ADMISSION

ADMISSION OF CLASSIFIED STUDENTS

ADMISSION OF UNCLASSIFIED STUDENT

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

ACADEMIC ADVISING

REGISTRATION AND ENROLLMENT

CREDITS AND GRADES

EXAMINATIONS

ACADEMIC PROGRAMS

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS AND POLICIES

HONORS

ACADEMIC PROBATION, SUSPENSION, AND DISMISSAL

PROGRAMS

UNDERGRADUATE GENERAL EDUCATION CORE AND GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

TUITION, FEES, AND FINANCIAL AID

Undergraduate Education

Registration and Enrollment

Registration Procedures

Registration is open to those students officially admitted to UH Manoa by the appropriate admissions office and to students in good standing who are continuing in an approved program of study. Students who have graduated, withdrawn, or have not been continuously enrolled must complete the admission process before being permitted to register. New, transfer, and returning classified students who are admitted to UH Manoa are required to pay a nonrefundable, nontransferable tuition deposit to confirm their admitted status. Admitted students may be barred from registration until they have complied with all UH requirements, including but not limited to, medical clearances, the purchase of health insurance by nonimmigrant foreign students, and required English language placement testing. Students may also be barred from registering until they have cleared all academic or financial obligations.

Students are assigned specific appointment times in which to register. All registration activity is conducted by personal computer through the World Wide Web. The MyUH Services website at myuh.hawaii.edu provides the UH community with secure, personalized access to enrollment services such as registration. Each student’s registration time will be available through MyUH Services approximately two weeks before registration.

Information on registration procedures is contained in the online Guide to Registration at manoa.hawaii.edu/records/register/guide.html/, which includes registration dates and instructions. The Guide to Registration is updated shortly before registration begins each fall and spring semester. The listing of course offerings with up-to-date class location and meeting times is found at the Check Class Availability website: www.sis.hawaii.edu/uhdad/avail.classes?i=MAN.

Unclassified students and auditors register after classified students.

Auditors

Auditors are regularly admitted students who enroll for informational instruction only, and attend classes with the consent of the instructor. Auditors receive no credit, and they do not take course examinations. The extent of their classroom participation is at the instructor’s discretion. Auditors are not generally allowed in art studios, laboratory science, mathematics, elementary and intermediate Hawaiian and foreign languages, creative writing, English composition, physical education, communicology and other performance courses, or in classes where they might displace credit students. Audit courses are entered on student transcripts with a grade of L and are subject to regular tuition and fee charges. Audit courses are not counted in determining a student’s enrollment status.

Late Registration

Students who register on the first day of instruction or later shall be assessed a late registration fee.

Maximum Registration

Undergraduate students who request enrollment in 20 or more credit hours of work in any semester must obtain special approval from their college student academic services office and process their changes during the Change of Registration period after instruction begins. Students may not register for courses in Outreach College, for credit or audit, in excess of the maximum registration allowed by the college/school in which they are enrolled unless given permission for an overload by the college/school.

Enrollment Status

For academic purposes, students may be classified as either part-time or full-time students. A full-time undergraduate carries a minimum of 12 credit hours. Undergraduate students carrying fewer than 12 credits are classified as part-time. Audited courses are not counted in determining the enrollment status of a student.

Change of College or Major

Classified students may apply for transfer from one college to another during the fall or the spring semester. Application for transfer must be made on a form supplied by the student academic services office of the college/school that the student wishes to enter. The application must be approved by the dean of that college/school. Deadlines for transfers within UH Manoa are determined by individual student academic services offices. Contact the college/school directly for deadlines. Students planning to transfer into professional schools should consult the dean’s office for deadlines. Students wishing to enter the College of Education should follow the procedures specific to that college.

Changes of college, school, curriculum, or major are not permitted during registration periods.

Unclassified students who wish to become degree candidates must complete the regular application process.

Changes in Registration

All deadlines for adding courses, partial withdrawal, or complete withdrawal are subject to change. Refer to the Guide to Registration for procedures. See “Calendar” for applicable dates.

