses.
It is important to distinguish this case from a student whose GPA is lowered when we changed from the quarter to the semester system. This change never lowered a student's GPA. However, courses taken after the change may cause a student to have a higher or lower GPA than s/he would have if we had remained on the quarter system and the student had taken the equivalent courses.
There are several reasons in support of this option. First, this case is parallel to the case which occurs when a department decides to drop a course from 4 to 3 semester hours. A student who gets an A in the course when it is a 3 hour course will not have her/his GPA raised as much as one who took it when it was a 4 hour course. However, in this case, we do not adjust a student's GPA. Second, the student has not been charged or paid for the extra .5 credit hours which s/he wants to have figured into her/his GPA. Third, if we had a different policy, we would have to calculate two GPAs for each student and decide which one to use for which purposes. This would be very complex because GPAs are used in many decisions (e.g., graduation with honors, scholastic discipline, admission to upper-level classes, etc.). Fourth, this policy does NOT penalize for the switch to semesters. Their GPA did not change when that switch occurred. Rather, a revision of the entire university's policies has caused the number of credit hours awarded for a course to change. When department's make such a change, we do not calculate two GPAs. There is no reason to do so when the entire university makes the same kind of change.
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