Academic Standards Regulations
Each college has an academic standards committee that is responsible for monitoring the academic progress of all undergraduate students in that college, based on policies and minimum requirements set by the Faculty Senate Committee on Academic Standards and Admissions and ratified by the Faculty Senate. Individual college faculties may, with the approval of the Faculty Senate Committee on Academic Standards and Admissions, set additional program admission and curriculum requirements that are more stringent than those established for the university. These additional requirements must be reviewed at least every third catalog by the college academic standards committee to determine if the requirements should be continued. Requirements approved by the college academic standards committees will then be forwarded to the Faculty Senate Committee on Academic Standards and Admissions for final approval. The college committees are responsible for actions involving individual students with respect to placing students on Academic Probation, dismissing students from the university for unsatisfactory academic progress, and reinstating student who have been Academically Dismissed.
Changing colleges: A student on Academic Probation may transfer to another program in the university before period 3 begins (before the last day to drop a course.) For students on Academic Probation, transfer during period 3 (after the last day to drop a course) can only occur under exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the chair of the new program and the dean of the new college.
Withdrawal: A student on Academic Probation who withdraws during period 3 will be Academically Dismissed at the end of the term the student withdraws, except under extenuating circumstances as judged by the college academic standards committee.
Reinstated students: Reinstated students should also see the section on Reinstatement.
Veterinary Medicine: Additional rules for minimum satisfactory progress are in effect.
Special (nondegree) students: Students matriculated in this classification category are governed by the regular academic progress regulations. Furthermore, by special action of their college academic standards committee, additional standards may be required.
Academic Progress
Maintaining Satisfactory Progress
To assist students in maintaining satisfactory progress, Iowa State University has adopted academic standards designed to provide early identification of students who are experiencing academic difficulty, and to provide timely intervention through academic advising and academic support programs.
Academic standing at Iowa State University is determined by the student's semester grade point average (GPA), and the student's cumulative ISU GPA.
Students with a semester GPA of at least 2.00 for the most recent fall or spring semester and a cumulative ISU GPA of at least 2.00 are in Good Academic Standing.
Students with a fall or spring semester GPA of below 2.00 or a cumulative ISU GPA of below 2.00 will be on Academic Warning or Academic Probation. Academic Warning and Academic Probation are not a part of the student’s permanent academic record.
Students on Academic Probation or Academic Warning are required to meet with their advisor and to complete the Academic Intervention Self-Assessment form, which can be accessed in Workday.
Academic Warning
Academic Warning serves as a reminder that future academic performance below 2.00 will result in more serious consequences.
Students will be placed on Academic Warning for the following reasons:
- Students who earn a semester GPA of 1.00 – 1.99 but have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.00 at the end of any fall or spring semester.
- Students in their first semester at ISU who earn a GPA between 1.00 and 1.99.
At the conclusion of the next fall or spring semester, one of the following actions will be taken for students who began the semester on Academic Warning:
- Students will be in Good Academic Standing if they earn at least a 2.00 semester GPA and have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.00.
- Students will be placed on Academic Probation if they earn less than a 2.00 semester GPA for the following fall or spring semester of enrollment.
Academic Probation
Students are placed on Academic Probation as a notice that their academic progress is not satisfactory and that they need to take steps to improve their academic performance to avoid Academic Dismissal from the university. Academic Probation is an indication of very serious academic difficulty.
Students will be placed on Academic Probation for the following reasons:
- Students who earn less than a 1.00 semester GPA at the end of any fall or spring semester.
- Students who are on Academic Warning, and who earn less than a 2.00 semester GPA at the end of a fall or spring semester.
- Students who have a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 at the end of a fall or spring semester; however, students who are in their first semester who earn a cumulative GPA between 1.00 and 1.99 will be placed on Academic Warning.
- Students who were reinstated from Academic Dismissal will be on Academic Probation for their first term upon returning.
At the conclusion of the next fall or spring semester, one of the following actions will be taken for students who began the semester on Academic Probation:
- Students will be in Good Academic Standing if they earn at least a 2.00 semester GPA and have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.00.
- Students will continue on Academic Probation if they earn at least a 2.00 semester GPA but their cumulative GPA is less than 2.00.
- Students will be academically dismissed if their semester GPA is below 2.00.
Impact of Winter Session on Academic Standing
Academic standing does not change at the conclusion of winter session. Winter session grades are included in spring semester grade calculations.
*See Academic Dismissal for dismissal policy.
Academic Dismissal
Students who do not meet the requirements of their Academic Probation are Academically Dismissed from the university. Academic Dismissal is placed on the student's academic record as a permanent notation. The official transcript of a student who has been academically dismissed includes a "Not Permitted to Register" notation. Once a student has been academically dismissed, they are not allowed to re-enroll at Iowa State University until they have been academically reinstated. (See section on Reinstatement.)
Reinstatement
Students can only be reinstated after at least one fall or spring academic semester has elapsed since they were academically dismissed. Winter session and summer session are not considered semesters.
Students who have been academically dismissed two or more times are not eligible for reinstatement until at least two academic semesters (fall and spring semesters) have elapsed since their last academic dismissal. Winter session and summer session are not considered semesters.
Students with extenuating circumstances may request an Early Reinstatement. The petition will be evaluated by their college's Academic Standards Committee. Approval of an Early Reinstatement request will not remove the Academic Dismissal from the student’s academic record. Students who would otherwise be academically dismissed, but have met all graduation requirements, would have the Academic Dismissal waived and be eligible for graduation. Students granted this waiver who graduate and then return to the institution at the same academic level would continue on Probation status.
Summer Academic Standards Regulations
Students who are newly placed or continued on Academic Probation at the end of the previous semester may enroll for the summer term without being in jeopardy of Academic Dismissal from the university at the end of that summer term.
Summer Combined Term GPA:
All students who attend summer session will have their academic status reassessed at the end of the summer based on the combined (not averaged) grade summaries of their previous graded term of attendance and summer term. Academic status (warning or probation) after summer session will be based on the resulting combined term GPA. The academic status resulting from the summer combined term GPA supersedes the academic status at the end of the previous term.
For students who have remaining designated repeat credits, courses taken in the previous semester and repeated in summer will be calculated as designated repeats in the combined term GPA.
The combined term GPA (summer plus preceding term) will not appear on the student's grade report or permanent record.
Summer term GPA alone cannot determine academic status. Students who initiate enrollment at Iowa State during the summer will not be placed on Academic Warning or Academic Probation regardless of their academic performance.
Summer Cumulative GPA:
A student who was on Academic Probation at the beginning of summer term based only on cumulative GPA, who raises his or her cumulative GPA to over a 2.0 at the end of the summer term shall be removed from Academic Probation status at the end of the summer term.
A student with 75 or more credits attempted or earned, whichever is greater, will be placed on Academic Probation at the end of the summer term if his or her cumulative GPA is less than 2.00.
A student with 75 or more credits attempted or earned who has a transfer GPA less than 2.00 will be placed on Academic Probation at the end of any summer term if his or her combined transfer/ISU cumulative GPA is less than 2.00.