Academic warning or drop status

Students are considered in good standing if they have met minimum performance criteria—as judged by the cumulative GPA and major GPA—and they are progressing toward a timely completion of their degree requirements.

Students may access their posted grades online, generally one week after the end of finals. An academic status of "under review" will be displayed until the college has reviewed academic standing for all students.

All LAS students on academic warning or drop status after academic progress reviews will be notified via email. Students who do not receive this email message should contact LAS Student Academic Affairs.
 

Academic warning

Academic warning status, formerly known as academic probation, serves as a notice that poor academic performance or failure to complete requirements in a timely fashion may jeopardize future enrollment status at and graduation from the University of Illinois.

Academic warning levels identify a specific grade-point average which students are expected to earn in their next semester of enrollment on a minimum of 12 graded credit hours. Students placed on academic warning often are required to enter into an advising agreement that stipulates specific requirements they must meet in the next term of enrollment.

If students achieve a GPA level required by their academic warning level, but their cumulative and/or major GPA(s) remains below 2.00 and they are not deficient in meeting other academic eligibility and progress requirements, they will be approved to continue on academic warning status, until such time as they have achieved good standing.

As long as students are on academic warning status, they may elect the credit/no credit grading option for only one course in a semester. Academic warning status may not be cleared by attendance at another institution. Transfer work that averages below a C level may result in a student being placed on academic warning in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences if the combined (university and transfer) GPA does not reflect at least a 2.00 standing. The academic warning rules are listed below. Students may also refer to the Student Code.

A student may be placed on (or similarly, removed from) an academic warning status at any time that the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences judges that the student's scholastic record warrants such action.

Rules for academic warning

Beginning freshmen
  • Code 1A A beginning freshman who does not earn at least a 2.00 (C) university GPA in the first semester is placed on a 2.00 academic warning for the next term in which that student is registered.
  • Code 1G, 1P A beginning freshman may be placed on a college-determined academic warning level assigned at grade audit.
Students other than beginning freshmen
  • Code1A A student whose cumulative University GPA is 2.00 or better and who does not earn at least a 2.00 average in any semester or summer session is placed on a 2.00 academic warning for the next term in which the student is registered.
  • Code 1B A student whose cumulative University GPA is 1.75-1.99, inclusive, is placed on a 2.25 academic warning.
  • Code 1C A student whose cumulative University GPA is less than 1.75 is placed on 2.33 academic warning.
  • Code 1G, 1H, 1P, 1T College-determined academic warning levels assigned at grade audit.
     

Academic drop

Drop rules are based on university semester GPA, university cumulative GPA, or combined all-university cumulative GPA and transfer GPA (used only if the transfer average is below 2.00). The applicable GPA will depend on the student's current status and whether the student has completed work elsewhere. These drop rules may be waived when the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences judges that the student's scholastic record warrants such action.

  • Code 17 A student who fails to earn at least a 1.0 (D) University GPA in any academic semester (not including summer session) will be dropped.
  • Code 17 A student on academic warning who fails to meet that warning level will be dropped, unless they has achieved at least a 2.00 or better university GPA for that semester, and their cumulative GPA is at least a 2.00. 
  • Code 18 A student who fails to make satisfactory progress toward a degree or who fails to complete the conditions of admission or continuation will be dropped.

Only students dropped under Code 17 may appeal a drop status (see below).
 

Appealing an academic drop status

Students who are dropped from the college for academic deficiencies are informed of this action in official correspondence from the college. Students who are eligible to appeal this drop status (Code 17) will be explicitly informed of this option and given information about the process and deadline. Only written statements of appeal are accepted by the Faculty Committee on Academic Standards (2002 Lincoln Hall). The committee reviews appeals during a limited time and late appeals cannot be reviewed.

Decisions of the faculty committee are final, and there is no appeal in the college beyond that body. Appeals at other times are heard strictly at the discretion of the associate dean of LAS Student Academic Affairs. Personal interviews with the student are generally not available, but may be initiated by the committee or the associate dean under highly unusual circumstances. Decisions of the committee and the associate dean are final.

Students who have been dropped and re-enter in the preceding semester, or whose academic records show deficiencies so severe as to create a doubt of degree completion, are placed on "special drop" status (Code 18) and are not permitted to appeal. Some students are furthermore denied any additional consideration for re-entry to LAS.