Academic Policies and Procedures

The Course Credit System

Franklin & Marshall College uses a course credit system. Thirty-two course credits are required for graduation. A typical course is assigned one course credit, equivalent to four semester hours, though some courses may be assigned more or less than one course credit. Departments may offer half (0.5) credit courses and double (2.0) credit courses. The smallest unit of credit offered at Franklin & Marshall is one-half (0.50).

The typical one-credit course meets three times per week for 50 minutes, or twice a week for 80 minutes, or once per week for 170 minutes. Courses with laboratories add a three or four-hour lab to these lecture hours, but they do not carry additional credit.

Semesters are 13 and 3/5 weeks of classes (vacation periods such as fall break, Thanksgiving break, and spring break excluded), followed by at least two reading days, and then five days in which final examinations are scheduled.

We recommend that a student should typically spend three hours of out-of-class time for every hour spent in class.

Course Registration and Credit

Registration Process

Class scheduling is done through the Registrar’s Office, which maintains all official academic records, sends out transcripts, supervises course registration and changes, and tracks students’ progress in meeting degree requirements. Students register online through myDiplomat for courses that have been approved by their academic advisers. The class schedules of first-year students are prepared during the summer preceding entrance into the College. Subject to the payment of the appropriate fees, students may register for courses during the designated registration period. Exceptions to this are:

1. Students are responsible for satisfying prerequisites for a course; they may not register for courses with listed prerequisites that they have not completed unless they have permission of the instructor of the course or the chairperson of the department in which the course is offered. Credit for a course may be denied or later withdrawn if a student enrolls without the necessary prerequisites or prior approval of the instructor or department chairperson.
2. Certain courses require permission of the instructor prior to registration. Permission of the instructor may be withheld if a student has not completed the necessary prerequisites for a course, or has not done sufficient supplementary reading and work to prepare the student to profit from the course.
3. Registration in all courses is subject to availability of spaces in classes, and it is the student’s responsibility to ensure that he or she is properly registered in all courses. Departments and instructors may, with the establish enrollment limits in courses. Enrollment may not exceed 50 in a course without permission of the Provost and Dean of the Faculty.
4. A student may be prevented from registering for courses if he or she has outstanding obligations to the College, such as an unpaid tuition balance or outstanding health forms, or an undeclared major in or after the fall of the junior year. In such cases, the student will be notified of the registration hold prior to the start of the registration period. The student will be eligible to register for courses once the outstanding obligation is met, providing that this occurs before the end of the add/drop period for the registration term.

Class Scheduling

The master schedule of classes is made available online prior to registration each semester. Classes begin at 8:00 a.m. and end at 4:20 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; they begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 6:05 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Additionally, there is an evening class period Monday through Thursday that begins at 7:30 p.m. The class schedule allows for a twice-weekly Common Hour. The Common Hour is scheduled from 11:30 a.m.-12:35 p.m. on Thursdays and is reserved for College community events. Tuesdays from 11:30 a.m.-12:35 p.m. is designated as a free hour and may be scheduled for meetings, multiple-section common examinations, etc.

In order to permit student participation in extracurricular activities, attendance at regularly scheduled classes or labs is not usually required after 4:20 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays or after 6:05 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, except for regularly scheduled evening classes.

Some courses involve field trips, lectures, or other activities scheduled outside of regular class hours. These experiences are listed in a course syllabus and course description whenever reasonably possible. If a schedule conflict occurs for a student, the student should contact the instructor and attempt to resolve the matter as soon as possible, and certainly substantially in advance of the event.

Full-Time Status

A student must be enrolled for at least three course credits a semester (equal to twelve semester hours) to be regarded as a full-time student. The normal student workload is four course credits each semester. Students may register for a maximum of two course credits in any one Franklin & Marshall summer session. Two credits in a Franklin & Marshall summer session is regarded as full-time.

Part-Time Status

Part-time status is defined as registration for fewer than three course credits. This option is not available during each of the last two regular semesters in which students are completing degree requirements in a semester.

A student approved for part-time status will be charged tuition on a per-credit basis. Independent studies, tutorials, directed readings, and internships-for-credit are all billed at the standard per-credit rate.

Part-time status may have some effect on the student’s participation in College activities (e.g., intercollegiate athletics, College governance, etc.). Also, the part-time student may not be eligible for any form of institutional financial aid.

Adding Courses

After pre-registration has been completed, students may add open courses to their schedules through myDiplomat. Entering a course later than the second meeting of the class requires the approval of the course instructor. The deadline to add a course is typically 7 calendar days after the start of the semester. Students may “withdraw without record” until typically 13 calendar days after the start of the semester. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that he or she is properly registered in the courses being pursued.

Course Credit Overloads

Course credit overloads are subject to the following rules:

1. A course load of four-and-one-half course credits (4.5) is not considered an overload.
2. A student may not take five course credits during his or her first semester of enrollment at Franklin & Marshall College.
3. After the first semester, students who in the previous semester were enrolled as full-time students and earned a semester grade point average of 2.50 or higher automatically qualify to enroll for five course credits.
4. Students who do not automatically qualify must petition the Committee on Academic Status for permission to enroll for five course credits.
5. After the first semester, students who in the previous semester were enrolled as full-time students and earned a semester grade point average of 3.50 or higher automatically qualify to enroll for up to six course credits. Students who meet this requirement and wish to enroll for more than six course credits must petition the Committee on Academic Status.
6. Students may register for more than 4.5 course credits beginning the day before the first day of classes.
7. A 0.5-credit course that meets only for half the semester (with a frequency for that half semester equal to that for a full-credit course) shall be considered to contribute a credit load of 0.5 for the entire semester.

Withdrawing from Courses Without Record

A student may withdraw from a course or courses through Inside F&M during the “withdraw-without-record” period (typically 13 calendar days after the start of the semester), and no notation of the withdrawal will be made on the student’s academic record.

Withdrawing from Courses with Record

Withdrawals with record may occur after the “withdraw without record” period and before the withdrawal deadline. (The deadline is typically 10-14 calendar days before the last day of regularly scheduled classes.)

Withdrawals with record are subject to the following rules:

1. Any student in his or her first semester at the College may withdraw with record from one course provided that full-time status is preserved; the student must submit a completed Course Withdrawal Form to the Registrar’s Office and a “W” will appear on the student’s academic record.
2. After the first semester at Franklin & Marshall College, a student may withdraw with record from two additional courses. This rule means that a student may withdraw from one of four courses in two different semesters or from two of five or more courses in one semester. In each case, the student must submit a completed Course Withdrawal Form to the Registrar’s Office and a “W” will appear on the student’s academic record.
3. Any student who does not follow the required procedures for withdrawing from a course will receive a grade of “F.”

Please contact the Registrar’s Office for official withdrawal deadline dates.

Withdrawing from Courses and Part-time Status

When withdrawing from a course (or courses) will result in a student being enrolled in fewer than three course credits, the student’s status changes from full-time to part-time.

1. A student wishing to drop courses and assume part-time status must petition the Committee on Academic Status. Students should not assume that the Committee’s approval is automatic.
2. Dropping to part-time status is an unusual step, and Committee approval depends upon the existence of extenuating circumstances such as health problems or unusual personal difficulties.
3. The deadline for submitting a petition for part-time status is the last day of classes in that semester.

Pass/No Pass Option (for Students Matriculating Prior to Fall 2025)

The College encourages students to broaden their educational experience by taking courses across many different disciplines and following their interests into new arenas. To facilitate this exploration, students may take one course each semester P/NP in a four course semester, up to a maximum of six credits over their career at F&M. This means that their transcript will record a “P” for that class rather than a letter grade, as long as the student successfully completes the course. The student gets credit toward graduation for the course, but there is no impact on the cumulative GPA.

