Academic Policies and Grading System

Introduction to Health Science - UoS Rules & Regulations

• The presentation covers University of Sharjah (UoS) rules and regulations for Health Science students.
• Key topics include advising, registration instructions, registration bylaws, and student study plans.

Advising

• Students are assigned an academic advisor upon enrollment at UoS.
• The assigned advisor is a faculty member from the student's department.
• The advisor assists students with creating a course schedule during registration.
• The advisor guides and supports students throughout their university studies.
• Advisors monitor academic progress and provide counseling regarding any academic challenges.
• If students do not know their assigned advisor, they should contact the chair of their department.
• A departmental location chart is available for the Health Sciences departments.

Course Requirements

• The presentation includes an example of course requirements for a BSc in Medical Diagnostic Imaging (BSc MDI) program.
• Mandatory and elective courses are outlined.
• University requirements, college requirements, and program requirements are listed.
• UoS has a standard study plan that can be accessed by all students via My UDC.

Registration

• Details of registration, policies, and deadlines are available on the university portal or official documents. This slide does not have the detailed information.
• The slide presents the registration department information.
• This section lists course details, including course numbers, titles, credits, and grades.

Minimum and Maximum Duration of Study

• To earn a bachelor's degree in Health Sciences requires a minimum of 8 regular semesters.
• A maximum of 15 semesters is allowed for obtaining a bachelor's degree.
• Regular semesters refer to spring and fall semesters.

Academic Load

• The maximum credit hours for fall and spring semesters are 12–19, depending on GPA, requiring dean's approval for 12 or less hours.
• For graduate or high CGPA (≥3.6) students, the maximum load is 21 credit hours per semester.
• Summer semester maximum load is 7 credit hours (2 courses) or 10 credit hours (3 courses).
• Zero-credit courses are also included in the credit load.

IEP (Intensive English Program)

• Students enrolled in IEP levels 3 or 4 may take either an Arabic Language or Islamic Culture course in addition to the IEP required courses.
• These courses include reading and listening skills.

Repeating Courses

• Students can repeat failed compulsory courses until passed.
• Students failing an elective course can repeat or switch to a different elective. If the student is repeating a course after an initial failure, their higher grade is the one that counts.
• Failed courses can be repeated only once if a student had passed once.

Pre-requisites

• Taking a course before meeting prerequisites is not allowed.
• Concurrent classes with pre-requisites are permissible only if approved by the dean, specifically for graduating students.
• If a student has previously failed a prerequisite, they can take it concurrently with the dependent course.

Courses Substitution

• An exception may be made for graduating students if a compulsory course is not offered or if a required course conflicts with another.
• Students may substitute courses if the failing course has been failed at least three times.
• Substitute courses are equivalent in level and credit hour requirements.
• The substitute course must have the same language structure.
• Substitution must be approved by the Dean and the department.

Attendance

• Students with 10%–15% absences receive a warning via email.
• Continuous absences (20%) prevent students from sitting for the final exam, resulting in a failing grade (FA).
• Students representing the university or their country in official events can have up to 25% absence.

Schedule Change

• Schedule changes involve adding or dropping courses and can only be done during the official drop and add period of the academic calendar, usually in the first week of fall/spring semesters or the second day of summer courses.
• Dropping a course from the schedule eliminates it from a student's academic record.

Withdrawal After Drop & Add Period

• Students may withdraw from one or more courses between the second and tenth weeks of classes during a regular semester or the third and fourth weeks of a summer session.
• The student's total credit hours must not drop below 9.
• A withdrawal grade "W" is recorded in the student's transcript.
• Course withdrawal must be approved by the college dean if the load drops below 12 credits. (excluding summer)

Last Day for Dropping Courses

• The last day for dropping a course without receiving a failing grade is week 10.

Reviewing Final Examination

• Students can submit an electronic request within two weeks of grade posting.
• The electronic request submission system closes after two weeks.

Final Examination

• Students must clear all outstanding fees to sit for the final exams.
• Failing to attend the final exam without a valid excuse results in a failing grade (F).
• A student can request an incomplete grade (I) if a valid excuse is provided to the course dean.

Absence from the Final Exam

• Students must take a make-up exam with the appropriate department and instructor to compensate for missing the final exam.
• The make-up exam period starts from the day when the reasoning for absence is accepted by the dean. This ends the first week of the next regular semester.
• A student who fails to take the make-up exam receives an F for the course.

Absence from the Final Exam (continuation)

• If absence circumstances continue, the student may be withdrawn from the course, with a grade of W (Excused Withdrawal), which is not a failing mark. This decision is made by the College Council.

Change of Major

• Students can change their major before the 13th week of a regular semester, with prior approval from the dean of the new college.
• The dean, after consultation with the department chair, will approve the change based on certain conditions, such as the availability of a space in the new major, the student is meeting program-specific rules, and whether that student has changed majors before.
• Change of programs is possible even if a student has completed a specific number of credits or if there is a low CGPA

Change of Program

• Students can change programs after meeting a minimum threshold of 15 credit hours.
• An exception to this is when the student is under probation (CGPA below 1).

Grading System

• Letter grades reflect academic performance.
• Letter grades are calculated based on a grading scale, which includes details for different ranges of percentages.
• The minimum passing grade is D.

Grades Calculations

• The provided table outlines the letter grades and corresponding GPA values

How to Calculate Semester and Cumulative GPA

• Students can use a CGPA calculator on the university website to calculate semester and cumulative GPA using grade points and credit hours.
• Links to the calculator or related pages on the website with instructions are available.

Semester Grade Point Average

• This involves determining the quality points of each course, multiplying the credit hours by the grade point value, adding the total quality points and the total credit hours, and dividing the total quality points by the total credit hours.

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)

• The GPA is calculated by determining the quality points of all courses, adding the total quality points to the number of credit hours, and dividing the quality points by the total credit hours.

Academic Probation

• Students with a CGPA less than 2 points after the first semester are placed on academic probation. The maximum credit hours for these students are 15.
• After the second semester, students' maximum credit hours limit will be reduced to 13.
• In cases of probation, students must only register after contacting advisors and collecting PIN codes, which are changed periodically.
• Upon recommendation, academic departments can adjust the number of credit hours for students currently on probation.

Academic Probation (Continuation)

• Students with multiple consecutive probations may choose to continue in the same major or change majors.
• Continued study requires dean approval; failing to meet the requirements may result in dismissal.
• A major change requires consideration of the new major's course requirements and credit hours to remove academic probation.

Academic Dismissal

• A student may be dismissed from the university if they receive 3 consecutive probations in the same major, or 5 non-consecutive probations within the entire study period, in addition to other conditions such as a CGPA less than 1.0.

Forced Change of Major

• Students with a cumulative GPA below 1.0 at the end of a semester (after completing two regular semesters) are forced to transfer to another academic program.

Suspension of Registration and Withdrawal from the University

• Optional withdrawal applications can be made up until before final exams.
• Academic withdrawal is possible when a student doesn't submit an optional withdrawal within 4 weeks of the semester start.
• Students who have been registered for at least a semester can have their registration suspended, and their grades from within that timeframe will be preserved, provided there's a valid reason.

Graduating Students

• A table shows the GPA ranges and their corresponding designations for graduating students.

Grades in CGPA

• The table provides codes and meanings for grades used in calculating CGPA, including incomplete grades (I), pass (P), transferred (TR), and withdrawal (W).

Test your knowledge on academic policies related to grading, probation, and major changes. This quiz covers important questions regarding grade assignments, GPA calculation, and the conditions for changing majors. Perfect for students looking to understand their academic standing and options.