Understanding the Goucher College Academic Requirements

Requirements for Graduation

• 120 credits are required for graduation, of which 60 must be completed at Goucher College.
• The minimum grade point average (GPA) to remain in good standing is 2.0.
• Completion of a major – a student is required to declare a major by the second semester of their sophomore year.
• Completion of all General Education Requirements (11 learning outcomes in all).

What is a major?
A major is a course of study that you select that will allow you to graduate.  You are required to complete all the requirements for the major in order to graduate.

Types of majors offered at Goucher College

• Departmental (Traditional) major – The student follows a program outlined by a particular department for at least 30 credit hours, of which a least nine credit hours should be at the 300 level.
• Double major – The student fulfills the requirements for majors in two departments.
• Individualized Interdisciplinary major – This major requires an application process. The student works with a primary faculty sponsor and members of different departments beginning in the fall semester of sophomore year in order to create a major composed of 45 or more credit hours. Courses should focus on methods and content from three or more disciplines and exhibit breadth and depth of analysis.

Declaring a Major and/or Minor

Once you have determined a major course of study it is necessary for you to declare your major and change to a major adviser. Print out the major declaration form and make an appointment to meet with the department chair of your intended major. Take this form with you to the meeting as they will assign you a new adviser. Once you have secured the signature of the chair you must hand the completed form in to the Office of The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies.

If you are still thinking about your major, feel free to meet with the appropriate chairs until you make a decision.

What are General Education Requirements?
There are 11 skill sets that must be fulfilled.  Several of them may be obtained through courses in your selected major. It is important to note that you must take at least one course in each of the following division as you complete the 11 categories:

• The Humanities
• The Social Sciences
• The Natural Sciences and Mathematics
• The Arts

For the current listing of courses that fulfill the General Education Requirements and a list of the departments within each division, please go to the Academic Catalogue, found at http://www.goucher.edu/x13442.xml.

What is College Writing Proficiency (CWP) and how do I get it?
Students must be granted writing proficiency by the faculty in the Writing Program.  It is possible to achieve it while taking Eng 104, Eng 105, or Eng 106.  Those students who do not gain it through one of these classes may opt to achieve it through the presentation of a portfolio (which must be presented for assessment prior to your senior year) or by taking a Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) course.  Please note that a college writing course taken in another institution will not fulfill this requirement. For more detailed information on CWP, WAC, and a Writing Portfolio, go to http://faculty.goucher.edu/writingprogram/CWP%20FAQs.htm.

What is the Foreign Language Proficiency and how do I get it?
Some students will be granted proficiency as they enter the college through the language placement exam.  Others will work though the language classes to receive proficiency.  Once you have completed the 130 level of a language successfully (achieving a D or above), you will have obtained proficiency.  Those students not enrolling in Goucher foreign language courses, either because they are pursuing a language at a college other than Goucher, or because they are a native speaker of a language other than English, should complete the form found at http://www.goucher.edu/x1893.xml entitled "Foreign Language Agreement."

Note:  This is foreign language proficiency so American Sign Language does not qualify. 

Further note: If you have a documented learning disability that may prevent you from successfully gaining the foreign language proficiency, please visit http://www.goucher.edu/x4575 for further details. 

How do I receive credit for an internship?

Internships are required for Communications and Media Studies Political Science, and Business Management majors although many students not required to complete an internship, still choose to participate. Even when not required, internships are a great experience. An internship can offer a chance to “try out” a career field and also helps build your resume. Employers are looking for students with experience outside the classroom. Students can choose to do an academic or non-academic internship. Credit is not awarded for non-academic internships and students do not need to follow standards for academic internships. For academic internships, credit is awarded through an academic department by following the internship checklist and completing an Internship Learning Agreement (ILA). The Career Development Office (CDO) assists students in their search for internships, whether the internship is academic or non-academic.

Deadlines to submit an Internship Learning Agreement (ILA) and register an internship are:

**Note: for international internships, ILA’s are due as listed above but you must get approval from OIS by October 28, 2011 for January 2012 and April 1, 2012 for summer 2012. Refer to the International Internship handout for additional requirements. Keep in mind the length of time needed to obtain a passport, visa, travel and housing arrangements.