How to use the P/NP option:

1. A student may take up to six credits Pass/No Pass in their F&M career.
2. A student may elect one credit of coursework per semester as P/NP. If a student is enrolled for five or more course credits in a single semester, two credits may be elected on a Pass/ No Pass basis that semester.
   1. Note that students concurrently enrolled in a credit that is non-optional as a P/NP (for example, an experience for credit, precepting, or other course automatically designated as P/NP) still have the option to elect P/NP for one of their other credits of coursework.
3. A student may not take more than two credits of coursework on a P/NP basis in any semester, including both optional and non-optional P/NP coursework.
4. The Pass/No Pass option may not be elected by a student for a course that satisfies a requirement for a major, minor, or special studies area of concentration (including specified related courses), nor may it be used for Connections seminars.
   1. Note that departments may designate some courses as automatically P/NP and may choose to count those courses for a major or minor. But students may not elect P/NP for any major or minor courses that ordinarily carry a regular grade.
5. Students may use the P/NP option for classes that satisfy the Explorations phase of the curriculum (that is, courses that meet the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Language Study, and World Perspectives or Non-Western requirements), with a limit of one use for each individual Explorations requirement. For three-credit certificates, students may use the PNP option once. For four- and five-credit certificates, students may use the P/NP option twice.
6. Students may retroactively uncover the grade of a course that they originally took P/NP, but now wish to count toward a major, minor, or special studies area of concentration, or for any other reason. Uncovering a grade from a course elected as Pass/No Pass does not allow for an additional (i.e., seventh) P/NP course.
7. Students may select the P/NP option for a class at any point until the deadline for course withdrawal with record, which is typically 10-14 calendar days before the last day of regularly scheduled classes.
8. A grade of C- or better earns a P.
9. Courses taken Pass/No Pass that receive a grade of “P” earn credit toward graduation, but they are not included in the calculation of grade point averages.
   1. Note that students who take fewer than three courses for standard grades (i.e., letter grades, not P/NP) in any semester are ineligible to be considered for honors (i.e., Dean’s list) in that semester.
10. One summer session course credit may be taken each five-week term on a Pass/No Pass basis. This option applies only to courses taken at Franklin & Marshall College or a Central Pennsylvania Consortium school.
11. To choose P/NP for a class, students submit the correct form to the Registrar’s Office with the signature of their adviser (if the adviser is also the professor of the course, then students should obtain the signature of
    the department chair or associate dean). The professor will not know the grade status of the students in their courses, because it is irrelevant to how faculty teach, mentor, and grade students. Faculty will grade all
    student work and submit a final grade for all students, regardless of whether or not the student is taking the course P/NP.

Pass/No Pass Option (for Students Matriculating in Fall 2025 and Later)

The College encourages students to broaden their educational experience by taking courses across many different disciplines and following their interests into new arenas. To facilitate this exploration, students may take one course each semester P/NP in a four course semester, up to a maximum of four credits over their career at F&M. This means that their transcript will record a “P” for that class rather than a letter grade, as long as the student successfully completes the course. The student gets credit toward graduation for the course, but there is no impact on the cumulative GPA.

How to use the P/NP option:

1. A student may take up to four credits Pass/No Pass in their F&M career. This limit does not apply to a credit that is non-optional as a P/NP (for example, an experience for credit, precepting, or other course automatically designated as P/NP).
2. A student may elect one credit of coursework per semester as P/NP. If a student is enrolled for five or more course credits in a single semester, two credits may be elected on a Pass/ No Pass basis that semester.
   1. Note that students concurrently enrolled in a credit that is non-optional as a P/NP.
3. A student may not take more than two credits of coursework on a P/NP basis in any semester, including both optional and non-optional P/NP coursework.
4. The Pass/No Pass option may not be elected by a student for a course that satisfies a requirement for a major, minor, or special studies area of concentration (including specified related courses), nor may it be used for Connections seminars.
   1. Note that departments may designate some courses as automatically P/NP and may choose to count those courses for a major or minor. But students may not elect P/NP for any major or minor courses that ordinarily carry a regular grade.
5. Students may use the P/NP option for classes that satisfy the Explorations phase of the curriculum (that is, courses that meet the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Language Study, and World Perspectives requirements), with a limit of one use for each individual Explorations requirement. For three-credit certificates, students may use the PNP option once. For four- and five-credit certificates, students may use the P/NP option twice.
6. Students may retroactively uncover the grade of a course that they originally took P/NP, but now wish to count toward a major, minor, or special studies area of concentration, or for any other reason. Uncovering a grade from a course elected as Pass/No Pass does not allow for an additional (i.e., seventh) P/NP course.
7. Students may select the P/NP option for a class at any point until the deadline for course withdrawal with record, which is typically 10-14 calendar days before the last day of regularly scheduled classes.
8. A grade of C- or better earns a P.
9. Courses taken Pass/No Pass that receive a grade of “P” earn credit toward graduation, but they are not included in the calculation of grade point averages.
   1. Note that students who take fewer than three courses for standard grades (i.e., letter grades, not P/NP) in any semester are ineligible to be considered for honors (i.e., Dean’s list) in that semester.
10. One summer session course credit may be taken each five-week term on a Pass/No Pass basis. This option applies only to courses taken at Franklin & Marshall College or a Central Pennsylvania Consortium school.
11. To choose P/NP for a class, students submit the correct form to the Registrar’s Office with the signature of their adviser (if the adviser is also the professor of the course, then students should obtain the signature of
    the department chair or associate dean). The professor will not know the grade status of the students in their courses, because it is irrelevant to how faculty teach, mentor, and grade students. Faculty will grade all
    student work and submit a final grade for all students, regardless of whether or not the student is taking the course P/NP.

Repeat of a Course

College policy permits a student to repeat a Franklin & Marshall course for a grade only if the previous grade was “D+,” “D,” “D-,” “F,” or “NP.” Please note that a subsequent offering of a particular course cannot be guaranteed.

The following rules apply to repeating a course:

1. When a course is repeated, it counts only once for credit toward the degree.
2. When a course is repeated, only the most recent grade is included in the calculation of the cumulative grade point average and the average in the major or minor. Both grades, however, appear on the permanent record, with a notation next to the original grade indicating that the course was later repeated.
3. Repeated courses must be taken for a regular grade unless the first grade was an “NP.” When the original grade was an “NP,” a student may elect either the Pass/ No Pass or regular grading options.
4. No course may be taken more than twice without the approval of the Committee on Academic Status.
5. No course that is a prerequisite to another course may be repeated if the higher level course has been passed successfully (“P,” or “D-” or higher).
6. No course may be repeated by taking a proficiency exam.
7. A student may not use the repeat option more than three times.
8. An allowable repeat of a course must be taken at the same institution where the course was originally taken. In particular, courses originally taken at Franklin & Marshall with a grade of “D+,” “D,” “D-,” “F,” or “NP” may only be repeated at Franklin & Marshall. Students may petition the Committee on Academic Status for exceptions to this policy.
9. As clarification, if a course for which the original grade was “D-” or higher is repeated, and if a withdrawal (“W”) occurs in the repeat, then the original grade and credit are retained. If, however, the course is failed when repeated, the original credit is lost. If a course for which the original grade was “F” is repeated, and if a withdrawal (“W”) occurs in the repeat, then the original grade remains for grade point average calculations.
10. Election of the repeat option requires the submission of a form to the Office of the Registrar.
11. It is the student’s responsibility to verify that repeated courses are properly noted on the transcript.