To Add a Course

Courses may be added until the last day to register/add courses/change grading options.

To Drop a Course (Partial Withdrawal)

A course may be dropped without notation on the student’s record until the last day to drop courses. Thereafter, grades of W will be posted. The colleges/schools differ in their policies, but, in general, a course may be dropped until the last day for restricted withdrawals with the consent of the instructor and the approval of the student’s college/school dean.

After the last day for restricted withdrawals, no withdrawals are permitted except for unusual or extenuating circumstances beyond the control of the student. These withdrawals require the consent of the student’s college/school dean, and consent may be given only after the dean consults the instructor.

If students do not officially complete the withdrawal procedure, an F or NC, as appropriate, may be awarded by the instructor in place of a passing grade.

Complete Withdrawal

Students occasionally find, for a wide variety of reasons, that they are unable to complete the semester and need to withdraw completely from the university. Students should note that once school starts, they have incurred a financial obligation to the university. Withdrawing completely from UH Manoa does not release the student from his or her financial obligations.

Prior to the first day of instruction, no course registration will appear on their records, and the students will incur no financial obligation for tuition and fees.

From the first day of instruction through the last day to drop courses, students withdrawing completely from UH Manoa will have a withdrawal action noted on their records. No courses will be listed for that semester.
After the last day to drop courses, students withdrawing completely from

UH Manoa will receive a W grade for each course on their record.
After the last day for restricted withdrawals, students are not allowed to withdraw except in unusual or extenuating circumstances beyond their control. Withdrawing after the deadline to withdraw requires petitioning for approval from the student’s college/school dean. Students who receive approval will receive a W grade for each course on their record.

To apply for a complete withdrawal, students should see the student academic services office of their college/school. Once the student receives approval to withdraw, the student must obtain all signatures as indicated on the forms and submit the completed forms to the UH Mânoa Cashier's Office.

Complete withdrawal does not release the student from his or her financial obligations to the university. The refund schedule for withdrawal is noted in both the “Tuition, Fees, and Financial Aid” section of this Catalog and in the Guide to Registration.

When withdrawing, a classified undergraduate student may choose to apply for a leave of absence. Leave of absence forms are available through the student academic services office of the student’s college/school and require approval by the college/school dean. Students who do not obtain a leave of absence must apply for readmission by submitting the UH System Application Form to the Office of Admissions before the specified deadline and must be readmitted before they are able to register.

Automatic Withdrawal

Retroactive Withdrawals

Retroactive withdrawals are partial or complete course withdrawals processed after the semester has ended. UH Manoa is obligated to insure the integrity of the transcript as an historical document, which must reflect the actual history of a student’s experience at UH Manoa. Because of this, the student who is requesting a retroactive withdrawal will need to present a convincing case and provide relevant documentation that supports the existence of circumstances beyond their control that prevented them from initiating the withdrawal request in a timely manner. Any request submitted two or more years after the course ended will not be reviewed. Should a retroactive withdrawal be approved, the action will result in the grade being changed to a W. Tuition refunds will not be considered and any academic action applied for that semester will remain on the student’s record.

If you were a financial aid recipient during the semester in which you are seeking a withdrawal, be sure to check with Financial Aid Services to determine whether this will result in a financial obligation or future ineligibility for financial aid.

Credits and Grades

Work accomplished by students is usually recognized in terms of credit hours, grades, grade points, and grade point averages.

Students must complete a minimum of 120 (45 upper division (300+ level)) credits and have a minimum of a C (not C-) average (minimum GPA of 2.0) to earn a baccalaureate degree. Colleges, schools, and degree programs have specific requirements. Students should check with their college/school advisor.

Credit Hours

Credit hours (or credits) for course work are determined on a semester or semester-equivalent basis for work satisfactorily accomplished. Credit hours granted for specific courses are listed in this Catalog and the Check Class Availability website each semester.

