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Policies, Information, and Forms

Academic Amnesty

Academic Amnesty allows undergraduate students to overcome poor prior academic performance, a Roanoke College cumulative GPA of less than 2.0, when returning to Roanoke College after one full academic year of absence.

  • Students who have completed the equivalent of 3 or more transferable units at another institution with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher may apply to PARA for Academic Amnesty at the same time they apply to return to the college.
  • Students who do not fulfill the above requirements may apply to PARA for Academic Amnesty before the end of the withdraw period of the first semester following their absence. These students must achieve a GPA of at least 2.0 in the semester following their absence. Applications are held until completion of the first semester and considered at the end of the semester.
  • Students may request the Academic Amnesty period cover up to one continuous academic year including Summer Sessions. Academic Amnesty does not apply to individual courses.
  • If Academic Amnesty is granted, all grades for that time period are excluded from GPA calculations and graduation requirements. The grades are not expunged; they remain on the transcript with a notation of Academic Amnesty.
  • GPA and coursework prior to Amnesty are taken into consideration for federal Financial Aid awarding purposes.
  • If the time period that is amnestied was covered by veteran’s benefits, the student must understand that the Department of Veteran’s Affairs will not pay benefits to cover repeating any courses taken to improve a non-failing grade. The student may be required to reimburse the Department of Veteran’s Affairs for benefits previously received.
  • Academic Amnesty may be used only once by a student and cannot be revoked by the student after approval is granted.

Adding/Dropping Courses

For Returning Students:

Returning students may initiate changes to their course schedules in Self-Service or by submitting a Request for a Change to Course Schedule. The academic calendar details the specific add/drop deadlines for the term in question. 

For New Students:

Students new to the college can make appointments with their advisor through Navigate or drop by the Student Success Center in the library from 9 am – 4 pm Monday through Friday to make changes. The academic calendar details the specific add/drop deadlines for the term in question. 

For Academic Advisors:

Academic advisors will receive an email notification per request. A direct link to the request is included therein, but it may also be accessed here.  Please be aware that students with multiple academic advisors will select one advisor of choice per request.  Also, please note that both the Advisor and Instructor Add and Drop Reports will continue to run on a daily basis.  The Registrar's Office will be notified once an advisor has acted on a request, after which, once processed, students will receive email confirmation of the action taken.

Audit Courses

Students may audit a course for non-credit. A "Request to Audit A Course" form must be completed and submitted at registration or within the "add" period for that class. Failure to complete this electronic form will result in the student receiving a grade in the class. NOTE: Students must register for the course prior to submitting an audit request.

Course Overload

An overload fee is applicable to each full course unit taken in excess of five course units in either the first or second term. This fee is based on the number of course units for which a student is registered at the end of seven calendar days after the first day of classes. Students who wish to register for an overload must contact Dr. Jennifer Berenson (berenson@roanoke.edu) for permission. Fractional unit courses in applied music for which a student pays fees in addition to the comprehensive fee will be exempt from the student's total course load in determining overload charges.

First Day Class Attendance & Drop Policy

Unless prior consent for absence from the first meeting of a class is granted by the course instructor, the instructor may request that the Office of the Registrar drop an absent student from the class roster. However, it is the responsibility of the student, not the instructor or the advisor, to make sure he/she is enrolled in the correct schedule each term.

Full-Time Status

Three units constitute a full-time status; however, four or five units is the normal expected course load of a full-time student.

Pass/Fail Courses

Students wishing to register for a course on a pass/fail basis must complete a "Request for Pass/Fail Enrollment" form at registration or within the "add" period for that class. Eligibility criteria for taking a class on a pass/fail basis are stated on the request form. See academic calendar for pass/fail deadlines.  NOTE: Students must register for the course prior to submitting a request for pass/fail enrollment.

Substitutions for 200-Level INQ/HNRS Courses

Prior to the spring of 2023, students used a form to declare which disciplinary courses they are using in order to subsitute for 200-level INQ or HNRS courses.  This form is no longer required as Progress inside of Student Planning automatically populates substitutions as they are completed, in progress, or even planned for the future.

Live links to the catalog inside of Self Service for which disciplinary courses substitute for which 200-level INQ or HNRS courses are at the bottom of the Registration Materials page; using Search buttons inside of specific areas on your Progress (found inside Student Planning on Self Service) will also provide that information.  The old paper form, if useful, can still be used for planning and is available here.

For a short video and FAQ document on how to read the Progress area in Student Planning, click here.

Note that students are limited to three substitutions, and at least one INQ/HNRS course must be taken from each of the three academic divisions of the College. Students in the Honors program may, with permission, substitute one INQ course for an HNRS course. Transfer students should check with their advisor or the Progress tab on Self Service as transfer students may transfer in more than three substitutions.

Physical Education Activity Credit

Physical Education activity classes carry 0.25 unit credit for students enrolled under the General Education Curriculum and students who are classified as "Special" (non-degree seeking). Students who are not enrolled under the General Education Curriculum or as "Special" students do not receive credit for physical education activities.

Reclassifications

Students are reclassified at the end of each regular term and summer session. Reclassification is based upon the number of units of credit earned. Criteria for classification may be found in the catalog that was current upon your initial enrollment at Roanoke College.