Auditing Courses

There is no official auditing of courses at Franklin & Marshall College. Any full-time student may, with the prior permission of the instructor, attend a course for which the student is not registered. There is no record of this shown on the student’s transcript.

Attendance at Class

At the opening meeting of each course, instructors state their policy on class attendance. Subject to the discretion of individual instructors, students are expected to attend all scheduled meetings, lectures, discussions and laboratory periods that make up the course. Students who violate instructors’ rules of attendance may receive a grade of “F.” In addition, when the rules of attendance are clearly communicated in the course syllabus or in a similarly explicit manner, a student who violates the attendance policy may be dismissed from the course upon the joint agreement of the instructor and the College House Dean. Students who are dismissed from a course for excessive absences may be reinstated only by the joint consent of the instructor and the Director of Student Success.

Students who believe that they are obliged to miss class for health or counseling reasons should see those offices in advance, unless emergency conditions prevent. The Student Wellness Center does not issue class absence notes and encourages students to communicate with their professors before missing class, although there are certain health situations for which professors will receive communication from the Student Wellness Center or the Director of Student Success, detailed on the Student Wellness Center’s website. Students with other reasons that they believe are valid for missing class should contact the Director of Student Success, also in advance unless emergency conditions prevent.

The academic calendar of the College is a secular one. A student who has a schedule conflict due to a religious obligation should discuss the situation with his or her professors prior to the date of the conflict; any accommodation would be at the discretion of the faculty member. A calendar of religious holidays is available on the College’s academic calendar web page.

Petitions for Exceptions to Academic Policies

Students may petition the Committee on Academic Status for exceptions to academic policies of the College. Petition forms may be accessed from the Registrar’s Office’s website, www.fandm.edu/registrar/forms

Academic Standards

Students who are making satisfactory progress toward the degree are allowed to continue their studies at Franklin & Marshall College. Satisfactory progress toward the degree is defined as meeting the following minimum class standing and academic performance standards:

A. Academic Progress. Students are normally expected to complete four course credits each semester and to complete course work required for the Bachelor of Arts degree within eight semesters. A review is made at the end of each regular semester to determine the class standing of every student. For enrollment in the sophomore class, a student must have earned seven course credits; in the junior class, 15 course credits; in the senior class, 23 course credits; and for graduation, 32 course credits.

While unusual circumstances may prevent some students from proceeding on this schedule, the College is unwilling to extend the time indefinitely. Therefore, sophomore status must be attained in a maximum of three semesters; junior status in a maximum of six semesters; senior status in a maximum of nine semesters; and graduation within a maximum of 12 semesters. All requirements for graduation must be completed within a maximum of eight calendar years from initial matriculation. Students who fail to meet the minimum requirements of academic progress will be placed on academic suspension for a period of one semester. Students with unusual circumstances that prevent them from meeting these requirements may petition the Committee on Academic Status for an extension.

Students may view end of semester grades on their transcripts through myDiplomat.

B. Academic Performance. Students must achieve the following minimum cumulative grade point averages as a function of the number of course credits earned:

Students who do not achieve a semester grade point average of at least 2.00 will be placed on “semester advisory” status. Students who do not achieve a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00 will be placed on “cumulative advisory” status. Students who do not achieve either a semester or cumulative grade point average of 2.00 will be placed on “semester and cumulative advisory” status. Students on “advisory” status will be informed of this in writing, and a College House Director will meet with these students to discuss academic concerns. Students should consider these meetings to be mandatory.

In addition, students may be identified for “off-campus study advisory” status upon returning from an off-campus study program if they fail a class or withdraw from a class during their off-campus study program. Students may also be identified for off-campus advisory if the off-campus study program has reported other signs of academic distress.

Students on off-campus study advisory status will be informed of this status in writing, and the student’s College House Director will meet with the student to discuss academic concerns. Students should consider these meetings to be mandatory.

Academic Suspension

Students will be placed on Academic Suspension if:

They fail to meet the minimum cumulative grade point average for the appropriate credits earned (unless in the just completed semester they earned a semester grade point average of 2.40 or higher for at least three course credits);

They fail to meet the minimum requirements for class standing; OR

They fail all courses attempted in any one regular semester.

Suspended students may submit an appeal for a rescission of the suspension to the Committee on Academic Status.

First suspensions are for a period of one academic semester, and they include the summer period between the end of the semester at which they receive the suspension and their eligible date of return. Students receiving a suspension at the end of a fall semester are eligible to resume their studies at the beginning of the next fall semester. Students receiving a suspension at the end of a spring semester are eligible to resume their studies at the beginning of the next spring semester.

This period of suspension allows students time to reflect upon the sources of their academic difficulties and return to the College better prepared to meet the academic expectations of the faculty. Students placed on suspension should choose carefully the activities they pursue during the period of suspension because they will be expected to explain and justify those choices as part of the procedure for returning from a suspension. Additionally, students are expected to enroll in at least one course at another institution during the period of suspension. Successful completion of at least one course to prove demonstrated readiness is required to return to F&M¹.

Subsequent suspensions are for a period of two academic semesters, and include summer period(s) from the beginning of the suspension to the eligible date of return. Subsequent suspensions place in doubt a student’s willingness and ability to meet the academic standards of the College. This longer period of time should be used to examine seriously whether the student should continue at the College. During a subsequent suspension, students are expected to enroll in at least one course at another institution during the period of suspension. Successful completion of at least one course to prove demonstrated readiness is required to return to F&M¹.

Approved Courses for Successful Completion

Students are encouraged to enroll in a course at an accredited institution to best re-engage in an academic setting and demonstrate readiness for the academic rigor of F&M. If an accredited course is not available or is not feasible, students may also enroll in a course through Coursera² and provide the certificate of completion with their re-entry materials.

One course taken during the period of suspension may be applied as transfer credit to F&M. All current course transfer policies through the Office of the Registrar apply, and students must receive approval for the transfer credit prior to completing the course.

Process for Return

Students who wish to return from an academic suspension must write a letter to the Committee on Academic Status requesting permission to return. This letter must be submitted by May 1 for students wishing to return in the Fall, and by December 1 for students wishing to return in the Spring³. Prior to submission of this letter, students are expected to consult with the Director of Student Success.

¹ Successful completion is achieved with a C or higher on the official transcript or certificate of completion from the course taken.

² To register for a Coursera course, please visit www.coursera.org. It is strongly recommended that a student enroll in a course through Coursera that best matches their academic interests or major of study.

³ In cases where a student receives notice of academic suspension after the deadline to register for a course at another institution, students may be approved to return to F&M with the contingency that they show the successful completion of a course prior to their arrival to campus. For example, if a student receives notice of academic suspension in January, and is unable to register for and complete a course prior to the May 1st deadline for return, the student should submit all required materials to the Committee on Academic Status by the deadline, and provide information on the expected course for completion forthcoming. The Committee on Academic Status will then make a decision for return contingent upon successful completion.

Academic Honesty

Membership in the Franklin & Marshall community involves obligations of personal and academic integrity, and members of our community are bound by ideals of scholarly conduct and intellectual honesty. We expect our students to be honest and forthright in representing their work and its origins. Adherence to these norms is at the core of our academic mission and is necessary for the educational benefits we seek to convey. Conversely, violations undermine our shared purpose.