Grades

Student achievement is designated by the following grades: A+, A, A- (excellent), B+, B, B- (above average), C+, C, (average), C-, D+, D, D- (minimal passing), F (failure), CR (credit), NC (no credit), I (incomplete), and L (audit). A grade of I is given to a student who has not completed a small but important part of a semester’s work if the instructor believes that the incomplete was caused by conditions beyond the student’s control. Each student receiving a grade of I should consult his or her instructor promptly to determine the steps to be taken and the deadline to complete the course work for changing the grade of I to a final grade. The designated November and April deadlines (see the “Calendar”) refer to the dates instructors must report adjusted grades. Student deadlines for completing their course work must be adjusted accordingly.

An instructor recording a grade of I on the final grade sheet will also record the grade that will replace the I if the work is not made up by the deadline; that grade is computed on the basis of what grades or other evidence the instructor does have, averaged together with Fs or zeros for all incomplete work (including the final examination, if it has not been taken). If the work is completed prior to the deadline, the instructor will report a change of grade, taking the completed work into consideration. If the instructor does not submit a grade to replace the incomplete, the grade of I will be replaced by an F or an NC (as appropriate) as of the April or November deadline. All grades of I must be cleared by a student's college prior to graduation.

Credit/No Credit Option

The credit/no credit option encourages students to broaden their education by venturing into subjects outside their fields of specialization without risking a relatively low grade. The CR designation denotes C (not C-) caliber work or better. However, students should be aware that some colleges and many graduate and professional schools evaluate CR as C and NC as F. The same is true of some employers and scholarship awarding agencies.

Certain courses may be designated as mandatory CR/NC. In addition to any such mandatory CR/NC courses, no more than 40 credit hours of CR may be counted toward the degree. Neither CR nor NC is computed in the grade point average. The CR/NC option must be exercised during the registration period. The CR/NC option is limited to elective courses; this option is not allowed for any course taken to fulfill a UH Manoa undergraduate general education, college/school, or department nonelective requirement, with the exception of those courses offered for mandatory CR/NC.

Grade Points

Grade points for each credit hour received in a course will be computed as follows:

Students entering as undergraduates are not given grade points for work done outside UH Manoa.

Grade Point Averages

Grade point averages (GPA) are determined by dividing the total number of grade points by the total number of credit hours for which a student has received letter grades (excluding I, NC, CR, W, or L).

The semester GPA is calculated on any one semester's credits and grade points. The cumulative GPA is calculated on all such work taken at UH Manoa.

“Repeatable” Courses

Some courses are designated “repeatable” in the Catalog and can be taken for credit a limited number of times, as indicated by the course description.

Students may take “repeatable” courses as many times as allowed by the Catalog description. For these courses, all grades are permanently recorded on the transcript and impact the GPA. Students can count up to the designated limit of credits toward degree requirements.

When students take “repeatable” courses beyond the designated limit, grades continue to be recorded on the transcript, but those grades do not impact the GPA and the credits are not counted toward degree requirements.

All courses that are not designated “repeatable” can only be taken for credit once. This means that only one set of credits (i.e., 1 credit for a 1-credit course; 3 credits for a 3-credit course, etc.) can count toward degree requirements, even if you repeat the course.

UH Manoa will not provide financial aid for a course that is not listed as repeatable in the course description or if a student repeated the course more than the number of times listed in the course description. Financial aid recipients who are repeating courses should see the Financial Aid Services Office with any questions.

Repeating Failed Courses

Students who receive an F or NC earn no credits. Students may repeat any course in which they received an F or NC for that semester. For courses taken as a repeat, the last grade received for the course shall be included in the student's cumulative GPA. The grade from the previous attempt shall be excluded from the GPA. Grades for each attempt are permanently recorded on the transcript.

Repeating Courses with Grades of C-, D+, D, or D-

Students who receive grades of C-, D+, D, or D- earn the credits for that course. Students may repeat any course in which they received a grade of C-, D+, D, or D-. For courses taken as a repeat, the last grade received for the course shall be included in the student's cumulative GPA for that semester. The grade from the previous attempt shall be excluded from the GPA. Grades for each attempt are permanently recorded on the transcript. Only one set of credits (i.e., 1 credit for a 1-credit course; 3 credits for a 3-credit course, etc.) can count toward degree requirements. Students should check with their academic advisor on repeating courses that they have already received a minimal passing grade.

