College Catalog (2011-2012)
2011-2012 College Catalog: Records Information
Records Information
Change of Name, Address or Major
Students can process a change of NAME by bringing legal documentation supporting the name change to the admissions and records office. A change of ADDRESS can be made on the Web, in-person at the admissions and records office, by mail or fax (775-673-7028). To be official, a change of EMPHASIS (MAJOR) must be submitted to the admissions and records office.
While it is critical that all students keep the admissions and records office apprised of any changes, it is required of students who receive federal financial aid or veterans benefits to keep name, address and major information current. Failure to do so could affect eligibility for continued benefits. Changes in emphasis also affect advisement and course catalog choice for graduation. When the admissions and records office becomes aware of an incorrect address through returned mail, a registration hold will be placed on the student until the address is corrected. Contact admissions and records to remove address holds.
Classification of Students
Freshman: A student who has earned fewer than 30 credits.
Sophomore: A student who has earned 30 credits or more, but has not completed all courses and requirements for an associate degree.
Enrollment Classification
New student: A student who has never attended an institution of higher education.
New transfer: A student who has not previously attended TMCC but has attended other institutions of higher education.
Continuing student: A student who has previously attended TMCC.
Enrollment Certification
Truckee Meadows Community College has authorized the National Student Clearinghouse to act as our agent for all verifications of student enrollment. Please visit the Clearinghouse online at www.studentclearinghouse.org or contact them by phone at 703-742-4200.
Challenge Examinations
An enrolled or formerly enrolled student may petition for a challenge examination in certain courses approved by the college. The credit by examination petition may be obtained from the admissions and records office. The student must complete the petition and return it with the necessary fee. It will be approved or disapproved in accordance with the policies listed in Appendix C. Upon approval by the admissions and records office, the petition will be forwarded to the department in charge of administering the challenge examination. The examination is prepared by the department of the college responsible for instruction of the course. The examination will be comprehensive in nature, covering all the basic skills required of a student completing the course in the regular manner. Lists of courses approved for challenges and related fees are available in the admissions and records office.
Academic Advisement Report
For help in schedule planning and course selection, degree-seeking students may request an academic advisement report on MyTMCC or from the admissions and records office. Students may request a free academic advisement report once per year, unless they change their major.
Transfer students who wish to use credit earned at other institutions for their degree or certificate may request an evaluation of credits when they have all official transcripts from their former institutions on file in the admissions and records office. Students must be currently or previously enrolled to receive this service. Unofficial academic advisement reports are also available through MyTMCC. Other transcripts will not show up until an official academic advisement report is completed. Students must have attended within the last year for any academic advisement report to be available online.
Non-traditional education credit can only be applied,if approved, toward an Associate of Applied Science, an Associate of General Studies or a Certificate of Achievement. The student must have at least 15 semester credits at TMCC before non-traditional credit is considered.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
TMCC conforms to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act pertaining to student records and their privacy, their inspection and the appeal rights of the student. For full details about this policy, See Appendix G. In accordance with this act, TMCC designates the following student information as directory information and as such can disclose it to the public at the college's discretion: name, address, telephone number, dates of attendance, full or part-time status, degree awarded, major and date of graduation. To withhold disclosure of this directory information, the student must provide written notification to the admissions and records office using the TMCC Privacy Notice for Printed Materials.
Attendance
Because instructors consider class attendance an integral part of the learning experience, students are required to attend the first class of each course in which they register and adhere to the attendance policy established by the course instructor and stated in the course syllabus. It is the students' responsibility to withdraw from classes they are unable to attend. During the 100% refund period, an instructor may drop a student for nonattendance and/or not meeting the prerequisites for a class. For policy governing religious obligations, please refer to Appendix Q.
Grades
At the end of each semester, students' grades will be available on MyTMCC. Students can access the system approximately one week after the end of the term for their grades. Students who require a printed copy of the grade report may print one from MyTMCC. To receive a complete summary of the academic history, students should request an official transcript.
