Undergraduate Academic Regulations

More details about Academic Regulations specific to each faculty can be found in their own section at www.ustpaul.ca, under “Academic Regulations”.

1. Academic Calendar

The academic year is divided into three sessions consisting of approximately fifteen weeks each. The Fall session runs from the beginning of September to the third week of December; the Winter session, from the beginning of January to the end of April; the Spring session, from the beginning of May to mid-August. Examinations take place at the end of each session.

2. Admission and Registration

2.1 Admission to a Program

All persons registering for the first time, or registering toward an additional degree, must submit an application for admission according to Saint Paul University regulations. This application must include the following information:

1. Status requested: Applicants must indicate whether they wish to be admitted under the status of:
   Regular Student – works toward a bachelor’s degree or certificate;
   Special Student – does not work toward a bachelor’s degree or certificate but takes courses for credit;
   Auditor – attends classes but does not take courses for credit.
   
2. Program chosen:
   Regular Student – must indicate the intended program of study;
   Special Student or Auditor – must request admission to undergraduate studies.
   The Admissions Committee of the chosen Faculty will consider applications in the order in which they are received, and applicants will be informed of its decision.
   

2.2 Registration in Courses

At the beginning of each session, students must register for Saint Paul University courses through their Faculty. No one will be allowed to take courses without having been properly admitted and registered according to the regulations of Saint Paul University and those of the chosen Faculty.
All students’ course selections (regular, special, auditor) must be approved each session by an official representative of the chosen Faculty. The Faculty considers a student to be properly registered only when such approval has been granted. Students will be notified if their course selection is not approved.

2.3 Late Registration

Requests for admission which arrive between the end of the admission period for a given session and the end of registration in courses of the same session will be considered. Such admissions may include certain stipulations.

2.4 Level 1000 Courses

Only 42 credits of 1000 level courses may be applied towards a bachelor’s degree.

2.5 Minimum Number of Credits to be Obtained at Saint Paul University

For 120-credit bachelor’s degree programs with major and joint honours, a minimum of 60 credits (30 credits in the chosen program) must be obtained at Saint Paul University.

For a 24-credit certificate or minor, a minimum of 12 credits must be obtained at Saint Paul University. This minimum is set at 15 for a 30-credit certificate or minor.

2.6 Advanced Standing (Transfer of Credit)

Advanced standing may be granted for courses completed in another accredited post-secondary institution when such courses are deemed equivalent to those offered by the Faculty. Consideration of a request for advanced standing requires the submission of official transcripts as well as course descriptions from the calendar of the institution attended.

1. Certificates
   Advanced standing is limited to a maximum of 12 credits for a 24-credit certificate, and at 15 for a 30-credit certificate.
   
2. Bachelor’s (civil)
   One year (30 credits) advanced standing may be granted to students fulfilling one of the following conditions:
   
   1. completion of the first year of the B.A. (Concentration) at Saint Paul University with a minimum cumulative average of 70% (B);
      
   2. successful completion of one year of university studies with a minimum cumulative average of 70% (B);
      
   3. completion of a college diploma with a minimum cumulative average of 70% (B);
      
   4. completion of a program of studies which the Faculty deems equivalent to one of the above conditions.
      

Up to two years (60 credits) advanced standing may be granted to students who hold a bachelor’s degree in another discipline that is deemed to be relevant to the bachelor program in which he or she is registered, with a minimum average of 70% (B).

3. Withdrawal

3.1 Withdrawal from a Course or Change of Status

A student may withdraw from a course or become an auditor before completing 2/3 of the course. Anyone who withdraws from a course after completion of 2/3 of the course will receive the final mark INC (Incomplete), which is equivalent to a failure.

3.2 Mandatory Withdrawal

Students who accumulate 18 failed credits must withdraw from the Faculty for at least one year. Those 18 credits do not include the credits of courses failed initially but passed subsequently.

Withdrawal from a program is also mandatory if the additional credits allotted do not increase the CGPA to the minimum required.

A student who is compelled to withdraw from a program of studies must stay out of this program for one academic year from the date of withdrawal. If the student re-applies, the conditions for the completion of the program are established by the officers of the Faculty.

Any student whose performance is deemed unsatisfactory may be placed on probation or be required to withdraw from a program of the Faculty.

4. Programs of Study and Courses

4.1 Responsibilities of the Student

Students hold the primary responsibility for their program of study. Among these responsibilities, there are:

1. carefully planning their program of study, taking into account the availability of courses, time tabling, the years they have available for study, etc. Regular students who desire assurance that their specific plan of study will lead without difficulty to the degree sought should submit their complete plan in writing to the Administration Office for review;
   
2. registering properly in courses before the established deadlines;
   
3. presenting all requests for needed authorizations (deferments, withdrawals, etc.) in writing;
   
4. submitting all documents concerning their program of studies for placement in their academic dossier;
   
5. knowing the regulations governing their program of studies.
   

