What is Academic Probation?

Nobody ever said getting an education would be simple. Occasionally, a student will take a particularly difficult course, resulting in a significant drop in his or her overall grade point average (GPA). If your grade point average falls below the school’s minimum standard, you may be placed on academic probation. While academic probation may appear to be a punishment, most colleges see it as a buffer between rehabilitation and expulsion.

Because actual GPAs have not yet been established, almost all incoming students receive an academic break during their first sessions. However, once a student has entered his or her second session, there are minimum academic progress requirements that must be met in order to remain in good standing with the school. Freshmen students may be required to have a GPA of 1.00, which equates to a D+ average. As the student progresses through the grades, the requirement may be increased to a 1.5 or 2.0 GPA. Academic probation will almost certainly be triggered if you fall below those minimal academic requirements.

Academic probation is, in reality, treated as a wake-up call for both instructors and students. Retaking difficult courses to improve a sagging GPA may be suggested the student’s faculty adviser. Intensive tutoring and personal counseling may be provided the college as additional services. If the coursework continues to be too difficult, the student may have to reconsider his or her major. Academic probation does not prevent a student from enrolling in the following semester, but it may limit the courses available.

Academic expulsion is often the alternative to academic probation, which no one wants. While a student is on academic probation, he is still protected the institution and can take steps to improve his situation. After academic expulsion, a student’s options may be limited to enrolling in a different school, taking a temporary sabbatical, or pursuing a career path that does not require a diploma or degree. This is why many colleges devote so much time and effort to helping students who have been placed on academic probation. It would be upsetting to lose the student forever because of a temporary academic setback because the institution accepted him or her for qualities other than academics.

Academic probation is almost always self-contained. The student has a set amount of time to raise his or her grades to a certain grade point average or other academic progress indicator. If the student succeeds, full rights are restored, and the student is free to pursue the program of his or her choice. If the student’s performance continues to be poor, the school may ask him or her to transfer to another college or pursue other interests.