Students who accumulate unexcused absences totaling 10 percent of the semester’s classes before the mid-term withdrawal date are administratively dropped from the class by the instructor and given a grade of “W” (withdrawal).

After the mid-term withdrawal date, students with a 10 percent absenteeism rate of unexcused absences since the beginning of the course will receive an “F” in the course.

Illness is considered an excused absence if the student has a written, signed, and dated doctor’s excuse for the illness. Funerals and business trips are excused only if the student has arranged with the instructor to make up the work before leaving for the funeral or the business trip.

Students who have a valid “add” slip to begin class after the first day of instruction will not be penalized for classes missed during the add-drop period.

A student is in academic good standing when his or her cumulative GPA is 2.00 or above. To graduate from the College of the Marshall Islands, a student must be in good academic standing. A student may not graduate while on academic probation.

A student whose cumulative GPA is less than 2.00 is placed on academic probation. Students on academic probation will be notified of their status by the Registrar’s Office and encouraged to seek counseling. A student who transfers to CMI fromanother college with a cumulative GPA of less than 2.00 is placed on academic probation. A student is removed from academic probation if his or her cumulative GPA is 2.00 or higher at the end of the semester.

Following a semester on academic probation, a student will be placed on continued academic probation if his or her cumulative GPA remains less than 2.00.

A student whose cumulative GPA is below 2.00 at the end of a semester of continued academic probation will be suspended from the College for one (1) full academic year.

CMI reserves the right to dismiss, at any time, a student whose conduct or health is such that the administration believes continuance at the College is undesirable, subject to the Board of Regents’ Rules and Regulations.

A student who has been suspended for academic reasons may appeal the decision in writing to the Dean of Academic Affairs within ten (10) working days of receiving the notification.

A student who has been suspended from the College for academic reasons may be readmitted for the semester beginning one year after the date of academic suspension. A student readmitted to CMI following an academic suspension loses eligibility for Pell Grant assistance and returns on academic probation. During the first term after readmission, a suspended student must earn a minimum semester GPA of 2.00. Failure to earn this minimum semester GPA will result in suspension for one academic year. Pell Grant eligibility will not be reinstated until the student has attained a cumulative GPA of 2.00 or higher.

Each semester the College publishes an Honor Roll recognizing full-time and part-time students with a semester GPA of 3.50 or higher:

Grades given in all credit courses indicate the quality of scholastic performance. Each letter grade earns the indicated number of “grade points” which are used to determine the “grade point average” (GPA). A student’s GPA is computed with the following formula: total grade points earned divided by total credits attempted = GPA. Only courses taken at CMI are used in computing a cumulative GPA. Both semester and cumulative GPA’s are calculated. Courses numbered below 101 do not apply toward a degree, are graded as Pass/No Pass (P/NP), and are not computed in the GPA.

In place of grades, the following symbols may be given but are not used in computing GPA:

A student may repeat a course in which he or she has earned a grade of “D”, “F”, or “NP”. Both the original and repeated course remain on the transcript, but only the most recent grade is calculated in the cumulative GPA and credit is awarded only once. If a student receives an “F” or “W” in a course required for graduation, the course must be repeated and a passing grade attained. A student will not be eligible for Pell Grant assistance for any course repeated more than one (1) time.

A grade of Incomplete (“I”) indicates that the student, for serious reasons approved by both the instructor and the Dean of Academic Affairs, has not completed all required course work by the end of the semester and has a reasonable probability of passing the course when all requirements are completed. A Report of Incomplete Work form specifies the requirements to complete the course and change the grade. The instructor shall retain the original of the form and provide the student, the Department Chair, and Dean of Academic Affairs with a copy. A grade of “I” must be converted to a passing grade by mid-term of the next regular semester after the incomplete grade was issued. A grade of “I” is removed by the instructor who assigned it, or, in exceptional circumstances, by the Dean of Academic Affairs.

A student may apply for credit by examination of appropriate CMI courses as approved by the Dean of Academic Affairs. The student must be in good academic standing and present evidence of competence in the subject to challenge the course by examination. The course may be challenged only once.

Application forms for credit by examination are available from the Office of Admissions and Records. The student must submit the application to the Dean of Academic Affairs; if the application is approved, the student is given a testing date and time. The student must pay a non-refundable credit by examination fee per course to the Business Office before the examination will be administered.

Credits for courses earned by examination will be entered on the student’s permanent record as “credit by examination,” and no grade will be awarded or calculated into the cumulative GPA. Credits so earned will not count toward the twelve (12) credits per semester requirement for full-time student classification. No more than a total of sixteen (16) semester credits may be earned by examination.

An independent study course, given for a good reason as recommended by the student’s advisor and approved by the Dean of Academic Affairs, permits a student to work independently under supervision of a faculty member. Students are expected to spend at least two (2) hours per week per credit in research for the independent study and a minimum of two (2) hours per week with the instructor. The student and instructor complete an “Application for an Independent Study” available in the Academic Affairs Office. Tuition per credit is the same as for regular courses. The course is listed on a student transcript with the prefix “Ind St” typed in before the course title, and the letter grade awarded is calculated into the cumulative GPA.

Transfer credits are accepted from regionally accredited colleges and universities with the following restrictions:

• Transfer credits must have a minimum grade of 1.70 (C-) on a 4.00 scale.
• A maximum of 30 semester or 45 quarter hours of academic credit is accepted toward a CMI associate degree.
• Transfer credit is evaluated through a course-by-course analysis. The transfer of credit is based on factors such as currency of the transfer study, applicability to the CMI program, and quality of grades.

All official transcripts are received and evaluated by the Student Services Division with the assistance of the Dean of Academic Affairs when courses are relevant and apply to a major. CMI has the right to award or deny transfer credit depending on the relevance and applicability of such credits to the total degree program. The final 12 credits in any CMI degree program must be earned at the College of the Marshall Islands.

Halfway through each semester, instructors officially evaluate the students’ work. If a student is doing “D,” “F,” or “NP” work, his or her current academic performance is considered deficient and unsatisfactory. The Registrar’s Office advises and informs each student who is deficient in a course and gives each student a mid-term deficiency notice.

Final grades will be distributed to students after the end of each academic term by the Student Services Office (Registrar).

A student who believes an error has been made in the assignment of a grade must initiate contact with the faculty member involved, the Department Chair, or the Dean of Academic Affairs by the last instructional day of the next regular semester. Failure to act within that time period disqualifies the student from further pursuit of the matter.

A Change of Grade form is available in the Registrar’s Office and must be approved by the Dean of Academic Affairs before being submitted to the Registrar’s Office.

Students fulfill catalog requirements in effect either at the time of their admission to CMI or the requirements from a newer catalog. Readmitted students, who have not attended CMI for three (3) or more years, enter the degree program under the catalog requirements specified at readmission. The complete degree requirements of only one (1) catalog must be followed. Programs are subject to change and all courses may not be available on a continuing basis. Substitutions for discontinued courses may be required and authorized by the Dean of Academic Affairs.

CMI students planning to transfer to other colleges and universities should familiarize themselves with the requirements of the colleges and fields of study of their choice. Students should obtain a catalog of the transfer institution and become familiar with its admissions and course requirements. Assistance is available from faculty advisors and counselors.