Guidelines for expected academic progress are set forth by the Scholastic Standards Committee and Office of Graduate Studies.
Undergraduate & Postbaccalaureate
The faculty Scholastic Standards Committee (SSC) has the authority to place on academic warning, probation, or dismissal any student according to the following standards:
- Grade changes or removal of Incomplete grades do not change academic standing status.
- Academic standing status in the current term may be changed by engaging the repeat policy, however repeating courses will not retroactively change the status of a past term.
- Students who are academically dismissed from PSU are not permitted to register either full-time or part-time (including 1-8 credits).
- When evaluating undergraduate academic standing, only PSU undergraduate credit is considered.
- Students who receive only grades of I, X, and/or NP will lose academic standing if their cumulative PSU GPA is below at 2.00.
Good Standing
When the term GPA is 2.25 or higher and the cumulative Portland State GPA is 2.00 or higher, students are in good academic standing. Good Standing is not recorded on the academic transcript.
Academic Warning
Students with 12 or more attempted credits (including PSU and transfer work) whose cumulative PSU GPA falls below 2.00 will be placed on academic warning. A registration hold will also be applied to the student record until the completion of a mandatory workshop facilitated by Advising and Career Services.
Students who are placed on Academic Warning will be limited to a maximum of 13 credits in future terms unless approved for more by an Academic Advisor.
Academic Probation
Students on academic warning will be placed on academic probation if they do not meet at least one of the following requirements:
- Raise the cumulative PSU GPA to 2.00, thereby returning to good standing
or - Earn a GPA for the given term of 2.25 or above, thereby remaining on academic warning and subject to the same requirements in the next term.
Beginning with the Fall 2023 academic standing calculation (after Fall grades post), a registration hold will be applied to the student record until the completion of an academic coaching appointment facilitated by the Learning Center.
Students who are on Academic Probation are limited to a maximum of 13 credits per term unless approved for more by an Academic Advisor.
Academic Dismissal
Students on academic probation will be dismissed at the end of the term if they do not meet at least one of the following requirements:
- Raise the cumulative PSU GPA to 2.00, thereby returning to good standing
or - Earn a PSU GPA for the given term of 2.25 or above, thereby remaining on academic probation and subject to the same requirements for the next term.
Reinstatement
Students who are dismissed may be reinstated in one of two ways. One is to petition and be approved for reinstatement by the Scholastic Standards Committee (find more information on the Petitions page). Petitions for current term reinstatement must be returned to the Office of the Registrar prior to the beginning of the term for a timely decision. Alternately, conferral of an accredited Bachelor's degree, or an accredited, transferable Associates degree will constitute a basis for automatic reinstatement to the University. (An Associate of Applied Science degree does not result in automatic reinstatement, but can be considered as part of the petition process.) An official transcript with the degree posted must be presented to the Office of the Registrar.
If reinstatement is approved, students will be reinstated to probation status.
Improving Academic Standing
Students whose current academic standing is warning, probation or reinstatement must earn at least a 2.25 GPA each term to maintain their current academic standing. Earning a 2.25 or higher term GPA does not revert current academic standing to the previous standing. In order to return to good standing, students must raise their cumulative PSU GPA to a 2.00 or higher.
Students are encouraged to speak with their academic advisor about their academic standing and ways to improve their GPA.
Graduate
All admitted graduate certificate and degree students at PSU must maintain good academic standing during the course of their graduate program. Good academic standing is defined as maintaining a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.00 or higher in all graduate credits earned at PSU. All graduate students, especially those in a conditional admission status, are expected to keep in close communication with their departments and to avail themselves of departmental advising.
Academic Probation
An admitted graduate student is placed on probation if the student's cumulative graduate GPA at PSU, based on the completion of 9 or more letter-graded graduate credits after admission to the graduate level at PSU, falls below 3.00.
While on academic probation a student will not be permitted to graduate, to be admitted to a new or different graduate certificate or degree program, to be advanced to doctoral candidacy, to have a thesis or dissertation committee appointed, to receive or continue to hold a graduate assistantship, or to register for more than a total of 9 credit hours in any term. A student is removed from academic probation if the student’s cumulative graduate GPA is brought up to 3.00 or higher within the next 9 letter-graded graduate credits after beginning probation status
Academic Disqualification
Disqualification occurs if:
- A student on academic probation fails to achieve a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.00 or higher within the next 9 letter-graded graduate credits after beginning probation status;
- or A student becomes subject to academic probation for a second time.
A student who is disqualified may not register for any graduate courses at PSU.
Readmission After Disqualification
Readmission after disqualification is not automatic. A disqualified student may petition for readmission as a student in a graduate certificate or degree program after one calendar year. Readmission after the mandatory one-year period is initiated by the student's filing of a petition for readmission to the Graduate Council through the Office of Graduate Studies. Such a petition would need to address the circumstances that led to disqualification and provide evidence of preparedness to resume graduate study.
If a student's graduate program recommends readmission, the Graduate Council may grant readmission, with or without additional academic requirements, or may recommend continued disqualification. A readmitted student must raise the cumulative graduate GPA to 3.00 or higher within the first 12 letter-graded credits after readmission or the student will be disqualified.
Graduate courses completed at other institutions while a student is under disqualification at PSU will not be applied toward a graduate program at PSU.