UAF’s scholastic standards are designed to help students take action before their academic record deteriorates to the point that readmission to UAF or another institution is difficult. In all cases involving poor scholarship, students are encouraged to consult with their advisor, instructors or dean.

Undergraduate and certificate students are subject to scholastic action if they fail to earn a GPA of 2.0 at the end of the semester. Scholastic action may result in warning, probation or disqualification from the university.

Catalog Year

UAF defines catalog year as beginning in the fall and ending at the conclusion of the summer semester. For example, the 2022-2023 catalog year includes fall 2022, spring 2023 and summer 2023.

Good Standing

Undergraduate students — You are in good standing if your cumulative GPA and most recent semester GPA are 2.0 or better.

Graduate students — To maintain good academic standing in UAF graduate programs, students must:

1. Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in courses taken since admission to graduate school. Before advancing to candidacy, however, a cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required. You must earn at least a B grade in 400-level courses.
2. Be registered at UAF with a minimum of six graduate or 400-level credits per year unless on an approved leave of absence.
3. Abide by all parts of the Student Code of Conduct.
4. Have a current graduate study plan or an advancement to candidacy submitted and approved unless you are within the first year of graduate study.
5. Have on file with the Graduate School by May 15 of each year an annual report from the graduate advisory committee certifying satisfactory progress. This is the responsibility of the student. Students starting in January need not submit an annual report until May of the next academic year. If a satisfactory annual report is not filed as specified, the student may be placed on probation.
6. Pass any required qualifying exams or comprehensive exams. Departments may set the number of times a student may retake an exam.

Academic Honors

Undergraduate and certificate students — To be eligible for academic honors at the end of a semester, you must be a full-time student in a UAF undergraduate degree or certificate program who has completed at least 12 UA institutional credits graded with the letter grades A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D- or F. If you have received an incomplete or deferred grade, your academic honors cannot be determined until those grades have been changed to permanent grades. Academic honors are recorded on your permanent record. You will make the chancellor’s list with a semester GPA of 3.9 or better, or the dean’s list with a GPA of 3.5-3.89. UAF announces the students who have earned honors each semester. Students with incompletes or deferred grades that are changed after publication of honors will not be announced separately. If you’ve requested that information not be released about you (under FERPA), your name will not be released to the media.

Warning

Students who have either a semester or a cumulative GPA below 2.0 are placed or continued on academic warning. Students on academic warning will be contacted and instructed to meet with an advisor to discuss academic support resources. 

Probation

Undergraduate students — Students whose semester and cumulative GPA falls below 2.0 after any semester, including the summer session, will be put on academic probation. Students on probation may not enroll in more than 13 credits a semester unless an exception is granted by the appropriate dean. Probation may include additional conditions as determined by the dean of the college or school in which the student’s major is located. Students on probation will be referred for developmental advising/education and/or to an advising or support counseling center. The student should work with an academic advisor to prepare an academic plan for achieving a higher GPA. Removal from probation requires the student’s cumulative and semester GPAs to be at least 2.0.

Graduate students — Probationary status indicates a student is not in good standing. When a student is placed on probation, the dean of the school or college and the advisory committee will tell the student what requirements are necessary to return to good standing. If a student does not return to good standing by the end of two semesters, he or she may be dismissed from the degree program.

Academic Disqualification

Undergraduate Academic Disqualification — Academic Disqualification is the status assigned to those undergraduate students who begin a semester on academic probation (including students admitted on probation for that term) or are continuing on probation and fail to earn a semester GPA of 2.0 or higher. Academically disqualified students are ineligible for most types of financial aid.

The student’s program will be changed to inactive and the student will not be allowed to attend UAF for one academic (fall or spring) semester. After non-attendance for either fall or spring semester, the student may complete a form for readmission. A student may appeal the academic disqualification immediately.

Readmission — An academically disqualified student who desires to continue admittance to the same program or another baccalaureate program may submit a request for readmission after not attending the University of Alaska Fairbanks for one academic semester. The student should complete a form for readmission, which includes a plan for academic success. This form must be reviewed and approved by an academic advisor. Completed readmission forms must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar no later than the first day of instruction in the semester for which a student wishes to be reinstated. An academically disqualified student must successfully be readmitted within two years of disqualification or will need to reapply for admission.

If readmission is granted, the student will remain on probation and be required to meet with an advisor prior to registration for classes until their cumulative GPA is 2.0 or above. Students must achieve a term GPA of 2.0 or above for each term. Readmitted students who achieve a term GPA of below 2.0 will again be disqualified and will not be allowed to attend UAF for one academic year.

Baccalaureate students who wish to continue attending may apply to the UAF Community and Technical College (CTC) or College of Rural and Community Development (CRCD) for admission into an associate-level degree, certificate or occupational endorsement program with dean approval. This process can be completed with a full plan for academic success that has been developed with an academic advisor.

Readmitted students will have a maximum semester course load limit of 13 credits.

Appeal of Academic Disqualification — A student who wishes to appeal an academic disqualification decision and remain in their current undergraduate program may submit an appeal form, available at the Office of the Registrar. Appeals must be initiated no later than the first day of instruction in the semester for which a student wishes to be reinstated. The appeal form with a full academic plan for success will be reviewed by a committee for a first-step approval and will then be approved by the dean of the college or school where readmission is being requested. 

Should a second academic disqualification be received, the student will be required to sit out one year before being readmitted to UAF, CTC or CRCD.

Should a third academic disqualification be received, the student will be required to sit out two years before being readmitted to UAF, CTC or CRCD.

UAF honors the academic status decisions of the University of Alaska Anchorage and the University of Alaska Southeast. Any student required to sit out at UAA or UAS will be eligible to register for UAF courses after the sit-out period.

Academic Dismissal

Graduate students — If recommended by the department chair, graduate advisory committee and dean of the college or school, and approved by the dean of the Graduate School, a student will be dismissed because of unsatisfactory performance. Unsatisfactory performance is deemed as one or more of the following:

1. Exceeding maximum time limit for degree.
2. Not being registered at UAF for a minimum of six credits per year unless on approved leave of absence.
3. Having less than a 3.0 cumulative GPA for courses taken since admission to graduate school.
4. Being on probationary status for more than two consecutive semesters.
5. Violating the Student Code of Conduct.
6. Lacking progress as judged by the advisory committee and documented on the student’s annual report.
7. Having substantive inaccuracies in the original application for admission.

If the student does not have a graduate advisory committee, dismissal can occur upon the recommendation of the department chair and the dean of the college or school, with approval from the dean of the Graduate School.