It is the responsibility of faculty members to explain the importance of academic integrity in their courses. This can include, but is not limited to, providing written expectations of these guidelines in the syllabus and explicit instructions for assignments, e.g., what level of collaboration is acceptable. It is the responsibility of the student to be aware of and abide by the standards set by the faculty member in each course. Ignorance of the standards is not an excuse and intent is not a factor in determining responsibility for misconduct.

The failure to meet these obligations of personal and academic integrity results in academic misconduct, which includes, but is not limited to, the following.

1. Unauthorized aid-making use of prohibited materials, study guides, or other assistance in an academic exercise, for example:
   1. accessing prohibited material during an examination,
   2. obtaining test questions before an exam is given,
   3. looking up solutions to homework problems online,
   4. obtaining the solution to a problem from a classmate, or
   5. collaborating on work that is assigned individually.
2. Plagiarism-reproducing the work or ideas of others and claiming them as your own, for example:
   1. claiming authorship of a piece of writing or artwork created by someone else,
   2. making use of ideas obtained from other sources (including classmates) without clearly acknowledging the source, or
   3. incorporating verbatim passages or elements from an existing work into one’s own work without quotation marks or otherwise clear indication of authorship.
3. Falsifying information-making false statements or fabricating information in an academic exercise, for example:
   1. inventing data or sources for an assignment,
   2. lying to obtain an extension or other favorable consideration, or
   3. submitting work completed in another class for credit without the express permission of the instructor.
4. Unethical interference-interfering with or undermining the work of others to gain unfair advantage, for example:
   1. inappropriately limiting other students’ access to relevant materials,
   2. tampering with others students’ submissions or grades,
   3. purposely undermining the success of collaborative work, or
   4. interfering with other students’ scholarship by creating inhospitable work conditions.
5. Facilitating misconduct-helping others commit acts of academic misconduct, for example:
   1. completing another student’s work,
   2. providing a solution or other prohibited material to another student, or
   3. lying to help another student gain advantage or conceal wrongdoing.

When a faculty member suspects that a student is responsible for academic misconduct, the faculty member will refer the case to the Office of Student Affairs for administrative action.

If the student is found to be responsible for academic misconduct, a disciplinary status ranging from a warning to expulsion will be assigned. The faculty member will decide upon a grading penalty up to a failing grade in the course. After receiving a sanction, the student may not elect the Pass/ No Pass option in that course without the permission of the Dean of Students. In the case of a student who has already chosen the Pass/No Pass option, the Registrar will rescind that option, unless the Dean of Students permits it to remain. If assigned an F in the course as a result of the academic misconduct, the student cannot withdraw from the course without the permission of the faculty member.

The Use of Copyrighted Materials

The College obeys, and expects its students to obey, Federal copyright laws. These laws generally prohibit the copying without permission of a copyrighted work. That work may be literary, musical, or dramatic; a picture, a sound or video recording, or a computer program or material; or any other original expression fixed in some tangible form. For guidelines governing copyrighted materials, consult the College’s Copyright & Fair Use Policy web site at www.fandm.edu/college-policies/academic/copy-right-fair-use-policy. Further questions may be addressed to the appropriate College offices, particularly the Library and Information Technology Services.

Patent Policy of Franklin & Marshall College

The objective of the College patent policy is to facilitate the invention, transfer and application of new technology that promises to be of benefit to the general public and, at the same time, to protect the interests of the inventor and the College. It applies to all employees and students of Franklin & Marshall College.

A copy of this policy may be obtained by contacting the Office of the Provost or by viewing it at www.fandm.edu/college-policies/academic/intellectual-property-policy.

Disruptions of the Academic Process

All students should be familiar with this policy statement on campus disruptions, adopted by the Faculty in May, 1969:

1. Franklin & Marshall College is fully committed to the principle that freedom of thought and expression must be assured for all members of the College community, including the freedom to express or demonstrate disagreement and dissent by reasonable and peaceful means.
2. This freedom is a sine qua non of a college. The commitment is hereby reaffirmed.
3. The spirit of this commitment is clear and it should, by common consent, be held inviolate.
4. But the determination of what is orderly and peaceful cannot be left only to those engaged in that action. The College retains the responsibility to state and enforce those determinations.
5. The process of free exploration, examination and evaluation of ideas can survive only in an atmosphere in which every member of the College is guaranteed the right to think, talk and move about freely. When any members of the College, unwittingly or by design, deprive others of these rights, the institution and its academic endeavors are placed in grave jeopardy.
6. Those who deny this freedom to others shall be subject to sanctions by the College and may, after due process, be considered unwelcome as members of the community.
7. The academic process cannot be conducted in an atmosphere tainted by disruption or by the threat of intimidation, coercion, or duress.
8. While the maintenance of the integrity of the academic process is an obligation of all members of the College, there is a clear responsibility imposed upon the faculty to safeguard that integrity and to certify standards of performance of all engaged in the academic life of the College.
9. The College’s determinations on such matters are reached through reasoned thought and rational discourse. The College will not condone or tolerate unreasoned or injudicious violations of the spirit of the College or disruptions of the orderly academic process.
10. The College cannot recognize as valid conclusions reached under the imposition or threat of intimidation.
11. It is asserted, therefore, that activities which disrupt the normal academic processes of the College are not only inappropriate but intolerable. Individuals who initiate or engage in such activity shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary procedures or sanctions by the College. Such action shall, of course, provide for appropriate access to fair hearing and due process.

Student Code of Conduct and College Policies

As a residential College, Franklin & Marshall believes that the experience of living with other students is at the core of the educational experience, paralleling and enhancing their studies. For students to truly benefit from living and working together, students should model and practice the core elements of being an F&M Diplomat - respecting the rights of other members of the community in which they are a part-a community which includes students, members of the faculty and staff of the College, and other residents of Lancaster.

The Student Code sets forth the expectations Franklin & Marshall College holds related to student behavior and the rights and responsibilities of students. Students are expected to be knowledge of and adhere to the Code as well as all College policies.

Evaluation and Grades

It is College policy that members of the faculty judge the academic quality of students’ work and assign a grade as a measure of their evaluation. This responsibility may not be delegated.

Return of Student Work

All work submitted by students for evaluation in a course must be returned to them as expeditiously as possible, usually within two weeks of submission. With the exception of term papers, work submitted prior to the final week of classes should normally be returned no later than the final class period.

Privacy Policy

It is the policy of Franklin & Marshall College to ensure that student grades are a private matter between student and faculty member, to be shared only with authorized officials of the College, unless the student signs a statement giving permission for his or her grades to be released to a third party, or as otherwise permitted by law. This policy entails the following:

1. All graded student assignments must be returned individually to students in such a way as to protect the confidentiality of the grade and the privacy of the student.
2. In many cases, it is helpful for students to know the distribution of grades for an assignment without specific identification of grades for individual students. In cases where the instructor believes this to be appropriate to the goals and methods of a particular course, he or she should regularly inform students of the class-wide grade distribution on graded assignments.
3. Student grades may not be publicly posted; instead, grades must be communicated individually to students.

Grades

The letter grading system uses 12 passing grades (“A” through “D-,” and “P”) and two failing grades (“F” and “NP”). Their numerical values, used to calculate a student’s grade point average, are as follows:

“P” (Pass) and “NP” (No Pass) grades are not used in calculating a student’s grade point average.

