Enrollment Policies & Procedures


Academic Add/Drop Policy

POLICY/PROCEDURE
  1. Regular Sessions:
    1. Add/Drop without penalty - A student has through the fifth class day by 5pm CST into the semester to drop a course and through the sixth class day by 8am CST to add a course without being assessed a fee or academic penalty.
    2. Drop after the fifth class day through the 36th class day into the semester - A student who elects to drop a course during this period must receive the approval of his/her advisor, will be assigned a W on his/her academic record, and be assessed a fee. The advisor who permits the drop will specify its effective date.
    3. Drop after the 36th class day into the semester – A student cannot drop courses after this period except in documented cases of serious illness, extreme hardship, or failure of the instructor to provide an undergraduate student with significant assessment of his/her performance. (Claims of lack of assessment within the designated time period must include documentation from the instructor of record.) A request to drop a course during this period must be approved by the student’s advisor and academic dean. The dean who permits the drop will specify its effective date. A student receiving permission to drop will receive a W on his/her academic record and be assessed a fee.
    4. Instructors of record are expected to provide an undergraduate student with significant evidence or assessment of his/her class performance within the first 30 class days of the semester.
    5. For other session formats, please refer to the Academic Calendar, https://www.registrar.msstate.edu/calendars/academic-calendar/.

Credit and Grades Policy

POLICY/PROCEDURE

All credits earned at Mississippi State University are in semester hours. A semester hour is defined as requiring at least the number of contact minutes as shown:

  1. Lecture – 750 contact minutes
  2. Laboratory/Studio – 1500 contact minutes
  3. Internship – 3000 minutes

Year or quarter hours transferred from another institution are converted into semester hours for purposes of uniformity in determining graduation requirements.

Transfer credits are accepted only from institutions accredited by or in candidate status with a regional accrediting body, such as the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. It is the responsibility of colleges (and schools) to set the standards for transferring "D" grades.

Credit by examination, evaluated military service credit and credit based on correspondence courses are accepted for academic credit as defined in AOP 12.11.

The class work of the student will be evaluated according to the following pattern of values:

Grade Quality Points Per Credit Hour
A Excellent 4
B Good 3
C Satisfactory 2
D Poor 1
F Failure 0
XF Failure – Honor Code 0
GDP Grade Determination Pending 0
I Incomplete 0
S Satisfactory --
U Unsatisfactory --
W Withdrawn Without Penalty --
WI Permanent Incomplete

The quality-point average shall be determined on the basis of semester hours scheduled and rescheduled in which grades of "A," "B," "C," "D," and "F" or the "XF"disciplinary sanction are recorded. However, a student may not earn credits or quality points for a course or its equivalent in which he or she has already earned a grade of "A".

A grade of "I" (Incomplete) may be submitted in lieu of a final grade when the student, because of illness, death in his or her immediate family, or similar circumstances beyond his or her control, is unable to complete the course requirements or to take final examinations. A grade of "I" will not be submitted for reasons other than previously described. Except for circumstances noted above, an "I" grade will not be given to extend the semester so that a student may complete a required assignment(s).

Undergraduate students who receive an "I" grade must complete all work within thirty (30) calendar days from the date of the student’s next enrollment. A student who receives an "I" grade may make up only that part of course work not completed because of the emergency. If a grade of "I" is not resolved into a passing grade within the allotted time, the grade becomes an "F." Once a grade of "I" has been converted to an "F" because of the student’s failure to complete the necessary course work or a lapse of the allowable time, no additional grade change will be allowed except under extreme circumstance(s) as recommended by the deans and approved by the Provost and Executive Vice President.

If an undergraduate student has not enrolled in the university within a year of receiving a grade of "I," the "I" will be converted to a permanent grade of "WI" and the student will not have the opportunity to change that grade.

Graduate students who receive a grade of "I" must complete all work no later than the last day of class of the next semester (excluding summer) whether the student is enrolled or not. Failure of graduate students to remove an "I" grade during the specified time will result in an automatic grade of "F". Once a grade of "I" has been converted to an "F" because of a student’s failure to complete the necessary course work or a lapse of the allowable time, no additional grade change will be allowed except under extreme circumstance(s) as recommended by the relevant deans and approved by the Provost and Executive Vice President. "I" grades are not permitted for thesis and dissertation research credits.


Academic Drop, Withdrawal from the University; Grade Policy and Refund Policy

Academic Drop (Policy Statement)

Spring/Fall Semesters
Ten (10) Week Summer Term
Five (5) Week Summer Term
Maymester/Intercession

Spring/Fall Semesters
Class Days Percent Refund Assigned Grade & Drop Fee
1st – 5th Class Day 100% No Grade; No drop fee
6th – 30th Class Day 0% "W" Grade; Drop fee ($50) applies

Ten (10) Week Summer Term
Class Days Percent Refund Assigned Grade & Drop Fee
1st – 2nd Class Day 100% No Grade; No drop fee
3rd – 28th Class Day 0% "W" Grade; Drop fee ($50) applies

Five (5) Week Summer Term
Class Days Percent Refund Assigned Grade & Drop Fee
1st Class Day 100% No Grade; No drop fee
2nd – 14th Class Day 0% "W" Grade; Drop fee ($50) applies

