Academic Regulations

Academic Regulations

The College reserves the right to change procedures, programs, curricula, courses, fees and charges, instructors and degree requirements without prior notice. It further reserves the right to sever the connection of any student with the College for an appropriate reason.

Unless otherwise noted, the following regulations apply to undergraduate students. Graduate students should consult the regulations for their specific program, found in the “Programs by Area” section of this catalog.

Registration

All students must register at the times indicated in the College calendar. Those who fail to register on the appointed dates will be charged a fee for late registration. Students may register for no more than eighteen credits in any one semester. Sixteen credits per semester for eight semesters (a total of 128 credits) are required for the baccalaureate degree and constitute the normal student course load. Students wishing to take more than eighteen credits in a given semester must have approval.  This approval normally requires a minimum CGPA of a 3.0, the endorsement of the student’s academic advisor or department chairperson, and the authorization of the appropriate academic class dean. A per credit overload fee will be applied to all credits over eighteen credits per semester. Students may not take more than 20 credits in any one semester. Academic work undertaken at other accredited collegiate institutions subsequent to enrollment at Saint Anselm must have the prior written approval of the Academic Dean or of the Registrar. Credit will be granted only for those courses which have been approved by the Registrar and for which a grade of “C” or better is earned. Students who have not transferred in Advanced Placement or other pre-matriculation credits, and complete fewer than sixteen credits per semester, will be required to supplement their work through additional semester, summer or winter sessions.

Class Attendance

Students are expected to attend every class meeting, lab, native speaker session, and recitation of the courses in which they are enrolled. However, students may accumulate class absences amounting to the number of class meetings per week. These “allowed absences” should be used for absences necessitated by circumstances such as a brief illness, a personal obligation that conflicts with a class, or participation in College-sponsored events, including athletics. Absences beyond these “allowed absences” may have a negative impact on grades. Students are expected to be familiar with and to abide by their professors’ policies on making up exams or assignments missed because of absences. Students have the responsibility to notify the Office of the Academic Dean in cases of prolonged absences and to provide documentation explaining the reason(s) for the absences. Students should be aware that they cannot accumulate an unlimited number of documented absences without risking their standing in classes. There are circumstances in which missed work cannot be made up and in which the number of absences, including documented absences, makes withdrawal from classes the appropriate action.

Withdrawal from Classes

After the add-drop period is over, and through week 12 of the semester, a student may withdraw from a course without grade penalty by initiating the course withdrawal process within the Workday system. The exact withdrawal date is published by the Academic Dean’s Office as part of the academic calendar. 

A student may not withdraw from a course during the last two weeks of the semester, e.g., the last two weeks of classes.

Consult the Nursing Department for nursing department regulations regarding course withdrawal deadlines.

Withdrawal from the College

A student desiring to withdraw from the College should consult with both the assigned academic advisor and the appropriate academic class dean. Students receiving financial aid must meet with a financial aid administrator to discuss their rights and responsibilities as aid recipients. The withdrawal process must be initiated by the student in the Workday system.  Refund of fees or charges will be based on the date that the student last attended a class.

Readmission

Students who separate from the College, whether by formal withdrawal procedure or otherwise, and who wish to return to Saint Anselm on either a part-time or full-time basis, must apply to the Academic Dean and be accepted for readmission before they become eligible to register for additional course work at Saint Anselm. Course work undertaken by students who have not been formally readmitted to the College may not be credited toward fulfillment of graduation requirements. Students who interrupt their program of studies at Saint Anselm are subject to the academic regulations and degree requirements in force at the time of their return to the College.

Leave of Absence

A student may apply for a leave of absence from the College by initiating the process in the Workday system. Students receiving financial assistance must have an exit interview with a financial aid administrator before making application for a leave and limit the time of leave to a single semester. A leave of absence for students not receiving financial assistance is granted for a specific period of time, usually not more than two semesters. Applicants for a leave must have no outstanding debts at the College. A student on leave may apply for an extension. To insure transferability of credits taken at other institutions during a leave of absence, students must obtain prior written approval of the courses from the Academic Dean or the Registrar. Courses undertaken without such approval are not transferable to Saint Anselm College. Provided that notification of the intention to resume studies at Saint Anselm has been received by the Academic Dean at least one month in advance of the semester of return, a student on leave may return to the College at the end of the leave without applying for readmission.  Students still need to participate in the housing lottery and in pre-registration and registration processes while on leave if they wish to have housing or courses upon their return..