The following definitions offer verbal descriptions of the value of grades:

A, A- = EXCELLENT. Work of consistently high standard, showing distinction.
B+, B, B- = GOOD. Work showing superiority in such qualities as organization, accuracy, originality, understanding and insight.
C+, C, C- = SATISFACTORY. Work that fulfills essential requirements in quality and quantity and meets the acceptable standard for graduation from Franklin & Marshall College.
D+, D, D- = PASSING. Work that falls below the acceptable grade point average standard for graduation, yet is deserving of credit in the course.
F, NP = FAILING. Work undeserving of credit in the course. An “NP” grade does not affect a student’s grade point average.
I = INCOMPLETE: see the following section.
NC = NO CREDIT (for activities offered on a non-credit basis).
NG = NO GRADE. A temporary mark indicating the final grade has not yet been submitted.

Course rosters do not distinguish between students taking a course on a Pass/No Pass basis and students taking a course on a letter-graded basis. Faculty members report letter grades for all students, including those taking the course on a Pass/ No Pass basis. Grades of “A” to “C-” are converted by the Registrar to “P.” Grades of “D+” to “F” are converted to “NP.” Any questions concerning the Pass/No Pass option should be directed to the Registrar’s Office.

Incomplete Grade

A temporary grade of Incomplete (“I”) is given by a faculty member, only with the prior approval of the Director of Student Success, when a student is not able to complete the required work in a course within the normal time period. Incompletes are authorized only when there are extenuating circumstances beyond the student’s control. An Incomplete is never justified when the student simply has neglected to complete course work on time.

There may be courses in which the content or format make Incomplete grades inappropriate. Moreover, if a student has been absent from a number of classes or has a substantial number of assignments outstanding, an Incomplete grade may also not be appropriate.

Incomplete grades are to be replaced by permanent grades no later than thirty days after the end of the final examination period in any semester. This deadline is subject to appeal to the Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs. In cases in which the course work is not completed by the assigned deadline, and an extension has not been requested and granted, the grade of “I” may be automatically converted to an “F” in the Registrar’s office.

Grade Reports

Grades are reported to students through their transcripts through myDiplomat. In compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, Franklin & Marshall College does not automatically send grades to parents. Students may authorize the regular release of grades to their parents by signing a formal release form available in the Registrar’s Office. Transcripts may be withheld from the student if the student has an outstanding balance with the College.

Transcripts

Official transcripts are released by the Registrar’s Office to designated parties upon formal request by the student. Current and former students may make these requests through Parchment Exchange, or in person in the Registrar’s Office. Transcripts are generally mailed within three working days of the receipt of the request. Students requiring same day service may be charged a fee. Instructions for requesting a transcript can be found at fandm.edu/registrar/managing-credits/transcript-requests.

There is no fee for this service if fewer than ten transcripts per academic year are requested. This service may be denied if the student or former student has an outstanding balance with the College or if there is a pending disciplinary matter.

Changes in a Recorded Grade

After a student’s course grade is officially recorded, a change may be made only with the approval of the Committee on Academic Status through a petition from the faculty member stating good and sufficient reason for the change. Grade changes may not be requested on the basis of student work submitted after the official grading deadline.

A significant part of the Committee on Academic Status’ rationale is that a change in a student’s grade should be made only after grades for all students enrolled in that course have been reviewed, and the instructor is reasonably sure that no other student is affected unjustly by not having had an equivalent review of his or her reported grade.

The petition submitted by an instructor should include both an explanation of the reasons why the change is required and a description of how discrimination against other students has been prevented. A grade change petition form is available from the Registrar’s Office.

Appeal of a Grade by Students

Students are entitled to objective, professional evaluation of their academic work and to fair, equitable treatment in the course of their academic relationships with members of the faculty. These criteria are observed by members of the Franklin & Marshall faculty as a part of their professional responsibilities. Misunderstandings have traditionally been resolved by direct discussion between students and professors, and this manner of resolving problems is normally both appropriate and sufficient. Should a student believe that he or she has a legitimate grievance regarding his or her grade for a course, the first step is thus to consult directly with the instructor for the course. Instructors may have explicit guidelines for how these appeals are to be registered, and students should follow those guidelines if they exist.

If the student then believes that the grievance has not been reconciled by this direct communication, he or she may pursue the matter by consultation with the department or program chair. In these instances, the student shall in a written statement provide a full, fair account of the incident or circumstances giving rise to the grievance. The chair shall review the statement, talk or meet with the student, and talk with the professor. (Note: if the department or program chair is also the instructor for the course, the student should consult directly with the Office of the Provost.) If, after this review, the chair finds that the matter does not merit further consideration, the chair shall inform the student and the professor of this conclusion.

If, however, the chair finds that the matter is not comprehended in established College regulations or for other reason merits further consideration, the chair will bring the matter to the Provost (or Provost’s designee). If an instructor is no longer employed by the College, and does not respond to inquiries from the student and the department chair in a reasonable amount of time, the chair shall automatically bring the matter to the attention of the Provost (or designee). In addition, a student may appeal the department chair’s decision not to pursue a complaint to the Office of the Provost.

In all cases where such a complaint about a grade reaches the Office of the Provost, the following procedure shall apply. The Provost (or his/her designee) shall consult with the department chair, and together they will review the student’s statement, the conversations, and any other materials they deem necessary. The Provost (or designee) will also hold a direct conversation with the student, if the student so wishes, and with the professor if deemed necessary. The chair and the Provost (or designee) shall then jointly determine a resolution of the matter (which shall be submitted to the Provost in cases where the Provost him- or herself was not a party to the discussions). In all such cases, only the Provost has the ultimate authority to approve grade changes, and the Provost’s decision shall be considered final. The Office of the Provost shall in all cases be mindful of the principles contained in the College’s Statement of Academic Freedom and Tenure. If, in the judgment of the Provost, the grievance is of such gravity that its resolution would have an impact on the welfare of students generally or on the conduct of professional responsibilities in the College, she or he may consult with the Professional Standards Committee and/or the College’s General Counsel.

Honors List and Dean’s List

A student whose grade point average for the preceding semester is 3.70 or better is placed on the Honors List. A student who attains an average of 3.25 or better is placed on the Dean’s List. In both cases, to be eligible, the student must have satisfactorily completed three course credits in courses for which the standard grading option was utilized. (In addition, there may be no grade below “C-,” where “NP” grades are considered to be below “C-.”)

Examination Procedures

Final Examinations

Schedules of final examinations are prepared by the Registrar and published several weeks before the examination period begins. All final examinations are offered during three examination periods each day that are up to three hours in duration, scheduled as follows: 9 a.m. to noon; 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.; 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Prior to the exam period, there are four reading days, during which no assignment, paper, or project due dates or sessions that require attendance may occur.

Athletic competitions, including those for both intercollegiate and club teams, are not to be scheduled during the final exam period or the preceding “reading days.” The exception to this policy is postseason competition associated with Franklin & Marshall’s membership in the Centennial Conference.

Examinations that cover a substantial portion of the semester’s work, and that count a significant percentage of the semester grade, may not be given at a time other than the designated final examination period.

A student scheduled for three examination periods in a row (whether over one or two calendar days) may request a makeup time for the second of the three examinations scheduled. Such requests require a two-week advance approval by the Registrar’s Office, which verifies the situation and notifies the professor involved. Faculty must honor approved requests.

Unless students are scheduled for three consecutive examinations, they are expected to take all finals as scheduled. Instructors are not permitted to make individual arrangements or exceptions.

When individual students are faced with extenuating circumstances beyond their control, a final examination may be rescheduled with the approval of the Registrar. This examination must be taken no later than two days before the official date for end-of-semester grades.

Instructors may not reschedule a final exam for an entire class without the approval of the Registrar. If the Registrar has approved the final to be rescheduled, the Registrar will notify the students and faculty member. If a final is rescheduled and no notification of official approval has been received, the students should contact the Registrar.