• Download Internship Learning Agreement & Checklist (PDF)
• Download International Internship Handout (PDF)

What are pre-requisites?
Some courses require that you are a certain standing in the college, or that you have taken a required course in order to do this one, or that you have CWP.  This information is found at the end of the course description in the college catalogue.  It is important that you check this before signing up for a class to make sure you are eligible to take the course.

What is an elective?
An elective is a course that is not one that is required for a major.  It will count toward your credit total and is always useful.

What is a transcript?
A transcript is a document that you can access on MyGoucher that will indicate all the courses and the grades you received throughout your course of study at the college.

What is an Academic Plan?
An Academic Plan should be thought about during your first year and rethought once you declare a major.  It is a plan that outlines the courses you need to take to complete the degree.  This needs careful consideration and planning as there are some courses that are only offered once every 4 semesters and you must pay careful attention to prerequisites, etc.  Your Academic Adviser can help you develop this plan.  Academic Plans may shift and change as you find courses are not offered when you thought they would be.  It can be thought of as a guide to help you navigate through the college and major requirements.

What are Course numbers and section numbers and why do I need to know them?
The course numbers and section numbers are used in all registration and transcript materials, along with the course title.  It is important to know these and pay particular attention to the section number to ensure that you are attending the correct class.  If you are in the incorrect section you will not be on the faculty member’s roster and therefore will not receive a grade.  However, you will receive a grade from the faculty member who has you on the roster but you are not attending their class and it will be an F!

Credit/Audit
In the majority of instances a student will take a class for credit.  The credit allotted to each class is listed in brackets after the course title in the Academic Catalogue.  First-year first semester students are limited to a maximum of 16 credit.  Thereafter, students with a G.P.A. of above 3.0 may take up to 18 credits per semester.  Those with a G/P.A. below a 3.0 are restricted to taking a maximum of 16 credits per semester.

Audits are rare and you must receive special permission from the instructor to receive an audit for the class.  College policy prohibits changing an audit to credit or vice versa after the add/drop deadline.  Due to the nature of dance technique classes and the academic demands placed upon students double majoring, or majoring in another area but desiring to take dance technique classes, audits can be arranged with the technique teachers to allow for flexibility in scheduling. Taking a class for audit will not reflect n your G.P.A.

Credit Hours, workload and academic expectations.
As mentioned previously, the credit hours for each course is listed in brackets after the course title in the Academic Catalogue.  In the majority of cases the credit load indicates the number of contact hours for the class – a 3-credit course meets for 3 hours per week.  You are expected to do between 2-3 hours of work outside the classroom for each credit hour so a 3-credit class would assume you have between 6-9 hours of independent work in the library doing further research, writing papers, doing homework, reading relevant materials to further your own intellect, etc.

Pass/No Pass Option for classes

• You may not use this option in any course required for your major.
• You may only use this option for two classes per year.
• You may change to pass/no pass and/or back to letter grade up through the end of the 10th week of the semester.
• Taking a class for pass/no pass will mean that the grade will not be counted in you G.P.A.  To receive the passing grade you must achieve the equivalent of a C- or above.

Who is the Registrar and what is Student Administrative Services?
The Registrar is the person who is in charge of all the academic materials at the college.  He/She is responsible for handling all transcripts, grading, college requirements, etc.

Student Administrative Services (SAS), located in the Dorsey Center, is where you would go to ask any questions about your transcript, missing grade, or question about transfer credit.  This is also the office that you must hand in all paperwork for registration or changing of classes such as Add/Drop forms, Pass/No Pass forms, etc.

What is MyGoucher?
It is your portal and lifeline to our academic life at Goucher College. All your academic information can be obtained through MyGoucher.  This is where you can check your schedule, look at your transcript and academic plan, and obtain your grades.  Check this regularly, especially if you have recently made changes to your schedule to ensure that it is correct.  Having the incorrect class, section, or professor listed will lead to you receiving an “F” for the class that you are not attending and no grade being able to be submitted by the professor if you are not on their roster ad it is not on your schedule.

How do I register for classes?
Once you have met with your Academic Adviser and discussed your academic plan and courses you would like to take, the Academic Adviser will authorize you for registration.  You will receive notification regarding a date and time that you may register.  You will do this through MyGoucher on line.  Without authorization (meeting your Academic Adviser) you will not be able to register.