Grading Scale
The following grades and marks are used at TMCC.
| GRADE | GRADE POINT VALUE |
|---|---|
| A SUPERIOR | 4.0 |
| A- | 3.7 |
| B+ | 3.3 |
| B ABOVE AVERAGE | 3.0 |
| B- | 2.7 |
| C+ | 2.3 |
| C AVERAGE | 2.0 |
| C- | 1.7 |
| D+ | 1.3 |
| D BELOW AVERAGE | 1.0 |
| D- | 0.7 |
| F FAILURE | 0.0 |
The grade point value associated with each grade denotes how many points are accumulated for each credit earned with that grade. The grade point average is determined by dividing the sum of the grade points earned by the total number of credits earned with a regular letter grade.
Individual faculty members choose whether to use the "plus" and "minus" grades. Students are informed of the instructor's choice of grading scale at the beginning of the class in the course syllabus. Students may not appeal the format an instructor chooses. The following marks are also part of the grading system, but carry no grade point value.
P PASS: workforce development and continuing education, developmental, credit by exam courses or nontraditional credit only
S SATISFACTORY: C or above
U UNSATISFACTORY: D or below
I INCOMPLETE
IP IN PROGRESS
X IN PROGRESS: courses extending beyond one semester
AD AUDIT
W WITHDRAWAL: student withdraws from a course by the midpoint (50%) of the course (exact dates for full-term, short-term and intensive courses are posted in the class schedule). Date of last attendance is stored in PeopleSoft.
NR NOT REPORTED: assigned by registrar pending submission of final grade by instructor.
Incomplete Grades
An incomplete may be given if the student has completed a substantial portion of the class (75 percent) with at least a grade of C. There must be some verifiable, compelling reason for the lack of completion of the class. A conference between the instructor and the student should be held prior to the due date for grades at the end of the semester. A detailed statement describing the work to be completed, signed by the instructor and the department chair, must appear on the back of the official grade sheet of the instructor.
Students have one semester in which to make up assignments or examinations for a course in which they receive an incomplete. Failure to do so will result in the incomplete grade being changed to the lowest grade on the course syllabus. Summer session is not defined as a semester for this purpose. Students wishing to complete the work for a course in which they received an incomplete must make arrangements with the instructor who originally issued that incomplete.
Normal Degree Progress
Students progressing toward a degree or certificate must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00, which is equivalent to an average grade of C.
Retaking a Course
Students have the right to retake any course and have only the highest grade used in the computation of their total grade point average. Students will not receive duplicate credit for retaken courses. Students who are receiving financial aid or veterans benefits should consult with the appropriate office from which they are receiving aid before retaking a course.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
Students at Truckee Meadows Community College must maintain satisfactory academic progress toward a degree or certificate to remain in good standing. Students who meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements are considered to be in "good standing" status.
The college has established and will apply the following standard of academic progress to all degree-seeking (program) students. This policy applies to the general student population. Additional progress standards for millennium scholarship and financial aid recipients are applied when appropriate.
See Appendix D for additional information.
Requirements
Grade Point Average (GPA): All TMCC program students are required to maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA.
Students who fall below a 2.0 GPA will be required to enroll in the Academics success Kit (ASK) Program. Contact Counseling at 775-673-7060.
To review the policy in its entirety visit: www.tmcc.edu/vp/acstu/
Semester System
Credits earned at TMCC are awarded on the basis of semester credits. A semester consists of 15 weeks. One semester credit is earned through 15 hours of classroom instruction or the equivalent.
Summer school is a self-supporting program that offers access to transferable and occupational courses, workforce development and continuing education and special summer activities. There are two 5-week terms in which most of the classes are offered although, due to content and demand for out-of-classroom work, some programs have a unique schedule and/or format. For additional information, please call the summer school office at 775-673-7812.
Transcript of Record
An official transcript is a cumulative report which contains all TMCC credit courses in which a student has been enrolled; the grades, credits and grade point summaries; the registrar's signature and the official seal of the college. An official transcript may be obtained by the student or mailed by the college upon the student's written request. The request may be mailed, faxed or submitted in person to admissions and records. Allow three business days for processing. Unofficial copies may be obtained online using MyTMCC if a student has taken classes within the last year. A student's transcript will be withheld if there is a financial or disciplinary hold on the student's record.