No re-examinations are permitted for the purpose of raising a grade.

Proficiency Examinations

Proficiency examinations are available only to full-time students and may not be taken for any course in which the student registered during the previous calendar year or which he or she has completed with a grade (including “F” or “NP”) at any time. A proficiency examination may not be taken for any course that is a prerequisite for a course in which the student has ever been enrolled. Students who are approved to take proficiency examinations should not expect the faculty to provide any special tutoring. Proficiency examinations are not intended to be taken so as to receive credit for work substantially undertaken at Franklin & Marshall College but for which credit has not been received.

Students interested in receiving credit through a proficiency examination must adhere to the following procedures:

1. The student must secure permission from the department chairperson to take the examination; the chairperson has the right to deny such requests. If the chairperson grants the request, he or she completes an Application (available in the Registrar’s Office) indicating the agreed-upon date of the examination.
2. The student takes the Application to the Cash Handling office in the Steinman College Center, pays a nonrefundable proficiency examination fee of $100, and receives a receipt. The Application and receipt are returned to the chairperson.
3. The chairperson sends the Application and receipt, with his or her signature certifying approval, to the Registrar and indicates the date the Registrar can expect the department’s decision as to credit awarded. The chairperson also consults with the instructor of the course to determine the best time and place for the examination and notifies the Registrar of that decision.
4. The student takes the examination on the assigned date. The student may expect the results of the examination shortly after the deadline established by the chairperson for the results to be submitted to the Registrar.
5. The chairperson notifies the Registrar’s Office of both positive and negative results of all proficiency examinations.
6. The Registrar’s Office informs the student and his or her academic adviser of the results. Only results awarded course credit are recorded on the student’s permanent record. No grade is assigned; the course does not count as either Pass/No Pass or a regularly graded course.

Each credit earned through a proficiency examination reduces the student’s 32-course-credit graduation requirement by an equivalent amount of course credit. Such course credits cannot count toward the 16 course credits that must be earned at Franklin & Marshall College nor toward the 21 course credits that must be earned with standard grades. Students may not earn credit for courses in basic language in modern languages (normally the first four courses in the sequence) by proficiency examination.

For any approved proficiency examination in a course not in the Franklin & Marshall curriculum, the student is  responsible for any fees of outside examiners, in addition to the regular Franklin & Marshall proficiency examination fee of $100 per course.

Early Completion of the Degree

In some cases, students may be able to complete their degree requirements in fewer than eight semesters at Franklin & Marshall. Credits earned prior to matriculation through the Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or related systems, taking additional courses during summers, or taking course overloads during semesters may lead to early completion of the degree for some students.

Students contemplating the completion of their degree in fewer than eight semesters should discuss this matter with their academic adviser as early as possible. For students who pursue this possibility, special advising resources are available to assist the student in creating a plan that is feasible and educationally sound.

Graduation Requirements

To be eligible for the Bachelor of Arts degree, a student must satisfy these requirements:

1. Complete the online Application to Graduate by the published deadline (in the Fall semester of the student’s senior year);
2. Earn 32 course credits (at least 21 of them with standard grades)
   1. within a time period of
      1. twelve (12) semesters of enrollment and
      2. eight (8) calendar years from initial matriculation,
   2. with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00, and
   3. with standard grades in all Connections, major and minor courses;
3. Meet all Introduction and Exploration Phase requirements by:
   1. satisfying the Introduction phase of the curriculum through completion of the Connections requirement;
   2. satisfying the Exploration phase of the curriculum through completion of:
      1. six course credits distributed as follows
         1. one course credit in the Arts (A);
         2. one course credit in the Humanities (H);
         3. one course credit in the Social Sciences (S);
         4. two course credits in the Natural Sciences, either through passing two natural science with lab courses (N) or passing one natural science with lab course (N) and an additional course carrying the Natural Science in Perspective (NSP) designation;
         5. one course credit in World Perspectives (WP); and
      2. the Language Studies requirement by passing or placing out of the third semester of any foreign or classical language sequence (generally the 201 level);
4. Complete the Concentration Phase by passing an approved major field of study, with a minimum of a 2.00 grade point average in those courses considered by the major department to fulfill the major requirements;
5. Earn at least sixteen (16) course credits on the Franklin & Marshall campus; and
6. Enroll in at least three course credits during each of the last two semesters (usually the seventh and eighth semesters) in which the student completes degree requirements, with the final semester being in residence at Franklin & Marshall College.
   • Petitions for exceptions to either of these rules on educational grounds must be made to the Committee on Academic Status.
   • Students who have attended Franklin & Marshall College for eight full-time semesters and who expect to complete the graduation requirements elsewhere may petition the Committee on Academic Status to do so.

Degree Audits

A degree audit is an electronic review of each student’s course transcript matched against the College’s requirements for a degree. Students may review their degree audits through myDiplomat and become informed about their progress toward the degree at any given time. Faculty advisers also have access to the degree audits of their advisees. While the electronic degree audit is usually accurate, at times the complicated nature of a major or other requirement may lead to inaccuracies.

Students are responsible for reporting audit discrepancies to the Registrar. In addition, a discrepancy in the degree audit does not change the actual requirements for graduation; in particular, unfulfilled requirements are not waived because of degree audit discrepancies. The responsibility for understanding and meeting degree requirements rests entirely with the student.

Graduation Rate

Franklin & Marshall College, in compliance with the 1990 Federal Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act, publishes the percentage of students who enter the College as new first-year students in the fall and then graduate in six years or less. The six-year graduation rate for the classes who entered as first-year students in the Fall of 2018 was 84%.

College Graduation Honors

College honors are awarded to graduating students on the basis of their final cumulative grade point average according to the following standards:

Granting of Honors

Departmental or program honors are awarded to students who successfully meet the following requirements:

1. Complete an approved outstanding Independent Study project, which entails extensive independent research or creative effort and which culminates in a thesis, a work of art, a recital, or some other performance.
2. Submit the Independent Study project to a specially constituted review board and successfully defend the project in an oral examination of the project and of related work.
3. Complete a significant body of course work of high caliber in the department or program or in related departments or programs.

The rule of thumb for a “significant body of course work” in the field or related fields is a minimum of four courses, in addition to the Independent Study project. If departments or programs wish to impose stricter guidelines or to waive this minimum, they should submit requests to the Provost and Dean of the Faculty, who may consult the Educational Policy Committee for advice in particular cases. Departments may determine whether a “significant body of course work” is worthy of honors in either of two ways: first, they may determine a minimum grade point average for work in the department beneath which students may not be granted honors; or second, they may meet subsequently to the student’s oral defense and vote to determine whether the “significant body of course work” is worthy of honors.

Students usually will major or minor in a particular department or program in order to receive honors in it, but need not, provided that they: meet the above requirements; are recommended by the review board to the department or program for honors on the basis of the quality of the project and its defense; and receive the recommendation of the department or program that the supporting course work in the field is of sufficiently high caliber to support the recommendation for honors. The “significant body of course work” of students with a Joint Major will be evaluated by the home department of the adviser of the Independent Study. For students with Special Studies majors, this evaluation will be conducted by the student’s primary department (typically the one in which five courses or more are taken).