With regard to their courses, students must:

1. attend the lectures in all the courses of their program and participate in all class activities. A student who is shown to have been absent from more than 20% of the academic activities in a course will be excluded from the final examination;
   
2. complete all assignments of a course before being allowed to take the final examination.
   

Incoming regular students (those working for credit and toward a degree or diploma) are strongly urged to meet with the Programs Administrator or a consulting professor at the beginning of their program. This will give the student the opportunity to establish a more personal contact with the Faculty and to raise and discuss questions concerning the nature and planning of his or her program.

This service is also available to special students (those working for credit but not toward a degree or diploma) and auditors.

4.2 Course Load and Assignments

A credit is a unit which enables the University to assign a numerical value to the amount of work a student must do to meet the objectives of a course. One credit indicates that approximately 45 hours of work should be expected from the student.

A course is a combination of teaching and study centered on a single topic during one session. A three-credit course represents 135 hours of work by the student, with a maximum of 45 hours attributed to participation in classroom activities.

A student normally registers for 15 credits per session. Any student who wishes to carry more than 15 credits must request permission from the Faculty Administration Office. Authorization will be granted by way of exception if the reasons put forward and the academic record of the student justify doing so. During intensive sessions (spring, summer), a student may not take more than 6 credits.

Teaching and learning activities may include lectures, seminars, assigned readings, group discussions, written reports and other exercises. If need be, the Faculty reserves the right to limit class size.

During the first week of classes, the professor will communicate to the students the specific nature of the assignments upon which the final grade will be based, the dates when the assignments are due and the percentage of the final grade attributed to each assignment and any other pertinent information for the course.

A student who, for valid reasons, is unable to complete all the requirements of a course within the established time-frame should present a written request for a deferment to the Administration Office. If the Faculty grants a deferment, the student will be allowed to complete the requirements of the course in question. The period of deferment will not extend beyond the beginning of January for a summer course; beyond the end of April for a course taken during the Fall session; beyond the end of August for a course taken during the Winter session.

If the requirements have not been fulfilled at the conclusion of the deferment period, the mark for the course will be (INC), which is a failure. In the event that, having been granted a deferment, the mark received is E, the student has the right to a supplemental written examination which must be taken during the following session.

4.3 Evaluations and Examinations

Each course normally includes a final examination. This final examination will be oral or written, as determined by the professor.

A written examination will be of two or three hours duration, an oral of 10 or 15 minutes. In light of the appeal procedure, students are always given the opportunity to take a written final examination.

There will be additional evaluations within each course according to the various learning activities. Only those students who have successfully fulfilled the requirements of these various learning activities may take the final examination.

The final mark is a composite of all these evaluations according to the marking scheme determined by the professor and communicated to the students at the beginning of the course.

4.4 Passing Mark and Failure

For all courses the passing mark is D.

A student who does not achieve a passing grade in a compulsory course, even after a supplemental, must repeat the course successfully.

A student who does not achieve a passing grade in an optional course, even after a supplemental, may repeat the failed course or replace it by another optional course.

4.5 Supplemental Examination

A student who receives E as a final mark in a course has the right to a written supplemental examination which will be marked according to the same scheme as regular examinations. When a supplemental is necessary, only the result of this examination is tabulated in the final mark, but both marks will appear on the student’s transcript. The Faculty assigns the examination date which will be, for the Summer courses, before the end of the following January; for Fall courses, before the end of April; for Winter courses, before the end of September.

The same paper cannot satisfy the requirements for two courses, unless there has been a preliminary agreement between the student and the professors concerned. A copy of the agreement must be filed in the student’s dossier.

4.6 Insufficient Average

In all undergraduate programs requiring 90 credits or more, it is possible for a student, in order to raise his or her mark or to solidify his or her knowledge, to take for a second time a certain number of courses (16 credits maximum) failed or passed. The following conditions apply:

1. All courses taken (the first and second time) appear on the student’s transcript;
   
2. The second grade obtained replaces the first one in the final CGPA count and in the program requirements. (A failing grade may, therefore, replace a passing grade. If a failing grade is obtained in a mandatory course, the course must be followed a third time);
   
3. When a course has been failed twice, only the second grade will be counted in the CGPA. A student who fails twice a mandatory course must withdraw from the program (an E followed by another failing grade at the supplemental examination will only be counted once);
   
4. For limited enrolment courses, priority is given to students who have not yet followed or passed the course;
   
5. It is forbidden to repeat a passed course that is a prerequisite to another passed course;
   
6. The grade received in a course followed for the second time, it being superior or inferior to the grade received the first time, will not modify the annual grade point average —AGPA— (or the CGPA) for the year (the session) during which the course was taken for the first time;
   
7. It is not allowed to repeat a course that has already been passed if, by doing so, the number of allotted credits (16 credits of courses failed or passed) is exceeded;
   
8. In the case of a student who is authorized a supplemental examination and passes the examination, the credits associated with the specific course will not count in the 16 credits allotted for courses taken a second time;
   
9. The results of all courses taken at Saint Paul University or the University of Ottawa or Carleton University are added in the CGPA count, except for the first 16 credits redone (passed or failed) for which only the second grade will count in the CGPA.
   