Grades and Notations

The designations A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, F, HP, LP, P, NP, and PD are employed to indicate the quality of student work. “A” indicates excellent work; “B” indicates above-average work; “C” indicates average work; “D” indicates below-average work; “F” indicates failure; the symbols “+” and “-” indicate intermediate levels; “HP” indicates High Pass; “LP” indicates Low Pass; “P” indicates Pass; “NP” indicates No Pass; and “PD” indicates Pass with Distinction. The designations “HP”, “LP”, “P” and “NP” are used only in grading some internship and clinical area programs, as well as P/NP electives (see below). The designation “PD” is used only in some graduate-level programs.

Notations that may be assigned by the Office of the Academic Dean are: I and W. “I” indicates incomplete work because of illness or other serious reason reported to and accepted by the Academic Dean.  “I” notations are initiated by students filling out the incomplete request form in consultation with their course faculty.  “W” indicates withdrawal from a course with permission of the Academic Dean. 

Nursing students should refer to the “Nursing Class Standing and Grading Procedure” in the Nursing section of this catalogue

Pass/No Pass Electives

The goal of pass/no pass (P/NP) electives is to encourage intellectual risk taking on the part of students by permitting them to move beyond their area of familiarity without risk to their GPA. Students may take up to two electives (8 credits) as pass/no pass, and these credits may be counted toward the 128 credits required for graduation. To “pass” a pass/no pass course, a student must earn at least a C- average in the course. Credits will be awarded for the successful completion of a pass/no pass course, but the grade recorded on the student’s transcript will simply indicate “pass (P)” and will not affect the student’s GPA.  Failure to earn a C- in the course will result in a “no pass (NP)” being entered on the student’s transcript and no credit will be awarded.  The NP grade will not affect the student’s GPA. A student must complete a minimum of 24 credits before being eligible for the pass/no pass option.  No student may declare two pass/no pass courses in the same semester, and no student on academic probation is permitted to take a course as pass/no pass. Students may not exercise the pass/no pass option for their major, minor, or core requirements (including writing intensive requirements). An individual instructor may designate his or her course as pass/no pass or may designate a percentage or number of seats in the course as pass/no pass. A student must declare his or her intention to take a course pass/no pass by filing a pass/no pass option approval form with the Registrar’s Office no later than the end of the drop/add period for the semester in which the course is scheduled.  Once the drop/add period is over, no changes to students’ pass/no pass status will be permitted for any of the courses for which they are enrolled that semester.  Exceptions to this policy will be made only in extraordinary circumstances and only by formal petition to the Academic Dean.

Audits

Students who wish to audit a class must contact the Registrar’s office in order to register for that class.  They must also inform the instructor of their status as an auditor at the beginning of the semester.

A student enrolled in 16 credit hours or less may enroll into one audit course during a semester at no extra cost.  Additional audited courses will be charged a fee, and students must seek the permission of the appropriate academic dean if they seek to enroll in more than 18 credits.

Grade Reports

At the end of each semester,  as of the fall 2024 semester, grades are posted using the Workday system. Students are urged to check the grade report for accuracy. Errors should be reported to the Registrar immediately.

Appealing a Final Grade

When a student wishes to appeal a final grade assigned by an instructor, the following procedure must be initiated within ten days after the beginning of the next semester.

1. The student will confer with the instructor who assigned the grade.
2.  If the discussion with the instructor proves unsatisfactory, the student will confer with the chairperson of the department of which the instructor is a member.
3. If the discussion with the chairperson of the department proves unsatisfactory, the student may appeal the case to the Academic Dean.
4. If the appeal to the Academic Dean proves unsatisfactory, the student, as a final appeal, will request the Dean to call a meeting of the instructor, the chairperson of the department and the Academic Dean. The student may present evidence supporting the request for a change in grade. Final decision of the issue will be made by the Academic Dean.

