Academic Standing

Frequently Asked Questions:

My GPA last quarter was below a 1.5, what is going to happen?

Freshmen: Students whose GPA falls below a 1.5 during the Fall or the Winter of the first year will need to sign an Exit Contract from The School of Engineering.

Continuing Students: Students whose GPA falls below a 1.5 are subject to disqualification. Students who are subject to disqualification will be required to sign an academic contract to either remain in The School of Engineering or to find a new major outside of Engineering. Failure to meet all the terms of the continuing contract will result in the need to exit engineering and failure to meet the terms of an exit contract will result in the need to exit UCI or disqualification.

What is academic probation?

Academic probation means that any one of your overall cumulative GPA, quarterly GPA, engineering GPA, or upper-division engineering GPA has fallen below a 2.0. The School of Engineering will send you a letter should your quarterly GPA fall below a 2.0. This will probably be your first notification that you are on academic probation. Students that are on academic probation are given a contract to follow. Failure to satisfy the terms of the contract is grounds for disqualification from the School of Engineering and UCI. Students are strongly advised to meet with an academic counselor at the first sign of academic trouble. Problems identified early are often easily dealt with.

What is the difference between normal progress probation & academic probation?

A student who fails to make normal progress toward their degree will be placed on normal progress probation or may find themselves subject to disqualification. Several conditions will result in normal progress probation including:

  • Failure to complete UC Entry Level Writing before beginning of 4th quarter.
  • Failure to complete Lower Division writing by beginning of 7th quarter.
  • Failure to complete 12 units in any given quarter.
  • Failure to declare a major as an unaffiliated student by 90 units.
  • Failure to make progress toward the declared Engineering major.
A student who fails to meet the minimum gpa standard will be placed on academic Probation (AP). Students whose GPA falls below 2.0 quarterly, in Engineering courses, in upper-division Engineering courses, or cumulatively, will be placed on Academic Probation and are required to fulfill a probation contract. This contract is in effect for one quarter. Students who fail to meet the provisions of a probation contract are then subject to disqualification.

To remain in good academic standing a student must maintain a gpa of at least 2.0 in the quarterly, cumulative, engineering & upper division engineering grade point averages and make progress toward the degree at a satisfactory rate.

An undergraduate student normally is subject to academic probation if at the end of any quarter the grade point average for that quarter, the engineering or the cumulative grade point average, is less than 2.0.

A student whose grade point average falls below a 1.5 for any quarter, or who has two consecutive quarters with a grade point average less than 2.0 or does not make a satisfactory rate of progress, is subject to disqualification.

For more information, Engineering students should see Probation/Disqualification.