The following guidelines are to be observed in Independent Study projects considered for departmental or program honors:

1. As early as possible, the project adviser, in consultation with the advisee and department or program chairperson, should constitute a review board of at least three but no more than five persons, one of whom might well be from another department, program, or institution. Copies of the completed thesis or project should be sent to all members of the review board before the oral examination.
2. The adviser should establish procedures for the oral defense with the examiners, specifying, for example, whether the student will make a brief opening statement, how much time will be allotted to each examiner and in what manner, etc. The adviser is responsible for briefing the student on these procedures well in advance of the defense.
3. The defense should last at least one, but no more than two hours. Artistic performances will, of course, vary in length. The defense should be open to any interested observers, with the knowledge of the student, and its time and location should be published in advance of the meeting.
4. To allow the student and examiners maximum freedom, the adviser should not enter into the defense unless specifically asked to do so, and should not feel obligated to be present for all the deliberations of the review board.
5. After the oral examination, the review board members alone should, after discussion, vote by secret ballot on the thesis and its defense. They are asked to determine whether the thesis and its defense warrant a recommendation of “Honors” or “No Honors,” as one part of the department’s or program’s evaluation of candidates for honors. The chairperson of the review board should notify the department or program chairperson in writing of the board’s recommendation.
6. The recommendation to the Provost and Dean of the Faculty for departmental or program honors will consist of:

a. The written recommendation to the department or program chairperson by the chairperson of the review board concerning “Honors” or “No Honors” on the basis of the project and its defense, and;
b. The evaluation by the department or program chairperson concerning the caliber of a significant body of course work in the field.

Both recommendations must be made at the “Honors” level for students to receive departmental or program honors.

7. The project adviser alone is responsible for assigning the final grade for the Independent Study project and for reporting that grade to the Registrar.

Interdisciplinary Honors

A student who earns “Honors” on an interdisciplinary project may be granted “Interdisciplinary Honors” if each department meets separately and each grants “Honors” based on a significant body of work in its own discrete department. In that instance, the transcript will read “Interdisciplinary Honors: Dept 1/ Dept 2.”

Withholding and Revocation of Degrees

1. A student who is subject to a pending disciplinary case is not eligible to receive a degree or participate in graduation until that case is resolved.
2. The College reserves the right to withhold a degree and/or graduation participation if warranted by circumstances such as the discovery of serious violation of the College’s policy on Academic Honesty.
3. The College also reserves the right to revoke an already granted degree if circumstances such as the above warrant.
4. An eligible student with any unpaid College bills may participate in the graduation ceremony but will not receive a diploma. 

Commencement

The annual Commencement ceremony is held at the end of each spring semester and recognizes students who received degrees the preceding summer and winter as well as those students receiving degrees on the day of the ceremony. Degrees are conferred three times each year: at the annual Commencement ceremony following the spring semester, at the end of August, and at the end of January. Students who receive degrees in August or January will receive their diplomas by mail and will be listed in the Commencement program the following spring. Students who receive degrees at the end of the spring term may receive their diplomas at the Commencement ceremony. Those who elect not to attend should notify the Registrar and indicate their preferred mailing address in writing in order to receive their diploma. Attendance at the ceremony is not required.

Seniors who are close to completion of graduation requirements by the end of the spring semester may apply with the Registrar’s Office to participate in Commencement ceremony without receiving a diploma if they:

1. Have a 2.00 or higher major grade point average, a 2.00 or higher cumulative grade point average and the approval of their major department;
2. Are in overall good standing at the College (this includes disciplinary matters);
3. Are able to complete all graduation requirements by satisfactorily completing not more than two (2) additional course credits;
4. Submit a workable plan to complete all graduation requirements as soon as possible and no later than the August 31 following Commencement. In extraordinary circumstances, students may request an exception. If such a request is approved, students will not be permitted to participate in extra-curricular activities, including intercollegiate sports, subsequent to the Commencement in which they participate.

This policy is administered by the Associate Registrar. Exceptions to these requirements are rarely made. If a student feels that an extraordinary situation is present, he or she may present the case, in a written petition, to the Committee on Academic Status for special permission to participate. No further appeals are possible.

Qualified students may participate fully as seniors in all Commencement exercises. Their names will be listed in the Commencement program with a notation “degree requirements to be completed.”

These students will receive their diplomas on the degree conferral date following completion of all requirements but will not be listed in future Commencement programs. For alumni programs purposes, such students will be considered members of the class of their choice. Additional information may be obtained from the Registrar’s Office.

Communication with Students

The College typically communicates with students by the following methods: mail to their home or local address, mail to their campus box, or e-mail to their Franklin & Marshall account. Students are expected to regularly monitor communications to these destinations.

Transfer of Credit Policies

All transfer students will be expected to adhere to all graduation requirements listed in this Catalog unless noted otherwise below.

Transfer credit is only considered for college courses that are documented on an official transcript sent directly to the Registrar’s Office from the original institution.

Specific courses are approved for transfer credit based on the following considerations:

1. Existence of comparable courses in the Franklin & Marshall curriculum;*
2. Accreditation of the institution offering the course (courses taken at institutions accredited by one of the regional accrediting commissions are generally eligible for transfer consideration);
3. Intended field of concentration (including related courses);
4. General Education requirements; and
5. Grades earned (“C-” or better is required for courses taken prior to matriculation; “D-” or better is required for courses taken after matriculation; courses taken on a Pass/No Pass basis are generally not eligible for transfer credit).

* Topics not taught at F&M may be considered for transfer credit if they are liberal arts courses. Subjects generally not approved for transfer credit include:

1. Technical courses;
2. Communications courses (including oral communications);
3. Most education courses;
4. Engineering courses;
5. Physical education courses;
6. Criminal justice courses;
7. Secretarial courses;
8. Drafting courses;
9. Courses in military science;
10. Real estate courses;
11. Vocal or instrumental music lesson credits.

Transfer of Credit Prior to Matriculation (Transfer Student)

College credit earned prior to matriculation at Franklin & Marshall College is transferred on the basis of courses in which the student has earned grades of “C-” or better. The total amount of Franklin & Marshall transfer credit is determined by dividing the total semester hours of approved credit by four (the number of credit hours per course at Franklin & Marshall College). (Transfers from a quarter-hour system divide total quarter hours by six.)

A student must complete a minimum of 16 course credits at Franklin & Marshall College regardless of the amount of credit transferred and even if all other degree requirements can be met with fewer than 16 course credits.

Grades in transferred courses are not included in the Franklin & Marshall grade point average. Thus, they are not taken into account in the determination of College honors. Grades in transferred courses taken prior to matriculation are not posted on a student’s Franklin & Marshall transcript. Transfer credit for graded college courses will count toward the requirement that a student must pass 21 regularly graded credits to graduate from Franklin & Marshall College.

Online courses taken prior to matriculation may transfer upon approval of the appropriate academic department chairperson.

Franklin & Marshall College grants credit for some nontraditional course work, such as the following:

1. Armed Services Language Institutes (transcripts evaluated with approval of appropriate language department chairperson)
2. Nursing degree (up to eight course credits)
3. Advanced Placement Examinations
4. International Baccalaureate Diploma
5. CLEP Subject Tests
6. Proficiency examinations

Credentials from institutions outside of the United States are evaluated on a case-by-case basis and may require the services of a course credit evaluation agency at the student’s expense.

Courses in question are referred to the department chairperson, whose decision is the final authority.

Incoming transfer students are granted Franklin & Marshall credit upon receipt of their final official transcript from their previous institution. This transcript must be mailed or sent via a secure electronic transcript service directly from the previous institution to the Franklin & Marshall Registrar’s Office.

Transfer credit for college coursework is part of a student’s official education record. Once transfer credit is awarded for a course, the course cannot be removed from the student record.

Transfer of Credit after Matriculation

No credit may be transferred for courses taken during a fall or spring semester in which the student is enrolled at Franklin & Marshall.

