For Discussion in the College of
Arts and Sciences: Possible Responses
to the Acceptance of Transfer Courses with C- and Lower Grades
The A & S Curriculum
Committee is asking departments to discuss issues related to the change in
transfer policy and provide advice on whether or not the committee should
develop new policy or procedures for recommendation to Arts and Sciences
Council.
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Acceptance of Transfer Courses Prior
to Spring Semester 2006
Transfer of courses to UT
requires minimum C grade except if student completed AA or AS at an
UT policy: University
Core course grades must average 2.0.
Minimum overall GPA required for graduation is 2.0.
Minimum 30 credits must be earned at
UT.
ARS policy: Minimum major/minor GPA’s are set by
departments. Most require 2.0. Minimum major residency at UT is 12 credits;
Minimum minor residency at UT is 9
credits. Final 12 credits are required
in residence at UT.
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Acceptance
of Transfer Courses Starting Spring Semester 2006
All students transferring
course work to UT who earned passing grades in courses taken Fall
2005 and later at other institutions will transfer those courses to UT. All courses attempted or completed prior to Fall 2005 will be transferred based on the prior
policy. This change is the result of the
following Faculty Senate resolution passed
RESOLUTION: The Faculty
Senate hereby endorses the principle, as required by
No additional university-wide or college policies have
been approved. UT transcripts will
continue to calculate overall cumulative GPA’s based on UT work only, and that
is standard practice at universities.
The Records Office is working to develop a method for including transfer
course grades in GPA calculations on Degree Audit Reports; but until such a
method is developed , GPA calculations in the UT Core, major, minor, and
overall for Arts and Sciences students will still be based only on UT course
grades, unless one or more of the GPA’s is calculated manually instead of
electronically. We expect an electronic
solution soon. We must be able to
implement policy electronically in the current university environment.
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Possible Response 1:
Make No Changes in the
Consequence: Native UT students are disadvantaged because
they must “own” all grades for all courses attempted at UT. However, grades in the courses attempted at
other institutions by transfer students have no effect on GPA calculations even
though their courses transferred with any passing grade and will be used to meet
UT and ARS requirements. GPA’s are based
on hours attempted at UT only (as few as 30 credits for transfers).
Example: Since the major GPA is based on UT courses
only, the transfer student could meet minimum GPA standards by earning 12
credits at UT averaging 2.0, but have transferred in the other 20 or more credits
applicable to the major with grades C- or lower and also have earned F grades
in some major courses attempted elsewhere with no impact on GPA. Native students, on the other hand, with less
than a 2.0 in their majors, must continue to take additional courses to raise their GPA’s because all attempts of courses in the major
are counted in the GPA calculation. This
would also apply for calculations of the UT Core, minor, and overall GPA’s.
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Possible Response 2:
Increase One or More Residency Requirements.
Action: Take some step(s) to increase minimum credits
taken at UT and continue to calculate GPA’s on the basis of UT courses
only. For example, change ARS policy to
increase residency in ARS majors and minors to one-half the credits required in
each.
Consequence: This continues the “fresh start” benefit for
transfers but still disadvantages native students who must own all their
grades.
Possible Response 3:
Require C or Higher Grades in University Core Courses and/or Major
and/or Minor Courses.
Requiring C grade or higher in
each University Core course (originally the UT standard) would require Faculty
Senate action. Most ARS departments do
not currently require C grades or higher in major/minor courses but could
implement that through program modifications.
Consequence: This would require a higher than current
standard for our native students in order to respond to a transfer issue.
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Possible Response 4:
Require that Current GPA Requirements be Met Only with Higher Ed GPA’s (All
Grades of All Courses Attempted at all Institutions) with No Requirement of
Minimum GPA’s Using UT Course Work Only.
Issues: This response gives equal weight to all
grades from all institutions while UT has no control over content and standards
at those institutions. Some institutions
alter transcripts after courses are repeated so that all attempts (and
sometimes multiple F’s) are not reported on the students’ transcripts.
Consequences: Some native and transfer students will have
< 2.0 in various GPA’s and take additional courses at other institutions to
raise the GPA’s to ≥ 2.0. We will
graduate people with < 2.0 at UT in various GPA calculations including
majors and minors. It will be impossible
for some transfer students to ever graduate from UT just like it is impossible
for some native students to ever graduate because all students will be forced
to “own” all their grades.
Possible Response 5:
Require That Both UT GPA and HED GPA Meet Current Minimum Requirements
for Graduation with an Arts and Sciences Degree (UT Core ≥ 2.0, Major/Minor
GPA ≥ 2.0, Overall GPA ≥ 2.0).
This response would not
require a change in residency rules or minimum grades required. It puts an appropriate emphasis on the UT
GPA’s, respecting the value and integrity of ARS degree programs. It also requires that both native and transfer
students “own” all their grades, so that native students are not disadvantaged.
It will keep both native and transfer students from taking courses at other
institutions to enhance their Higher Ed GPA’s with transferred courses without
also being held to minimum GPA standards with UT courses.
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