Academic Standing

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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.

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 fall or spring 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.

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 on Academic Warning 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. (Students in their first semester at ISU who earn a GPA between 1.00 and 1.99 will be placed on Academic Warning).
• Students who were academically dismissed and were reinstated will be on probation for their first fall or spring semester or summer session 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 Summer Session on Academic Standing

Academic standing does not change based on GPA for summer session. However, students reinstated for summer session may be dismissed at the end of summer session if they do not meet the conditions of their reinstatement.

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.

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.)

The procedures in this section apply to students who were dismissed from Iowa State for academic reasons. If you left Iowa State University in good academic standing and seek to restart your academic career, please review the “Reentering ISU” procedures.

Reinstatement is a process that includes an application to reenter the institution, documentation supporting a petition to be academically reinstated, and review of that petition by the college’s academic standards committee.

1. Reinstatement is not automatic. As part of the petition process, students who have been dismissed for academic reasons must submit documents required by the university. Students should refer to the registrar’s website for details on how to apply for reentry and reinstatement and the deadline for submission of the reinstatement petition. The academic standards committee of the college which the student wishes to enter will review each petition and other relevant information. Reinstatement is based upon that review.
2. Students facing their first academic dismissal can only be reinstated after at least one academic semester (fall or spring semesters only) has elapsed. Winter session and summer session are not considered semesters.
3. Students who have been academically dismissed two or more times can only be reinstated after at least two academic semesters (fall and spring semesters only) have elapsed. Winter session and summer session are not considered semesters.
4. Students who were dismissed by one college and subsequently reinstated by another college cannot transfer back to the original college unless permission is granted by the academic standards committee of the original college. This procedure applies regardless of the student's academic standing when the transfer is requested.
5. Students with significant extenuating circumstances may petition for Early Reinstatement (a waiver of their required semesters of absence as identified in number 2 and 3 above). Procedures for Early Reinstatement are specified on the registrar’s website. The petition for Early Reinstatement will be reviewed by the academic standards committee of the college they wish to be reinstated to. The Academic Dismissal will remain on the student’s permanent record.
6. As a condition of reinstatement, students will reenter on Academic Probation and therefore must obtain a 2.0 in the first semester after reinstatement or will be dismissed. Students will follow an academic plan stipulated by the college academic standards committee. Examples include full- or part-time status, specified credit hours, specific courses, and/or participation in available student support programs.

All students seeking reinstatement should refer to Reinstatement after Academic Dismissal for further details and instructions on the reinstatement process. 

Students may appeal a decision of the college academic standards committee if they believe that new information can be provided or extenuating circumstances exist that would alter the application of any rule in this section. The student can initiate this appeal process by contacting their advisor or the student services office of their college immediately upon receipt of notification of the committee's action. The written appeal must include the reasons for the appeal and the evidence to substantiate these reasons. The appeal must be filed with the dean’s office within 10 calendar days of the student receiving notification of the committee’s action. The dean’s office must respond in writing within 10 calendar days of receipt of the appeal.

Appeals of the decision of the dean’s office may be made in writing to the provost and subsequently to the president of the university. Appeals beyond the college level will, however, be considered only if based on one or both of the following contentions: (a) appropriate procedures were not followed at the college level; (b) academic rules were not applied correctly at the college level.

Students who are returning to Iowa State University to pursue an undergraduate degree after an extended absence may request permission to remove one or more of their complete academic terms from future degree and GPA considerations.

1. Eligibility. To be eligible for academic renewal consideration, students must meet these requirements:
         a. Students must not have enrolled at Iowa State University for four or more consecutive calendar years. 
         b. Students must not have graduated from Iowa State University.
         c. Students must have demonstrated satisfactory academic performance as evidenced by earning a GPA of at least 2.00 over a minimum of 12.00 credit hours taken after returning to the university. If more than one semester is taken to reach 12.00 credit hours, the combined GPA of all semesters/terms of enrollment after returning to the university must be 2.00 or greater.

2. Conditions. Academic renewal is based on the following conditions:

         a. All courses and credits that were taken during the chosen terms will be removed from consideration for GPA and degree requirements. Students may not combine courses from multiple terms to comprise the semester(s) or quarter(s) dropped. Degree requirements met during the dropped terms will ordinarily have to be repeated.

         b. Renewal may be applied only to academic terms completed prior to the students' extended absence.

         c. All courses and grades for the chosen terms will remain on the students' academic record.

         d. Designated repeats and P/NP options will be reinstated for the terms dropped.

         e. Students may be granted only one academic renewal.

3. Procedures.

         a. Students should discuss their desire to pursue academic renewal with an advisor in the college they wish to enter.

         b. The student must submit a request for Academic Renewal in Workday.

         c. After the request is initiated by the student it will route for approval to the academic advisor and college student services offices and then to the Records area in the Office of the Registrar, 010 Enrollment Services Center.

Who needs to complete the Academic Intervention Self-Assessment (AISA)/Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Appeal?

1. Undergraduate students who are currently enrolled and placed on academic warning and/or
2. Undergraduate students who are currently enrolled and placed on academic probation and/or 
3. Undergraduate students who left Iowa State University due to being academically dismissed or while on academic probation and are returning to Iowa State University and/or
4. Undergraduate students who are placed on Financial Aid Suspension

Financial Aid Suspension vs. Academic Warning/Probation

Federal regulations require students to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to receive financial aid. Students who are on Financial Aid Suspension must appeal for the reinstatement of their financial aid by submitting the Academic Intervention Self-Assessment (AISA) and meeting with their academic advisor. Appeal approval is not guaranteed. 

Iowa State University has a separate policy to monitor a student's academic standing. The Iowa State University Academic Warning and Probation policy is different from the financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy, and a student may need to submit the Academic Intervention Self-Assessment (AISA) for being on Academic Warning or Probation, even if they are not receiving financial aid.

Students needing to Complete Only the SAP appeal, or BOTH SAP & AISA

• Students will have a Task to complete in Workday
• Click on “MyTAsks” in the upper right corner of the screen, and find “View or Edit Academic Plan-SAP: SAP Appeal Event”
• Further instructions

Students needing to Complete Only the AISA

• Log into Workday and go to your Academics Dashboard
• At the right side of the page, click on “More” under Academic Records
• Click on the “Complete Academic Intervention Self-Assessment”

How exact do students need be when completing the section that requests their courses for the next two semesters?

Allow the student to make the most informed estimate about their future courses by discussing their degree audit and any prerequisite courses required to proceed in their designated major. The upcoming courses do not need to be exact, but they should closely align with courses required on the student’s degree audit.

Why does my advisee still have a registration hold after I marked their AISA as complete?

Marking the AISA as complete does not remove the student’s registration hold. The Academic Advisor must mark the AISA as complete and remove the student’s registration hold for the student to be able to register for future semester courses.

Why am I reviewing an AISA for a student who is in good academic standing and not on Academic Warning or Probation?

The student is on financial aid suspension, and the financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress policy may not align with the college’s academic warning and probation policy. The student has been notified about the exact reason why they are on financial aid suspension, and questions about financial aid suspension may be directed to the Office of Student Financial Aid at 515-294-2223.