Petitions

Graduate Students: Please contact the College of Graduate and Professional Studies regarding the graduate petitions procedures.

Undergraduate Petition Information

Deadlines

The Faculty Petitions Committee will meet four times during the academic year to review student petitions. Here are the timeframes for petition submission, actual dates will be posted at the beginning of each semester.

Fall semester petition deadlines :

• 5 p.m. the Friday prior to fall break
• 5 p.m. the 2nd Friday following the week of exams

Spring semester petition deadlines :

• 5 p.m. the Friday prior to spring break
• 5 p.m. the Friday following graduation

From the catalog:

Policy on Modification of General Education or Additional Degree Requirements & Procedure for Petitioning

Modification to an additional degree (e.g. BA or BS, etc.) requirement or general education requirement for any student is done through a petition submitted to the Faculty Petitions Committee through the Office of the Registrar. A standing committee of the Faculty Senate, the Faculty Petitions Committee is empowered to handle appeals from students for exemptions or variations from any university-wide academic rule or regulation.

A student petition must include the following:

1. A specific rationale for the exemption or variation

2. The plan for degree or general education modification

3. Supporting documents when appropriate

a. If the exemption or variation is sought for a general education or additional degree requirement that is specified by the major, the petition must include a letter of support from the department chair.

b. If the exemption or variation is sought due to the impact of a disability, the petition must include verification of the following:

i. The Director of Disability Support Services, in conjunction with the instructor or department representative, evaluated whether reasonable accommodations could be made to allow the student to complete the requirements of the course and determined that accommodations which would not alter the essential function of the course were not possible.

ii. Appropriate documentation is on file with Disability Support Services

The petition should be filed before an application for degree is submitted. All decisions of the Faculty Petitions Committee are final. Students may request a review based only on new information.

Petition of Academic Suspension

If a student’s academic suspension is due to circumstances that were beyond his/her control and those circumstances will change, the student may file an appeal.

A student petition should include some or all of the following:

1. Explanation of the extenuating circumstances that resulted in the academic suspension.
2. Documentation of those circumstances.
3. Plans for achieving academic success, such as a study plan, academic support measures, reducing non-academic commitments.
4. Supporting documents from faculty or advisors.

The date for petition submission will be included in correspondence the student receives regarding his/her suspension. Appeals will be reviewed by the Petitions Committee for approval or disapproval.