Claremont McKenna College

Academic Policies

Conduct Policy - Dismissal From Study Abroad Program
Academic Load Abroad
Grades and GPA
Foreign Language Requirement
Courses Towards GE or Major Requirement
Course Approval While Abroad
Dropping a class
Withdrawing From Study Abroad
Withdrawing From Program Already in Progress
Internships Abroad
Independent Study Abroad
Loss of Credits when CMC Academic Policies are not followed:
Note for students who study off-campus for two semesters:

FAILURE TO FOLLOW THESE POLICIES WILL CAUSE YOU TO LOSE ONE CREDIT PER VIOLATION FOR NON-COMPLIANCE IN ADDTION TO LOSING OTHER CREDITS FOR NOT TAKING APPROPRIATE COURSEWORK!

Conduct Policy - Dismissal From Study Abroad Program
Students are expected to uphold the standards of conduct at the host institution or at the host program while abroad. The Off-Campus Study Committee would like to bring to students' attention that while due process is a right in this country, it might not be the case abroad. The Resident Director, the program sponsor or the host institution may, at their discretion, impose disciplinary measures or dismiss a student from the program for improper, offensive behavior, or failure to comply with host community regulations. Upon successful completion of a study abroad program, students are automatically allowed to return to campus. In the event of academic or conduct suspension or dismissal, you must petition the Academic Standards Committee for readmission to CMC. Deadlines for readmission are in March and October and readmission is not guaranteed. You are also subject to your sponsor's or host institution's refund policy.

Academic Load Abroad
Study abroad students are required to enroll in a course of study equivalent to a regular semester course load at CMC (15-16 credits per semester). If direct enrolled at a foreign university, CMC students are expected to enroll in the same number of courses/modules/credits as the local students. The maximum number of credits students can earn abroad is four per semester. Full-time equivalent is decribed as follows: 15 or 16 semester credits minimum for a semester; 12 credits minimum for a term in a British/Irish university; 30-32 credits minimum for one year.

Grades and GPA
All courses and grades will be reflected on the CMC transcript but the grades will not be counted into the student's CMC GPA. Students are eligible to receive credit for courses in which they achieve grades of C or better,( as long as CMC program specific academic requirements were met). However, all grades, including C-, D+, D, D- and F, will show on the transcript. Credit is granted only when students do not repeat a course for which they have already received credit at CMC. Courses can only be taken for a letter grade and Credit/No-Credit is not an option abroad.

Foreign Language Requirement
Students are required to study the host language in all programs in non-English speaking countries. Enrolling in an introductory language course is not permitted i.e. beginning Italian taken in Spain, unless it is one of the local languages. CMC students may not enroll in university courses taught in English in any country where English is neither the host nor the official language without special permission from the Off-Campus Study Committee in order to be eligible for credit. Students are not allowed to substitute another course for a required language course.

Courses Towards GE or Major Requirement
Department chairs determine the number of credits which can be applied towards a major and the maximum is two courses per semester. Such courses must be equivalent to a minimum of three semester hours or four quarter hours. Signatures are required in order to obtain credit. All other courses count as elective credit towards graduation, if approved by the registrar.

Course Approval While Abroad
Should your course registration change upon arrival abroad, students need to contact the CMC registrar for approval and the department chair via email for course review. Students send a course title, course description or syllabus, and the number of credits assigned. Make sure the Off-Campus Study Office and the Registrar's Office are copied in on any approvals. It is the purview of each department chair to only approve credit towards the major after reviewing your coursework upon return.

Dropping a class
Students may not drop a course if it results in being registered for less than a regular full course load (15 or 16 US semester credits). Students may not take fewer courses than the host students when enrolled in regular university courses. Unless there are extenuating circumstances (i.e. medical reasons), dropping a class is not granted.

Withdrawing From Study Abroad
Should you change your mind to study abroad next fall/spring after December 1 and July 1 respectively, but before the first day of classes at CMC, you must notify the registrar in writing of your intention to return to CMC. Before withdrawing, a student should inquire about the refund policy of their Program Sponsor. Please note that after December 1/July 1, on-campus housing is not guaranteed. If you are planning to be away from CMC for two semesters, your name will be removed from all CMC housing rosters and priority lists. Should you decide to return to the College prior to the end of your scheduled off-campus study, there is no guarantee that you will receive a housing assignment on campus.

Withdrawing From Program Already in Progress
Should you withdraw after a program is in progress, you will be required to petition the Academic Standards Committee for readmission to CMC. Deadlines for readmission are in March and October and readmission is not guaranteed.

Internships
CMC grants one-half credit for internships completed abroad as long as such internship include an academic component (i.e. course) which must be completed for a letter grade. Receiving one-half credit for an internship abroad may mean that students receive 3.5 courses instead of four for the semester.

Independent Study
Students participating on a program including an ISP (example: SIT, Pitzer, some CIEE), must file a copy of their ISP with the Off-Campus Study office before final transcripts will be processed by the Registrar.

Loss of Credits when CMC Academic Policies are not followed:
CMC expects its students to follow academic policies. Failure to follow them will result in loss of credit for your semester abroad. You will lose one course credit for each CMC requirement you do not meet. Replacing a requirement with another course is not an option. For example, if you are enrolled full-time and you are required to take a language or a university course, and you choose not to, you will lose credit for the course you did not attend, plus you with lose an additional credit for violating CMC policy. If there is any question about the requirements for your program, please ask our office!

Note for students who study off-campus for two semesters:
Students who are planning to be away from CMC for two semesters (Washington Program and Abroad; Domestic Exchange and Abroad; Abroad for two Semesters) will have their name removed from all CMC housing rosters and priority lists. Should you decide to return to the College prior to the end of your scheduled off-campus study, there is no guarantee that you will receive a housing assingment on campus. Any available housing is likely to be in temporary quarters, with two or three other students. Also, a administrative fee of $350 will be charged. This fee will be refunded to the student account if the student follows through with the intial plan to be off-campus the second semester.