Change of an Officially Recorded Grade

Except in the case of clerical or machine error, an officially recorded grade may be changed only by means of a written request to that effect, signed by the instructor and filed in the Office of the Academic Dean. A change of grade which is submitted later than sixty school days after the close of the semester for which the grade was given will not be honored by the Office of the Registrar, unless approved by the Academic Dean.

Course Repeat Policy*

1. A student is allowed to repeat once up to three courses (except Nursing) in which the student has earned a grade of C- or below. When a passed course is repeated, the course will count only once toward the required credits for graduation.
2. All earned grades will appear on the student’s permanent academic record. When a course is repeated, both grades remain on the transcript, but only the higher grade is computed in the major and cumulative grade point averages.
3. Nursing students are allowed to repeat one Nursing course only. Refer to the “Class Standing and Promotion Procedures ” listed under the Nursing section.

*Note: Only grades earned at Saint Anselm are used in calculating a cumulative grade point average.

Transcript of College Record

An official transcript of the College record will be issued by the Office of the Registrar only after receipt of a written authorization by the student. A transcript is official when it bears the impression of the seal of the College and the signature of the Registrar. Transcripts will be issued only when all financial accounts have been settled. The transcript fee is $6 per copy.

Cumulative Grade Point Average

In computing a student’s cumulative grade point average (GPA), numerical values are assigned to each letter grade as follows: A: 4.00; A-: 3.67; B+: 3.33; B: 3.00; B-: 2.67; C+: 2.33; C: 2.00; C-: 1.67; D+: 1.33; D: 1.00; D-: 0.67; F: 0.00.

Each letter grade’s numerical value is then multiplied by its credit value to yield a grade point value.  The cumulative grade point average is derived by totaling the grade points received in all courses, and dividing that total by the number of credits carried.

All grades, and all notations remain on the student’s permanent record and, with the exception of the P, NP, and W notations, are included in the computation of the cumulative grade point average. Grades received at other institutions are not included in the computation of the cumulative grade point average.

Dean’s List of Scholars

Students who register for and complete twelve or more credits of study at the College during a given semester and who achieve in that semester a grade point average of 3.4 are eligible for inclusion in the Dean’s List of Scholars.  In at least twelve of the student’s credits for that semester, the student must receive letter grades that compute in determining the grade point average.  All graded credits that compute in determining a student’s semester GPA shall be considered in determining a student’s eligibility for the Dean’s List of Scholars. A student’s eligibility for the Dean’s List cannot be determined until all semester grades have been entered

Statement on Academic Integrity

Every member of the College community is required to understand, uphold, and comply with the College’s Academic Integrity policy. This duty encompasses disclosing any knowledge or suspicion of breaches of this policy to the relevant faculty member or to the appropriate Class Dean.  Faculty must include reference to the academic integrity policy on their syllabi, as well as any specific academic integrity instructions relevant to their field, course, or assignments.  Students are required to know and understand how the College Academic Integrity policy applies in each of the courses they take.

Students should be prepared-up to one month beyond the due date of an assessment to submit all notes, drafts, and source information which might be requested by an instructor, chairperson, or committee investigating the authenticity of that work.

Violations of the Academic Integrity Policy include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Cheating - Students are expected to rely on their individual mastery of subject material, without the use of outside aids, unless otherwise permitted by the instructor.

   Cheating includes but is not limited to:

   a.  Copying another student’s work.

   b.  Allowing another student to copy their work or otherwise giving unpermitted assistance to another student.

   c.  Using materials not allowed by the instructor (such as notes, texts, calculators, translators/translations, the internet, wearable devices, software, internet text generators such as Chat GPT or OpenAI, Grammarly or other AI based grammar and writing software, previous years’ notes).

   d.  Accessing a copy of the exam ahead of time.

   e.  Having another person write a paper, assignment, lab report or other assessment, or having them sit for an examination.

   f.  Storing unauthorized materials (cheat sheets or notes) in accessible or hidden locations (bathroom or other) during examinations.

   g.  Revising and resubmitting any assessment without the instructor’s knowledge or permission.

    

2. Falsification/fabrication - Students are expected to submit data and facts they created or trust.  They may not deliberately falsify, fabricate, alter, or invent data, results, audio, video, information, or citations.  Students must proofread and verify all information obtained from internet text generators such as ChatGPT (when students are allowed to use these), since these sources can generate false, biased, and harmful information.

