Academic Standards

Academic Honesty

Pomona College is an academic community in which all members are expected to abide by ethical standards, both in their conduct and in their exercise of responsibilities toward other members of the community. The College expects students to understand and adhere to basic standards of honesty and academic integrity. These standards include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. In projects and assignments prepared independently, students never represent the ideas or the language of others as their own.
2. Students do not destroy or alter either the work of other students or the educational resources and materials of the College.
3. Students neither give nor receive assistance with examinations.
4. Students do not represent work completed for one course as original work for another or deliberately disregard course rules and regulations.
5. In laboratory or research projects involving the collection of data, students accurately report data observed and do not alter these data for any reason.

If an instructor concludes that any of the above standards has been disregarded, it is his or her responsibility to make the evidence available to the student and also to report the incident to the Dean of Students. If it is the first reported instance of academic dishonesty for that student, the instructor may handle the case, unless either the instructor or the student requests that the matter be referred to the Academic Discipline Board. If the instructor handles the matter, any academic penalty may be assigned, including failure in the course in which the infraction occurred. If the instructor believes that the infraction is serious enough to warrant withdrawal or reduction in the level of College academic honors, the matter should be referred to the Academic Discipline Board, which can make a recommendation on this issue. A student’s second offense, in whatever class it occurs, is automatically referred to the Academic Discipline Board. Suspensions or withdrawals required by the Academic Discipline Board are posted to the student’s official academic record.

Academic Standards Committee

The Academic Standards Committee meets at least once every semester to review the academic standing of students. As further described below, its responsibilities include warning those with low grade point averages or problematic rates of progress toward a degree. In more serious cases, students may be placed on academic probation, suspended, or required to withdraw from the College.

Voting members of the ASC consist of the faculty chair of the ASC plus two additional faculty members, the Dean of Students, the Senior Associate Dean of Students, the Registrar, the Dean of the Office of Black Student Affairs, the Dean of Chicano Latino Student Affairs, and the Director of the Asian American Resource Center. Supporting members of the ASC are the Dean of Admissions, the Director of Financial Aid, the Director of the Quantitative Studies Center, and the Assistant Deans of Students.

In order to continue in good standing at the College, a student must:

1. Receive at least a C- in the Critical Inquiry Seminar (ID 001) for first-year students. Those who do not are put on probation, an dwill meet with professional staff of the writing center to develop a customized support program. These students are also required to take a writing-intensive course by the end of the sophomore year, in addition to meeting the usual writing-intensive course requirement for graduation. A student may come off probation after the spring semester of the first year if grades earned that semester warrant it. 
2. Acheive at least an overall C (2.0) average each semester in courses taken under the auspices of Pomona College.
3. Maintain normal progress toward a degree with an average of four courses passed for each semester of enrollment. Students who fall behind the cumulative standard of four courses passed per semester of enrollment by more than 1.0 credits normally are put on probation. Those who fall behind by 0.75 to 1.0 credits are given a warning. For first-year students, pre-matriculation credits are not included among the credits counted toward fulfilment of this criterion, but for all other students both pre-matriculation credits and credits earned while a student is enrolled at the College are included.
4. Make suitable progress toward completion of all academic requirements, including completion of a major.

The Pomona College community thrives on classroom engagement, and students are expected to be enrolled in a full-time course load during each semester of enrollment at the College. A full-time load normally consists of 4.0 or more credits per semester, but the minimum full-time load is 3.0 credits. Students who do not achieve this minimum may be given a warning by the ASC, or may be put on probation if they fall far short of 3.0 credits or do not achieve at least a C (2.0) average in the semester. Not being enrolled full time may also affect eligibility for financial aid or campus housing. 

The ASC urges students with academic concerns or questions to seek assistance promptly from their class dean, academic advisor, other faculty, coach, or cohort or affinity group leader.

The academic progress standards are important because students have a limited number of semesters to complete their degree requirements. The College grants students who arrive as first years eight semesters (and transfer students a smaller number based on the semester they arrive); student petitions for additional semesters are approved only in rare circumstances.

