Curriculum Policy

Quarter System

Courses of study at Olivet University are offered, and credit for satisfactory completion is granted, on a quarter basis.

The school year at Olivet University is divided into three regular quarters – Fall quarter, Winter quarter, and Spring quarter, and an optional Summer quarter. Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters have approximately 10 weeks of class.

The basic unit for credit earned is the quarter hour, representing one hour of class work per week for 10 weeks.

Class Attendance

Students are expected to be punctual and regular in class attendance and to accept responsibility for all assigned work. Any student who has been absent for as many as one-third of the total class sessions for a course will have failed and will be suspended from the course. Within this framework, each instructor may set his/her own class attendance policy, and will inform students of this policy at the beginning of the term.

Class sessions missed because of illness or late registration will be counted as absences, except in the case of extenuating circumstances.

Students who are ill are expected to notify their instructors and to arrange to make up any missed work.

A student who is forced to miss classes for any extended period shall notify the Office of Academic Affairs of his/her absence and the reason for it. A student who is absent from class for a period of two weeks without such notification will be considered as having unofficially withdrawn from the course and will receive a grade of "F". If the student has been unable to notify the institution for reasons beyond his/her control, he/she may be reinstated by petitioning the Academic Council.

Any student who misses an examination for a legitimate reason may be granted permission to take a "make-up" examination at the discretion of the faculty member.

Permission to give a final examination at any time other than the officially scheduled time must be obtained from the Academic Dean.

Occasionally class absences result from a field trip scheduled for another course or from an authorized co-curricular activity (i.e. athletic event, music ensembles, etc.) that falls within class hours. Such group absences do not excuse a student from obligations to regularly scheduled courses, and it is the student's responsibility to be informed concerning the work missed and to complete all requirements in a manner satisfactory to the instructor. Students who participate in co-curricular activities, which may require class absences, should regularly attend class so that absences for co-curricular activities do not lead to course failure.

Class Schedules

Schedules listing classes offered each quarter are available on the University website.

Class Work

All class work is due at the date set by the professor. Assignments will be accepted if overdue, however the grade on late work will be reduced for each day overdue, except under exceptional circumstances approved by the professor.

Auditing

Courses with seats available may be audited for no credit. Auditing is restricted to current students. Individuals not in these categories may contact the Office of Academic Affairs for other options. Auditors will pay the current audit rate plus any course fees.

Examinations

Final examinations are usually two hours in length and are to be taken at the scheduled hour during exam week. In case of illness, a student should notify the Office of Academic Affairs before the examination, if possible.

A final grade cannot be changed after it has been turned in to the Registrar, unless there has been an error in calculation or recording of the grade. Students have two weeks from the date of issuance of grades to report errors to the Registrar.

Dropping and Adding Courses

After the add/drop date for any term, students who drop a course(s) will be required to pay a $15 clerical fee for each course dropped including changing a course section. Refunds owed will be calculated based on the total amount due after the schedule adjustment has been made.

Students may officially add a course(s) with no clerical fee being charged until the specified add/drop date, after which a $15 clerical fee will be charged for each course added. Additional per hour fees owed will be calculated based on the total amount due after the schedule adjustment has been made.