Maymester/Intercession
Class Days Percent Refund Assigned Grade & Drop Fee
1st Class Day 100% No Grade; No drop fee
2nd – 5th Class Day 0% "W" Grade; Dropfee ($50) applies

Withdrawal from the University (Policy Statement)

Spring/Fall Semesters
Ten (10) Week Summer Term
Five (5) Week Summer Term
Maymester/Intercession

Spring/Fall Semesters
Class Days Percent Refund, Tuition & Fees, Assigned Grade
1st Class Day, 100%, No Grade
2nd – 10th Class Day, 90%, No Grade
11th – 15th Class Day, 80%, "W" Grade
16th – 20th Class Day, 65%, "W" Grade
21st – 25th Class Day, 45%, "W" Grade
26th – 30th Class Day, 25%, "W" Grade
After 30th Class Day, 0%, "W" Grade

Ten (10) Week Summer Term
Class Days Percent Refund, Tuition & Fees, Assigned Grade
1st Class Day, 100%, No Grade
2nd – 6th Class Day, 90%, No Grade
7th – 9th Class Day 80% "W" Grade
10th – 12th Class Day, 65%, "W" Grade
13th – 14th Class Day, 45%, "W" Grade
15th – 16th Class Day, 25%, "W" Grade
After 16th Class Day, 0%, "W" Grade

Five (5) Week Summer Term
Class Days Percent Refund, Tuition & Fees, Assigned Grade
1st Class Day, 100%, No Grade
2nd – 3rd Class Day, 90%, No Grade
4th – 6th Class Day, 80%, "W" Grade
7th – 9th Class Day, 65%, "W" Grade
10th – 11th Class Day, 45%, "W" Grade
12th – 13th Class Day, 25%, "W" Grade
After 13th Class Day, 0%, "W" Grade

Maymester/Intercession
Class Days Percent Refund, Tuition & Fees, Assigned Grade
1st Class Day, 100%, No Grade
2nd Class Day, 90%, No Grade
3rd Class Day, 80%, "W" Grade
4th Class Day, 65%, "W" Grade
5th Class Day, 45%, "W" Grade
6th Class Day, 25%, "W" Grade
After 6th Class Day, 0%, "W" Grade


Academic Probation

POLICY/PROCEDURE

Students whose cumulative MSU GPA is less than 2.00 at the end of any term will enter the next term on academic probation and will remain on probation until the GPA reaches 2.00 or higher.

After having been notified of probationary status, a student must schedule an appointment with his/her academic advisor or with the departmental probationary advisor (if the department has a probationary advisor) to devise a plan to improve his/her academic performance.


Academic Suspension and Dismissal

POLICY/PROCEDURE

Students with a semester GPA of less than 2.0 who fail to meet the following MSU cumulative GPA requirements will be suspended.

MSU GPA Hours MSU Cumulative gpa
67+ Semester Hours 2.0
37-66 Semester Hours 1.8
19-36 Semester Hours 1.6
0-18 Semester Hours Not Subject to Suspension

 

No student will be suspended for failing to achieve the required grade point average without first having had at least one semester of probationary notice (not necessarily the immediately preceding semester).

Academic suspension shall be for at least one regular (fall or spring) semester. The student will be re-admitted on academic probation following the expiration of the first suspension. A student who attends another university during a suspension from MSU must maintain a 2.0 GPA (calculated by MSU standards) on any transfer work. A student may be granted early readmission after suspension through the Learning Skills Support Program. A student may continue in school during the second term of summer session, irrespective of his or her record during the first term. 

A student who has already received an academic suspension who fails to earn a current GPA of 2.0 or higher, and who has less than a 2.0 MSU cumulative GPA, will be placed on academic dismissal. A student who receives an academic dismissal will not be automatically or routinely re-admitted. In addition, re-admission will not normally be considered until the student has been absent from the University for one calendar year. If a student attends another post-secondary school/university during a dismissal from MSU, he or she must maintain a 2.0 GPA (calculated by MSU standards) on any transfer work. Based on a written petition by the student, the Executive Vice President or Provost for Academic Affairs may approve the re-admission of an academically dismissed student only upon the recommendation of the academic dean of the college to which the student is seeking re-admission. Application for re-admission should be filed with the student’s Department Head no later than fifteen days prior to the first day of classes.

Appeal for a waiver of suspension or dismissal, because of unusual circumstances, should be made through the student’s academic dean to the Executive Vice President or Provost for Academic Affairs. No additional appeal beyond the Executive Vice President is possible.


Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

POLICY/PROCEDURE

The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (Buckley Amendment) passed by Congress on November 19, 1974, requires educational agencies or institutions to provide eligible students access to their educational records.

It also requires that certain identifiable information may not be revealed from a student's educational records to unauthorized third parties without the prior written consent of the student. However, directory information, as defined in the Bulletin, may be released without the written consent of the student.

Mississippi State University’s implementation of The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (Buckley Amendment) is covered by AOP 12.13 – Academic Records. Additional information concerning the Buckley Amendment is available from the Office of the University Registrar.