Academic Standing

Academic standing depends on several factors which include the number of credits a student has passed, the grade point average achieved during a particular session (sessional grade point average), or the overall grade point average (cumulative grade point average).

Year Level and Student Progress

Students progress toward a degree in the Faculty of Health is measured in terms of the number of credits passed (or earned) rather than years of study completed. The year level includes transfer credit. Year 4 applies to students in honours programs only.

Faculty of Education courses taken by students coregistered in the Faculty of Education are not included in Faculty of Health year levels.

Honours Standing Grade Point Average Requirement

Students who have completed less than 84 earned credits whose cumulative grade point average is below 5.00, may continue in a Faculty of Health Honours degree program provided you meet the year level progression requirements as follows:

Limited Additional Credits for Bachelor Degree Program

Students in a bachelor program who have passed 90 credits in accordance with Faculty and program requirements, but whose cumulative grade point average is below 4.00 may attempt to raise their average to 4.00 by taking up to 12 additional credits, to a maximum of 102 credits. These courses must be above the 1000 level and must be taken at York University.

Senate Policy on Repeating Passed or Failed Courses for Academic Credit

1. a) Students are allowed to repeat a passed or a failed course once for academic degree or certificate credit. Students should note that course availability and space considerations may preclude the possibility of repeating a course in the session they choose.

b) When a student is allowed to repeat a course for academic degree or certificate credit, the second grade will be the grade of record and the only grade calculated in the student’s grade point average (major, cumulative, sessional and overall). A course can be credited only once towards satisfaction of degree or certificate academic credit requirements.

c) The record of both the first and second time the course was taken will appear on the student’s transcript, with the first course designated as “No Credit Retained”¹.

d) The restrictions regarding repeating a passed or failed course also apply to cross-listed courses and course credit exclusions.

2. The above items do not apply to graduate degree or diploma programs, the BEd degree programs of the Faculty of Education or the JD degree program of Osgoode Hall Law School.

3. The above items do not apply to practicum courses offered in the Bachelor of Social Work degree program or practicum courses offered in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BScN) degree program.

Academic Standing Requirements for Bachelor of Science in Nursing Honours Degree Program

Students who have completed less than 120 credits and maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 5.00 may proceed in Honours.

Students at the point of completing 120 credits who have at least a cumulative grade point average of 5.00 and have a minimum grade of C (4.00) in all courses used in the major may apply to graduate or continue in the BScN Honours if requirements are not met.

Entry/re-entry. Students who attain the 5.00 cumulative grade point average prior to completion of 90 credits and have fulfilled the entry requirements may apply for entry/re-entry to the program. Students who have not attained the 5.00 cumulative grade point average at the point of completing 90 credits, will be ineligible for the program. No extra courses may be taken in a subsequent session in an effort to raise the grade point average. All requests for re-entry to the BScN are subject to School of Nursing approval. Some programs may have limited entry. Students may submit a change of degree request to enter/re-enter the program to the School of Nursing. All students who enter/re-enter the BScN program must follow the requirements of the program in place at the time of entry/re-entry.

Faculty transfers. Students from other Faculties may submit a Faculty or Degree Change Request to enter the program to Student Client Services.

Failure to maintain academic standing. Advising recommended. Please refer to the Academic Penalties section which contains information on program warning, program warning conditions, required withdrawal, reactivation after required withdrawal, debarment warning and debarment warning conditions.

Academic Standing Requirements for Visiting Students

Individuals who wish to enrol in undergraduate credit courses, but who do not intend to complete a degree or a certificate may be admitted to York as a visiting student (see the Admissions section for more information). There are three categories of visiting students:

1. those who hold an undergraduate degree (three-year bachelor's degree minimum) from an accredited university/university-level institution;
2. those who do not hold an undergraduate degree but wish to enrol in York courses to fulfill the academic, upgrading or professional development requirements of a professional designation;
3. those who are currently attending another recognized university and wish to take York courses on a letter of permission issued by their home institution.

Grade Point Average (GPA) Requirement

Students in categories a) and b) whose overall cumulative grade point average (OCGPA) falls below 4.00 on at least 24 credits attempted will not be allowed to enrol in any subsequent session as visiting students. Students who are not permitted to re-enrol must apply for re-admission through the Admissions Office.

Note: repeated course legislation does not apply to visiting students but only to academic degrees and certificates. Therefore, all courses attempted or taken will count in the OCGPA.

Credit Limits

Students in category b) who have maintained an OCGPA of 4.00 throughout their studies and who have completed 30 credits will not be allowed to enrol in subsequent sessions and must either reactivate to proceed as visiting students or may choose to apply for admission to a degree or certificate program.

1. It should be noted that when a course is repeated, the first instance of the course being taken and the grade that was awarded will continue to appear on the transcript with the designation NCR (No Credit Retained) added as a qualification beside the grade. The transcript legend will explain that the NCR designation means that neither the course credit nor grade have been included in the calculation of the student’s grade point average.