    

3. Plagiarism - Plagiarism occurs when a student presents another person or source’s work or words as if they were the student’s own, without acknowledgement or citation.   Use of others’ ideas, contributions, facts, arguments, sentences, key ideas, opinions, or data without acknowledgement or citation is not permitted. Students are responsible for citing their sources in the appropriate manner, consistent with the instructor’s directions. 

   Plagiarism includes but is not limited to:

   a.  Wholly or partially copying, translating, or paraphrasing print or online sources without acknowledgment or citation of that source.  This includes using language from an internet text generator without citing that source.

   b.  Failing to acknowledge, document, or cite a source, or failing to put quotation marks around and cite the words of other sources, even if the action is unintentional.

    

4. Duplicate submission of work - Work can only be submitted once for credit.  Students must not submit the same assignment in two or more courses without prior permission of both instructors.

Academic Integrity Procedures

Saint Anselm College is committed to upholding equity and fairness in investigating academic integrity issues. As such, faculty are expected to treat matters of academic integrity with discretion and care, but also to follow this procedure for all students equally and fairly. 

When a faculty member discovers or is told about a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy, the faculty member notifies the student in writing, within 15 calendar days, and requests to meet privately with the student to discuss the incident.

Note: the instructor may request that another College representative, not including the Department Chair, Director of Conversatio, or Class Dean, be present at the meeting. They must so inform the student in the notification.

Faculty members who suspect, but do not have proof of, an incident should reach out to the Class Deans for assistance.  If the suspicion will result in a lowering of the student’s grade, the faculty member must use this policy.

Students are required to respond to instructor email within 5 calendar days to arrange a meeting.

1. If the student responds and attends a meeting with the faculty member, one of the following results will apply:
   A.  The student and instructor agree that a violation did not occur. No Incident Report is submitted.
   B.  Both the student and instructor agree to a Resolution.Both parties sign the Incident Report and it is submitted to the Class Dean within 5 calendar days.
   C.  The student and instructor DO NOT agree on a Resolution.The instructor files an Incident Report to the class Dean within 5 calendar days.
         ~The Class Dean will notify the student of the Incident Report submission and will offer the student the opportunity to appeal the claims within the report.
          ~Students have 5 calendar days to appeal the report. If no appeal is made, the Class Dean will notify the student and instructor of the final Resolution based on all available information.
           ~If the student appeals, the Class Dean will schedule separate meetings with the student and if necessary the instructor within 10 calendar days. Following the Class Dean and student meeting, the Class Dean will notify the student and instructor of the final Resolution based on all available information.
    
2. If a student does not respond to the instructor’s request for a meeting and/or does not attend the meeting, then the instructor completes and submits an Academic Integrity Incident Report to the appropriate dean within 5 calendar days and implements the chosen resolution.

In all cases, once the processes necessary to this incident of academic dishonesty are completed, the Class Deans will evaluate whether further education and support are necessary to help the student avoid a similar problem in future. If this is not the student’s first case of academic dishonesty, the Class Deans can impose further sanctions, including mandatory education or support, probation, or recommendation of suspension or dismissal from the College.

Student Right to Appeal

When an instructor and student cannot agree whether a violation occurred, or on the resolution, the student has a right to appeal the contents of the Academic Integrity Report with their Class Dean.  This must occur within 5 calendar days of the meeting with the instructor, or 10 calendar days from receipt of the instructor’s written notification of an incident. 

The Class Dean will share with the student the available information submitted by the instructor.  The student has the opportunity to provide their own documentation and information to the Class Dean.  (Examples of this documentation may include, but are not limited to, drafts of work, peer reviewed materials, thesis statements, annotated bibliographies, file versions, materials that are date/time stamped, etcetera). 

The decision of the Class Dean is final for all sanctions other than suspension or dismissal.

When the Class Dean recommends a sanction of suspension or dismissal, the student can appeal this decision.  In these cases, the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs (AVPAA) shall convene a College review board consisting of three faculty members (two of whom shall be from the department involved) and two students. The committee shall invite the student and the instructor to address it but shall deliberate in private.

If the College review board is convened, it shall make a written report to the AVPAA. The report may recommend a sanction or lack of sanction.