Transfer of credit requires approval of the appropriate department chairperson at Franklin & Marshall College before the course is taken. Credentials from institutions outside of the United States are evaluated on a case-by-case basis and may require the services of a course credit evaluation agency at the student’s expense.

Transfer courses may not count toward the Natural Science in Perspective (NSP) requirement unless they are determined by the appropriate department chairperson to be the direct equivalent of an existing Franklin & Marshall NSP course.

Online courses taken after matriculation may transfer upon approval of the appropriate academic department chairperson. Beginning in Fall 2023, the maximum amount of credit that  can be earned from online transfer courses is 2 F&M credits.

The amount of transfer credit awarded for a successfully completed, approved course is determined only on the basis of the following equation:

Franklin & Marshall course credits = number of semester hours divided by four, OR number of quarter hours divided by six (to the nearest .25, minimum: .25)

By this formula, the following Franklin & Marshall credit equivalencies can be made for a single course:

1 semester hour = .25 F&M course credit
2 semester hours = .50 F&M course credit
3 semester hours = .75 F&M course credit
4 semester hours = 1.00 F&M course credit
1 quarter hour = no F&M credit
2 quarter hours = .25 F&M course credit
3 quarter hours = .50 F&M course credit
4 quarter hours = .75 F&M course credit
5 quarter hours = .75 F&M course credit
6 quarter hours = 1.00 F&M course credit

It is important to note that while the department chairperson determines what course a student can take to transfer credit and what specific course requirement at Franklin & Marshall College will be met through taking the course (major, minor or elective), the chairperson cannot authorize a student to transfer credit according to any formula other than that explained above.

If Franklin & Marshall credit is received for a specific course that was taken elsewhere, then the student may not retake the course at Franklin & Marshall.

Transfer credit for college coursework is part of a student’s official education record. Once transfer credit is awarded, it cannot be removed from the student record.

Grades for Approved Transfer and Study Abroad Credit after Matriculation

1. In order to receive transfer credit, a passing grade must be earned (“D-” or above) and must be reflected on an official transcript sent directly to the Registrar’s Office from the host institution.
2. All courses must be taken for a regular grade (not Pass/ No Pass).
3. All transferred grades, including failing grades, will be entered onto the Franklin & Marshall transcript but will not be calculated into the Franklin & Marshall cumulative grade point average. One set of exceptions regards work completed at a Central Pennsylvania Consortium institution, the Lancaster Theological Seminary, or through the Millersville Exchange program. An additional exception regards courses taken in the fall, spring, or summer sessions of Advanced Studies in England. All courses taken by Franklin & Marshall students at ASE will be treated the same as courses taken at Franklin & Marshall; the grades for ASE courses will be counted in the Franklin & Marshall cumulative GPA with four semester-hour courses receiving one Franklin & Marshall credit.
4. Transfer credit may not be received for a course already taken at Franklin & Marshall College.
5. Courses taken at Franklin & Marshall for which a grade of “D+”, “D”, “D-“, “F”, or “NP” was received may not be repeated at another institution. Students may petition the Committee on Academic Status for exceptions to this policy.

Special policies and procedures apply for courses taken as part of a semester (or year-long) study abroad program or a domestic off-campus affiliated program. Interested students should consult the Office of International Programs for policies and procedures in this area.

Advanced Placement

Franklin & Marshall College participates in the Advanced Placement Program of the College Entrance Examination Board. A student who takes an Advanced Placement examination is given college credit if the subject matter of the Advanced Placement course and examination is comparable to that covered in an elementary course taught by a Franklin & Marshall department upon receipt of the student’s official grade report sent from the College Board to Franklin & Marshall.

The following Franklin & Marshall course credits are currently awarded if a student achieves a test score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement subjects listed:

*May not be used toward the Natural Science distribution requirement (Natural Science with lab or Natural Sciences in Perspective).

Advanced Placement examination subscores will be considered. Further details can be found at www.fandm.edu/registrar/managing-credits/advanced-placement.

When a student is awarded credit and advanced placement, the fact, but no grade, is entered on the student’s permanent record, and the number of courses required for graduation is reduced by the number of courses for which credit is given. Such credit will satisfy a major or minor requirement if the course is listed in the Catalog as satisfying that requirement. Whether a student is awarded credit for more than one semester’s work in a single subject is determined by the department concerned.

These procedures do not permit the granting of two college credits for the same work (e.g., introductory calculus taken in high school and repeated at Franklin & Marshall College). If a student is officially enrolled at the end of the second week of classes for a course at Franklin & Marshall College for which Advanced Placement credit has been awarded, the student forfeits the awarding of this credit.

There is no limit on the number of Advanced Placement course credits a student may receive, but these credits cannot count toward the 16 course credits that must be earned at Franklin & Marshall College nor toward the 21 course credits that must be earned with standard grades.

College Credits Taken in High School

Franklin & Marshall College will normally accept, in transfer, only those college credits taken while the student attended high school that are earned under all of the following conditions:

1. The course was taught on the campus of a college accredited by one of the regional accrediting associations;
2. The course was taught by a regular member of the college faculty;
3. The student was enrolled in a course with degree candidates of that college; and
4. The course was a regular part of the curriculum of the college.

Students wishing to appeal these policies may do so to the Associate Dean of the Faculty. All other policies listed under “Transfer Credit Prior to Matriculation” apply.

Credit Based on International Academic Credentials

International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma recipients with a total score of 30 or more are awarded eight course credits (one full year) toward the Franklin & Marshall degree. Subjects not eligible for transfer credit will be deducted from the total IB transfer award. IB Certificate recipients receive one or two course credits (depending on discipline) for each higher level examination in an eligible subject passed with a score of 5 or higher. IB credits may be counted toward major or minor requirements or electives contingent upon departmental approval.

French Baccalauréat and German Abitur recipients may be granted credit for up to one full year (eight course credits) toward a degree at Franklin & Marshall College.

The College generally awards credit to students who have passed British “A” Level examinations with a grade of “C” or higher in eligible subjects. See the Registrar for details.

Other course credits from countries outside of the United States are evaluated on an individual basis. If an accurate evaluation of these credentials is not possible, the student may be asked to secure, at his/her expense, a professional evaluation from an appropriate agency.

College Level Examination Program (CLEP)

Franklin & Marshall College participates in the CLEP program of The College Board, accepting scores of 50 or higher in subject area tests as entrance credits. Matriculated students must receive the prior approval of the appropriate department chairperson.

Leave Policy

Any F&M student who is not enrolled F&M classes or an approved off-campus study program during a fall or spring semester is placed on a Leave of Absence from the College.  The Leave of Absence policy is administered by the Office of Student Affairs, and current students may view the full details of this policy at inside.fandm.edu/office-of-student-affairs/leave-of-absence/.  Students on Leave are not permitted to take academic courses at another institution for transfer credit unless an exception is granted by the appropriate party, as detailed in the Leave of Absence Policy.

Withdrawal from the College

Students who withdraw voluntarily from the College (including those who transfer to another institution) must notify the Director of Student Success in writing. Students who withdraw from the College are expected to complete an Exit Survey.

The deadline for withdrawal from the College to exclude grades for the current semester is the last day of classes. All other withdrawals become effective with the beginning of the next semester.

Readmission to the College

Any person who has resigned or withdrawn from Franklin & Marshall College and wishes to be readmitted should contact the Office of Admission in order to apply to return. Readmission is not guaranteed. Return from a Leave of Absence or Approved Off-Campus Study is not considered readmission. When a student is readmitted, the graduation requirements are those that were in place when the student originally matriculated.