CHAPTER 7: COURSE SELECTION AND SCHEDULING Course-Numbering System The first digit of the course numbers indicates the level of the course. Levels are indicated as follows: 0 Courses below the 1000 level are preparatory in nature and may not be credited toward a UoPeople degree, NDSS division 1 and 2 Undergraduate course, lower-division 3 and 4 Undergraduate course, upper-division 5 Graduate course, graduate division A given UoPeople course may not be offered every term; available courses can be seen in the Student Portal during registration. Registration University of the People opens course registration for students over a 3-week period every term. Course registration dates can be found on the University of the People Academic Calendar at http://uopeople.edu/groups/academic_calendar_2014_2015. Registration for courses is available on a first-come, first-served basis. With the exception of a student's first term at UoPeople, students are required to register online for all courses, and registration must be completed by the dates listed in the Academic Calendar. For further information regarding registration, please contact payments@uopeople.edu. Course Registration at UoPeople takes place in the Student portal at: https://students.uopeople.edu/login.aspx Registration Guidelines Students may register for up to two (2) courses per term. Students who maintain a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of ≥ 3.00 may register for up to three (3) courses per term. Students on Academic Warning, Academic Probation, and Probation Continued may only register for one (1) course per term.
The University of the People endeavors to fulfill all registration requests. In considering how many courses to take each term, students are reminded that they should carefully consider their other time commitments outside of the University when building their schedules, as each course requires a minimum of 15 hours of study per week. Degree Seeking Students During their first term of study, Degree Seeking Students are registered by the Office of Student Services for two (2) courses: UNIV 1001 Online Education Strategies plus one additional course. Note that Online Education Strategies (UNIV 1001) is a required core course that all Degree-Seeking Students must take during their first term at UoPeople. Therefore students wishing to enroll in only one course during their first term must take UNIV 1001 Online Education Strategies. In order to remove themselves from their second course, students may either cancel their second course in the Student Portal before the term begins, or drop or withdraw from their second course in the Student Portal once the term has begun. Non-degree Special Students During their first term of study, Non-degree Special Students in the Division of Continuing Education are registered by the Office of Student Services for one or two courses. Students wishing to enroll in one course during their first term may cancel their second course in the Student Portal before the term begins, or drop or withdraw from their second course in the Student Portal once the term has begun. Late Registration A few days before each academic term begins, UoPeople opens a late registration period. Students should be aware that a limited number of courses are offered during late registration and therefore students are discouraged from relying on the late registration period to register for courses. Late Course Registration dates are listed on the University of the People Academic Calendar; registration takes place in the Student Portal with the same guidelines and procedures as during the regular registration period. Course Drops and Withdrawals Students are responsible for managing their time at the University and balancing their studies with their other commitments outside the University. After the term has begun, students may adjust their academic workload by dropping or withdrawing from a course by following the procedures outlined in this section.
Students who find themselves dropping or withdrawing from courses frequently are strongly encouraged to contact an Academic Advisor in the Office of Student Affairs at advising@uopeople.edu. Course Drop A student may drop a course during the first week of the term without academic penalty. A course drop during this time does not appear on the student's transcript and does not affect the grade point average (GPA). Course drop requests must be sent from the Online Forms area in the Student Portal. Students are advised to refer to the Academic Calendar to verify the last day to drop a course each term. Course Withdrawal Students may also formally withdraw from the course roster after the course drop period has passed, but within the first four weeks of the term. A course withdrawal differs from a course drop in that the course is listed on the student's official transcript. Withdrawing from a course does not assume withdrawal from the University. The following consequences apply to a student who withdraws from a course within the first four weeks of the term: The student receives a grade of "W" for the course The grade of "W" appears on the student's transcript The grade of "W" does not affect the student's GPA Course withdrawal requests must be sent from the Online Forms area in the Student Portal. Students are advised to refer to the Academic Calendar to verify the last day to withdraw from a course without penalty. Petition for Late Withdrawal Students are responsible to complete all courses after the withdrawal deadline and only the most serious circumstances warrant withdrawing from a course after the last day of the withdrawal deadline listed in the University of the People Academic Calendar. However, in the event of a documented emergency after the Course Withdrawal deadline, students may petition the Academic Affairs Committee for a late withdrawal. Late withdrawals are rarely granted by the University. Students should understand that petitioning for a late withdrawal indicates that a non-academic, extraordinary event (like a serious illness or a severe personal disruption, but not including internet problems) occurred after the course withdrawal deadline (during the last five weeks of the term) to make completion of a course or courses very difficult if not impossible. The Academic Affairs Committee assumes that the student's academic performance has been satisfactory up until to the point of the disruptive event. To petition, students must first contact the Office of Academic Affairs at academic.affairs@uopeople.edu to discuss the circumstances requiring a late withdrawal. Afterwards, students choosing to continue with the process of applying for a late withdrawal are required to send in all supporting documentation with the petition for the late withdrawal to the Office of Student Services at student.services@uopeople.edu. This may be submitted only up until and including the last day of a term. Late petitions will be considered by the Committee only in the case of extraordinary circumstances. In the event that a late withdrawal petition is approved, a grade of “W” will be issued for the course(s) and updated on the student's transcript. Administrative Course Withdrawal Students who have not participated in a course by the end of the 4th week of the term, or who may have had minimal participation but show no credit for any graded assessments, may be subject to an Administrative Withdrawal from the course. Students who are administratively withdrawn from a course receive a grade of "W" for the course; the "W" appears on the student's transcript, but the grade of "W" does not affect the student's GPA. Course Repeats Students earning a passing grade in a given course are not permitted to retake the course; only if a grade of F has been issued can a course be repeated. Students failing a required course must repeat the course in order to complete their program. All grades for repeated courses appear on the transcript, but only the highest grade earned is counted in the CGPA. The University, however, may deny a student's request to retake a failed course. NOTE: A new Course Repeat Policy, shown below, may be implemented during the 2014-15 academic year, and students will be notified prior to the term in which it will take effect. Until such time, students may only repeat a required course that they have failed. Advanced Notice of New Course Repeat Policy Students who receive a grade of C-, D+, D, D- or F in a course are allowed to retake the course a second time. Students are strongly encouraged to meet with an Academic Advisor before repeating a course. Students wishing to attempt a course a third time must obtain prior approval from the Office of Student Affairs before being permitted to register for the course. Courses used for transfer credit may not be repeated. For all course repeats, both the original grade and the repeat grades remain on the student's permanent academic record and transcript. The last grade earned in a repeated course will be the only grade included for that course in GPA calculations with two exceptions: in the case when a failing grade is issued as a sanction for violating the Code of Academic Integrity, the grades are averaged; or in the instance that a W, I, NC, or NF is issued, the last letter grade (A, B, C, D, F) earned is included in GPA calculations. If a student earns a grade of C or better in a course, they may petition to the Office of Student Affairs to repeat the course a second time; permission is granted only in exceptional circumstances. Courses which are designed to be repeated (Independent Study, Special Topics) are exempt from this policy.