The AVPAA shall make the final decision regarding sanction and shall inform the student immediately in writing of that decision.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

This act was designated to protect the privacy of educational records, to establish the rights of students to inspect and review their educational records, and to provide guidelines for the correction of inaccurate or misleading data through informal and formal hearings. Students have the right to file complaints with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Office concerning alleged failures by the institution to comply with the act.

Questions concerning the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act may be referred to the Office of the Registrar.

In keeping with the provisions of the above act, Saint Anselm College will consider all students as “dependents” unless specifically informed to the contrary in writing and within two weeks following registration. 

Directory of Information

Directory information consists of information which would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed. At the College, directory information consists of: student name, address, campus email address, telephone number(s), dates of attendance, class membership/ anticipated date of graduation, full or part-time enrollment status, previous educational institutions attended, major field of study, past and present participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, date and place of birth, photographs, hometown, awards, honors (including Dean’s List), degree conferred and conferral date. Students may withhold Directory information via the Workday system.

Such information may be disclosed by the College, at its discretion, for any purpose.

Currently enrolled students may withhold disclosure of any category of information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, as amended. To withhold disclosure, students should complete a request via Saint Anselm College’s Workday system, on or before September 15 (or not later than two weeks following an initial registration for classes in spring or summer semesters). 

Saint Anselm College assumes that the failure on the part of any student to request specifically the withholding of categories of “Directory Information” indicates individual approval for disclosure.

The Student Right to Know and Campus Security Act

In compliance with the Student Right to Know and Campus Security Act, information is made available regarding graduation rates and campus crime statistics in the following offices:

Graduation Rates - Office of Institutional Research

Graduation Rates for Student Athletes - the Athletics Office

Institutional Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics - Campus Security Office; Office of the Dean of Students

Standards of Progress

Wide opportunities are available for student advisement, both within the departments and from the Office of Academic Advisement. However, each student is solely responsible for selecting courses which satisfy departmental requirements for a major, as well as the general requirements for graduation. Both sets of requirements are set forth in subsequent pages of this catalog. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with this information. Exemption from, or exception to, any published requirement is valid only when approved in writing by either the Registrar or the Academic Dean.

The following guidelines apply to undergraduate students and are used by the Academic Dean’s Office to evaluate less than satisfactory progress.  Academic warning, probation, and dismissal are based on a student’s cumulative grade point average (CGPA) and vary by the number of semesters and credits a student has attempted.

Additional reasons for academic dismissal include:

• Earning 3 failing grades in a single term.
• Earning 4 failing grades in 2 consecutive terms.
• Earning 4 D grades or lower in a single term.
• Being placed on academic probation for 2 consecutive terms.
• Being placed on academic probation for 3 non-consecutive terms.
• Repeated violations of the College’s Academic Honesty policy.

Academic warning or probation ceases at the end of the semester for which it has been imposed, provided no further action is taken by the Office of the Academic Dean.

A student who has been dismissed for academic reasons is usually not eligible for readmission to the College and may not register for additional course-work creditable toward a degree at Saint Anselm College without the written permission of the Academic Dean. Appeal of an academic dismissal may be made to the Academic Dean. The appeal must be made in writing and be received in the Office of the Academic Dean within ten calendar days of the date of the letter of dismissal.

Students on academic probation or those who have not maintained satisfactory academic progress may not run for elective office in student organizations, participate to any degree in intercollegiate athletic contests, or represent the College at public events.

Class Standing

For sophomore standing, a student must have completed successfully at least thirty-two credits; for junior standing, a student must have completed successfully at least sixty-four credits; for senior standing, a student must have completed successfully at least ninety-six credits and be eligible for graduation at the next Spring commencement.

Policy on the Use of Electronic Devices

The College recognizes the value that computers, tablets, and smart devices can have in classroom instruction.  For that reason, the Office of the Academic Dean and the members of the faculty agree that the student use of such devices in the classroom is at the discretion of the individual instructor, and policies governing such usage should be clearly delineated on the course syllabus.

The use of electronic devices for purposes unrelated to classroom instruction is prohibited, and faculty can require that all devices (i.e., phones, smart watches, or other such instruments) be removed/put away during graded assessments, including quizzes, tests, and final exams.

Note: this policy does not apply to students using technology as an approved accommodation