Probation decisions by the ASC are not appealable, but the ASC does take into account evidence that a student has been making serious efforts to seek help and improve their status in the College. Students concerned that they may be subject to ASC action may submit a statement on their behalf, with any supporting documentation, to the ASC no later than the business day after the date on which grades are viewable by students for the prior semester.

In some cases, the ASC may place a first- or second-year student who earns a C+ (2.33) average on probation especially if the student completed fewer than four courses for that semester. Such an action facilitates the intervention and support that helps a student strengthen their academic performance. 

The following actions are among those that may be taken with respect to students whose academic records are judged inadequate. These actions do not represent a sequence that will be followed in every case. The ASC chooses the course of action that seems most appropriate.

1. Warning: This is the action most commonly taken when the academic deficiency is minor. If there is not substantial improvement the next semester, the Committee will usually take more serious action.
2. Academic Probation: This action indicates that the ASC is seriously concerned about a student’s work at Pomona. It is usually accompanied by a firm set of expectations for the next semester requiring immediate and substantial improvement of the student’s record. The ASC normally expects any academic deficiencies to be reduced or eliminated within one semester. Failure to meet these expectations may result in a suspension or required withdrawal, especially if the student earns less than a C (2.0) average for two consecutive semesters. A student on academic probation is required to meet with the Dean or Associate Deans of Students about their progress during the semester. 
3. Suspension: This action is taken when, in the judgment of the ASC, the interests of the student will probably be best served by a period away from the College, or when the ASC also believes that successful completion of the College program is likely at a later time. After the period of suspension, the ASC will review the case and may authorize the student to return to the College if there is sufficient evidence of ability and motivation to succeed. 
   Reinstated students return to the College on probation. A student who is suspended and plans to take college work elsewhere with hope of transferring the credits to Pomona at a later date is advised to secure approval in advance from the Pomona College Registrar. Credit for such courses may be applied toward a degree at Pomona, but grade points so earned may not be used to reduce grade point deficiencies incurred at Pomona.
4. Required Withdrawal: This action is taken when, in the judgment of the ASC, it appears that the student will be unable to meet graduation requirements. While it does not mean that it is impossible for the student ever to return to the College, the ASC will not look favorably on a request for re-admission unless there is strong and compelling evidence of a change in the student’s readiness to perform college work. A student will not be considered for re-admission by the ASC before a year has elapsed.

Appeals

ASC decisions are normally final. However, if there is pertinent and compelling information that was not available at the time of the decision, Suspension or Required Withdrawal actions may be appealed.

An appeal must be requested within 48 hours of notification of the ASC’s action. Since notification will sometimes reach students after they have left Claremont, the request may be made by telephone within 48 hours and should be followed up in writing and/or person.

Relevant information should be described to the Dean or Associate Deans of Students within the 48-hour period. If they agree that it constitutes new and significant evidence, an appeal will be considered by a subcommittee of the ASC, which consists of the faculty chair of the Committee, the Dean of Students, the Senior Associate Dean of Students, and the Registrar.

Quality of Work

Students are required to earn and maintain at least a C average.

The College may require the withdrawal of a student at any time if the quality and amount of work seem to warrant such action. A decision in every such case is reached by the Academic Standards Committee. A liaison between the committee and the student is provided by the dean and associate deans of students. Decisions of the Academic Standards Committee are final.

Class Attendance

Students are expected to maintain regular attendance in their classes. While there is no general College requirement, each instructor has the right to establish specific regulations regarding attendance as is best suited for the course. If a student fails to attend the first two meetings of a course, and the absences were not approved in advance by the instructor, the instructor may drop the student from the class. However, students will not automatically be dropped from a course they do not attend.

Completion of Work

To be counted as work completed in the course, all papers, reports, computer programs or projects, drawings and other assigned exercises must be turned in to the instructor by the course’s regularly scheduled final exam time each semester, unless an earlier date has been specified by the instructor.

Duplication of Coursework

Student work that receives credit in one course may not receive credit in another course. If learning in another course would benefit substantially by focusing on the same material or techniques, then the student may receive credit in each course only if his/her work demonstrates the qualities (by additional length, depth, complexity, originality, analysis, etc.) of two pieces of work.