Standards and Policies

From our Academic Integrity policy to the Withdrawal Policy. This is where you will find the details about our standards and policies.

Pitt Business Academic Integrity Policy

For BSBA students, academic standing is reviewed at the end of the fall and spring semesters. As a result of this review, students are assigned one of the following academic standing codes:

Good Academic Standing

Students remain in good academic standing as long as they maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 in all courses taken at the University of Pittsburgh.

The cumulative GPA includes all courses taken on a letter-grade basis at all campuses of the University of Pittsburgh (as well as “college in high school” courses taken through the University of Pittsburgh).

Academic Probation

Any student who has a cumulative GPA below 2.0 at the end of the fall or spring semester is placed on academic probation. Notice of probation is emailed to the student’s University of Pittsburgh email address.

Academic Suspension

An academic suspension from the School of Business prohibits students from enrolling in courses at the University of Pittsburgh for one calendar year. Students will not be awarded transfer credit for courses taken at other colleges or universities while on academic probation or suspension.

Full-time students

If a full-time student on probation’s cumulative GPA remains below 2.0 after one term of additional enrollment, the student is subject to suspension or dismissal. Students on probation who enroll and then withdraw from all courses are still subject to suspension for not raising their cumulative GPA to 2.0 after an additional term of enrollment.

Part-time students

If, after attempting 12 additional credits, a part-time student on probation’s cumulative GPA remains below 2.0, the student is subject to suspension or dismissal.

Appealing a Suspension

Within ten days of being notified of a suspension, students can appeal that suspension by writing an email describing any extenuating circumstances to the Director of the Tafel Center for Student Success. If that appeal is denied, students can appeal for a second and final time by writing an email describing extenuating circumstances to the Associate Dean for the Undergraduate Program.

Reinstatement after the First Suspension

Near the end of the calendar year of suspension, suspended students are eligible to apply for reinstatement to the School of Business with a letter to the Director of The Tafel Center for Student Success presenting a rationale for reinstatement. Reinstated students return on academic probation and have one term of enrollment to raise their cumulative GPA to 2.0 or be subject to a second suspension or dismissal.

Second Academic Suspension

If suspended a second time, a student is not eligible for reinstatement for five years. After five years, suspended students are eligible to apply for reinstatement to the School of Business with a letter to the Associate Dean for the Undergraduate Program presenting a rationale for reinstatement.

Academic Dismissal

Dismissal from the School of Business is permanent and dismissed students are not eligible for reinstatement.

A School of Business student may repeat a required Arts & Sciences course (including calculus, statistics, microeconomics, macroeconomics and composition), a business core requirement and/or a business major requirement once. If the minimal acceptable grade is not earned after repeating the course, the student may have to transfer out of School of Business Undergraduate Program, or select a different business major if the unsuccessfully repeated course is required for the business degree.

In the calculation of the major and overall grade point averages, the grade earned in the second taking of a course replaces the grade earned in the first taking; however, the grade earned in the first taking of the course, remains on the student’s transcript with a notation indicating the course was repeated.

Early each term, students whose grades in the previous grading period indicate outstanding achievement are recognized in the Dean’s List.

Full-Time Students
Full-time students (those enrolled in 12 or more credits) who earned 12 credits in the preceding term (not including courses taken on the Satisfactory/No Credit option) with a term GPA of at least 3.5 and no grade lower than a C are placed on the Dean’s List.

Part-Time Students
Part-time students (those enrolled in fewer than 12 credits) who earned 12 credits in previous terms (not including courses taken on the Satisfactory/No Credit option) with a GPA of at least 3.50 and no grade lower than a C are placed on the Dean’s List. Part-time students are evaluated for Dean’s List recognition by determining if 12 credits on the letter-grade system have been completed since the last Dean’s List recognition. If 12 credits have been completed, the GPA for the terms in which the last 12 credits were completed is used to assess Dean’s List eligibility.

This policy applies to all courses offered by the School of Business.

A “G” grade may be assigned at the option of the instructor during the last month of the term to students who have been making regular progress but are unable to complete the work of the course by the end of the term due to extenuating personal circumstances.

An “I” grade may be assigned to students who are unable to complete an internship or independent study due to the unique requirements or circumstances of the course.

A course must be completed with the same instructor assigning the “G” or “I” grade by an agreed-upon deadline (usually within one month, but not later than one year from the end of the term). If the remaining work is not completed by the deadline, the grade will automatically change to “NG” and will no longer appear as “In-progress” on a student record. The “NG” grade will remain on the record and the student will be required to re-enroll in the course if it is needed to fulfill requirements for graduation.

The student should consult their Academic Advisor if they are considering a G grade. The student and instructor should complete the online School of Business G Grade Agreement form at least one day before grades are due at the end of the term.

Overall GPA

A cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 is required in all courses applied toward the BSBA degree.

Major GPA

A cumulative GPA of 2.25 (C+ average) is required in all courses applied toward a student’s major. A C- or better must be earned in each course applied toward a student’s major.

To qualify for graduation honors, a student must:

  1. Have attained a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25 for cum laude, 3.5 for magna cum laude, and 3.75 for summa cum laude
  2. Have completed at least 60 letter-graded credits at the University of Pittsburgh

Business courses must be taken on a letter-grade basis. In addition, courses taken to fulfill the requirements in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and calculus must also be taken on a letter-grade basis. Language classes, arts and sciences courses, and electives may be taken on a satisfactory/no-credit grade basis.

Under the satisfactory/no credit grade option, a student who does satisfactory work (C or better) receives the grade of “S” for the course and earns credit for the course. If a student does unsatisfactory work (defined as C- or lower), the student receives the grade of “NC” and does not earn credit for the course. Note that an NC grade does not factor into or affect a student’s GPA. If a student selects the satisfactory/no credit grade option, the option cannot be reverted back to a letter-grade.

The deadline to elect the S/NC grade option and submit grade option forms to the associate dean’s office of the school offering the course is the end of the fourth week of the term.

Monitored Withdrawal
Until approximately the end of the ninth week of the fall and spring terms, and at various times in the summer, depending on which session a course is taken, a student can withdraw from a course. Withdrawing results in a W on the transcript, where a letter grade would go, but the W does not affect the GPA. The W does not indicate whether the student was passing or failing the course at the time of withdrawal.

Academic advisors should be consulted about withdrawal decisions. Withdrawing from a course may cause financial aid problems due to lack of satisfactory academic progress. Students who receive financial aid should consult with the Office of Financial Aid before withdrawing.

To withdraw from a business course, please contact your School of Business Academic Advisor for assistance. To withdraw from a non-business course, please contact the school offering the course to determine the procedure to follow. Check the University Calendar for withdrawal deadlines. Withdrawal requests will not be processed after the withdrawal deadline.