For students who receive financial aid repeating courses in which they received a grade of C-, D+, D, or D-, their enrollment status may not include the repeat course and may affect the amount of aid received. Students should check with the Financial Aid Services Office on repeating courses that they have already received a minimal passing grade in regards to their eligibility for financial aid.

Repeating Courses with Grades of C or Higher

Students who have already received a grade of C or higher for a course that is not designated as "repeatable" may repeat it only with the permission of the instructor or of the department offering the course. Grades for each attempt are permanently recorded in the transcript, but only the first grade (not the repeat) is included in the GPA. Only one set of credits (i.e., 1 credit for a 1-credit course; 3 credits for a 3-credit course, etc.) can count toward degree requirements.

For students on financial aid, repeating courses in which they received a passing grade, their enrollment status will not include the repeat course and may affect the amount of aid received.

Duplicate Credits

Students can earn only one set of credits (i.e., 1 credit for a 1-credit course, 3 credits for a 3-credit course, etc.) for courses that are equivalent or comparable in content. Examples include:

• Cross-listed courses (e.g., BIOL 402 and MBBE 402)
  
• Transfer equivalencies (e.g., ZOOL 141 and PHYL 141, ENG 255 and ENG 271)
  
• Different levels of the same material (e.g., CHEM 151 and CHEM 161)
  
• Equivalent credits earned through exams, such as AP, IB, CLEP, etc.
  

Backtracking

“Backtracking” refers to taking either a prerequisite course or the lower level course in a tracked sequence concurrently with or after a more advanced course. Examples include:

• Completing Korean 211 and then taking Korean 102, its prerequisite
  
• Completing Japanese 202 and then taking Japanese 101, a lower level
  
• Taking Math 432 and then taking Math 431, a two-semester sequence that must be taken in order
  

If students choose to backtrack, credit is not awarded for the lower-level/prerequisite course, and although the grade is recorded in the transcript, it does not impact the GPA. In some cases, students may backtrack with the express permission of the student’s college/school academic services office.

Excess Credit Policy

A student who by the end of any semester has earned 24 credit hours beyond those required for graduation and has fulfilled all specific program and UH requirements may be graduated by action of the student’s college/school.

Grades

Grades are available through the MyUH Services one week after the final examination period each semester. Grades for courses taken through Outreach College do not follow this schedule.

Examinations

Course Examinations

Final examinations are required in all undergraduate courses (except writing courses, directed reading, creative arts, research, seminars, internships, and field experiences) and must be taken during the scheduled examination period. No examinations (other than laboratory tests and short quizzes) are allowed during the two calendar weeks before the last day of instruction. Take-home final exams may be distributed at any time but may not be required to be turned in before finals. The schedule of final examinations is available at manoa.hawaii.edu/undergrad/schedule/.

Language Courses

Students who plan to continue the study of a language begun elsewhere must take a placement test to determine the course in which they should enroll.

For specific regulations governing courses that native or bilingual speakers may take for credit, students should consult the department chairs of European languages, East Asian languages, Hawaiian language, or Indo-Pacific languages.

Advanced Placement Examination

The Advanced Placement examinations are administered in high schools by the Educational Testing Service for the College Entrance Examination Board for students who have completed specific college-level courses in high school. Students should consult the Office of Admissions for the most current UH Manoa credit granting policy.

Credit by Examination

Classified students who wish to earn credit by examination for basic courses should check with the department offering the course. They must present evidence that they have a mastery of the content of the courses (but have not received college credit); must apply, with department approval, to the dean’s office by the specified deadline; and must pay the current fee. Applications are available in the college/school student academic services office. A comprehensive examination designed to serve as the scholastic equivalent of the course is given to the student. Courses passed by examination do not carry grades or grade points.

Recognition of International Baccalaureate

UH Manoa recognizes the international baccalaureate for course credit. Students should submit higher-level examination scores to the Office of Admissions. Course credit is granted for acceptable scores. Contact the Office of Admissions for more information.