Deadlines and Dates – know the academic calendar!
This can be found on http://www.goucher.edu/x1393.xml. Put the dates that are pertinent to you in your own personal calendar so that you do not miss deadlines.  Give yourself some leeway time to get signatures from professors and advisers.  Professors and advisers are not always on campus daily so prepare ahead by emailing them.  Should you not be able to meet them to get the approval, get their approval via email and attach this email message to the appropriate form.  DO NOT EXPECT ADVISERS TO BE AVAILABLE AT 4:30 P.M. ON FRIDAY WHEN THE DEADLINE IS 5:00 P.M. THAT SAME DAY!

Changing your schedule
If you wish to change any of the classes that are currently on your schedule and there is space in the class you may go online to add and drop classes up until the first day of classes. Once classes start you are required to use the Add/Drop form and get signatures from the professor of the class and your Academic Adviser.

How to effectively navigate the Add/Drop Period
This is roughly the first two weeks of each semester and a time when some classes, previously closed, will open.  For the exact dates to add and drop classes refer to the Academic Calendar. 

You want to take a class that was closed so what are the steps you can take to try and get into it? DO NOT ASSUME THAT YOU CAN GET INTO THE CLASSES YOU SEEK TO ADD.

It is possible to email the professor and ask if they would be willing to let you join the class.

If you need to wait until the first meeting time of that class, prepare by printing out an Add/Drop form and take it with you to the first meeting of the class that you wish to add.  Talk to the professor.  Professors may allow you in to the class because a student does not show up for class, a space has opened on the roster, or the professor is willing to take over the assigned number.  Once you have the professor’s signature you must get your adviser’s signature and take the completed form to Student Administrative Services (the Registrar’s Office) located in the Dorsey Center.  

Note: If you are unable to see your Academic Adviser, email your request and ask permission to add or drop the class.  Attach the email response to the form as this will be acceptable.

Once you return to your room or have access to a computer, check you new schedule on MyGoucher.

I am not doing well in the class.  What are my options?
Always start by talking to the professor to see what can be done to help.

Always try to use the services offered by the Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) to see if additional help can make the learning easier.  For more information about ACE, visit http://www.goucher.edu/x4576  or use the services of the Writing Center to help with papers.  Go to http://faculty.goucher.edu/writing center to understand more about the Writing Center’s services.

Opt to take the class pass/no pass (if this course is not a course required for your major.)

The last resort is to withdraw from this course.  This may be done through the end of the 10th week of classes.  Note that this will reduce the number of credits you are taking and therefore may affect your full time status as a student.  Student athletes need to be aware that this as going below full time will ban them from playing for the team.  All students who live on campus and go below full time status must request special permission to remain on campus from the Director of Community Living.

Academic Warning
This is when a student with a satisfactory cumulative Grade Point Average (G.P.A.) receives two or more failing grades or earns a semester G.P.A. below 2.00.  The warning indicates that you are in danger and a letter from the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies will identify resources that will support improvement.

Academic Probation
When your G.P.A. drops below a 2.0 but remains above a 1.6 - 1.8 (depending upon class level of the student) you will be placed on Academic Probation.  This means that you continue at the college but may not hold an elected office in any college organization, nor may not compete in any varsity sport and may not register for more than 16 credits.  In addition, while you are on academic probation there are conditions that you must meet and these are articulated to you personally in a letter from the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies.

Academic Suspension
When the student fails to earn a cumulative G.P.A. below that required to remain at Goucher or fails to meet the conditions of academic probation.  There is a sliding scale ranging from 1.6 to 1.8 depending upon the class level of the student.

The Academic Honor Code
It is important for each of us to be thoroughly familiar with the principles and procedures of the Academic Honor Code which obliges each member of the Goucher community.

At Goucher, we honor freedom of expression, inquiry, and action. In return, we expect consideration of others, academic integrity, and a commitment to the value of truth.  The tradition of freedom with responsibility at Goucher is fundamental to the ideals to which the life and work of the college are dedicated. The courage to challenge, the praise for honesty and effort, and the appreciation for commitment or involvement make our community open to truth and knowledge rather than to ignorance and misunderstanding. These same principles are relevant when we interact with the nonacademic world.  For more information go to http://www.goucher.edu/x14191.xml