5. Appeal of Failing Final Marks

Faculties value and encourage a spirit of good will and collaboration between their students and professors. In this spirit, when contentious issues do arise, they trust both professors and students will make every effort between themselves or with the Director of their program to resolve these matters.

Since the Faculties recognize the seriousness of a failing final mark, they have adopted a formal procedure permitting students to appeal such marks in undergraduate courses.

The right to appeal a failing final mark implies:

1. that the concerned Faculty will not receive any appeal prior to the official notification of the final mark in any given course;
   
2. that, in the case of an appeal of a failing final mark, only the written components (written assignments, exams, exercises) of the final mark can be the object of an appeal. Thus, students who opt for an oral examination forfeit the right to appeal for this examination. When the re-evaluation of written assignments leads to a revised grade for an assignment, this revised grade affects the final mark of the course in the same proportion that was originally established by the professor;
   
3. that the concerned Faculty recognizes the right of a student to see, on request, any written test, assignment, exercise, or examination after it has been graded;
   
4. that the professor, when reporting grades, will report not only the final (total) mark, but also the marks and weights of all the evaluated activities which constitute the final grade (texts, assignments, class participation, final examination, etc.);
   
5. that all failing final grades may be the object of an appeal, including one received from a supplemental exam.

Procedures

1. If a student receives a failing final mark (E, F or [INC]) in a course, he or she may appeal to the Dean of the concerned Faculty within four weeks of receiving the final mark.
   
2. Appeals must be presented in a letter which clearly outlines the grounds of the appeal.
   
3. A copy of the student’s appeal shall be forwarded to the professor concerned, who may submit written comments to the Dean.
   
4. The Dean shall appoint two professors to re-evaluate the written assignments or examinations in question.
   
5. The average of the marks awarded by the two professors is final.
   
6. If the Dean is implicated in the appeal, the Vice-Dean will assume the Dean’s role in the appeals procedure.
   

Any student who feels that the above or any other appeals procedure was not carried out fairly or in proper and due form has the right to appeal to the Appeals Committee of the University Senate.

6. Fraud

A student found guilty of fraud, attempted fraud or complicity of fraud in any examination or academic work will be liable to one or several of the following sanctions:

1. loss of all or part of the marks assignable to the course to which the examination or academic work is related;
   
2. loss of the right to a supplemental examination;
   
3. loss of credits attached to the course to which the examination or academic work is related;
   
4. loss of all credits for the current term or year;
   
5. expulsion from the Faculty;
   
6. expulsion from the University.
   

Sanctions specified in paragraphs a. through e. above can be enforced only by the Faculty Council or a committee established for this purpose. No sanction will be imposed before the submission of a preliminary report by a Committee of Inquiry.

The Committee of Inquiry is composed of three persons appointed by the Dean. This committee, prior to reporting to the Council or the Committee it has established for this purpose, must give the student an opportunity to be heard. The Council or Committee will, upon request, also hear the student.

Expulsion from the University is reserved to the Senate.

7. Receiving a second diploma from Saint Paul University

Students with a bachelor’s degree have the possibility of obtaining a second diploma at a superior level of education in the same program or a second bachelor’s degree in a different discipline. To obtain a second diploma at Saint Paul University, one must:

• obtain a minimum of 30 credits beyond the standard requirements of the first bachelor’s degree received at Saint Paul University;
• uphold the requirements of the minor, major or honours to which the student is registered.

Students with a bachelor’s degree or a certificate from Saint Paul University have the possibility of obtaining a second certificate in a different discipline. To obtain the certificate, the student must:

• obtain a minimum of 15 credits at Saint Paul University beyond the requirements of the first diploma (bachelor’s degree or certificate) granted by Saint Paul University;
• uphold the requirements of the certificate to which he or she is registered.

NB: A maximum of 12 credits of 1000 level courses (in addition to the ones from the first diploma) will be allotted towards a second diploma.

Graduate Academic Regulations

For complete Saint Paul University academic regulations (graduate studies only), please see the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies of the University of Ottawa.

Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies at the University of Ottawa
115, Séraphin Marion St.
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5
613-562-5742
www.grad.uOttawa.ca

If you have any questions or comments concerning the interpretation of these regulations, please contact your host Faculty.