Academic Policies, Registration, Enrollment

A. Academic Standards
Academic standards at The King’s College are established to develop students who are capable of achieving their personal and professional goals and objectives. The goal of the college is to uphold academic and personal standards that are in keeping with the college’s role as a leadership institution. The King’s College faculty members are committed to teach, model and enforce the academic standards of this college in their teaching, grading and advising of students. Students admitted to King's are expected to commit themselves to the academic standards of The King's College by giving their academic performance high priority.

In order to allow students to progress in their studies at a pace that is appropriate to their particular circumstances, The King’s College offers a fall and spring semester each calendar year. The college offers summer sessions and may offer other flexibly scheduled programs.

Upon matriculation, a student is free to choose whether to take courses during one or more semesters each year. However, to maintain active enrollment status a student is required to take at least one course per semester.

Declaring a Major
Some students come to The King’s College knowing exactly what they want to study before they arrive. Others profit from a year of studies before they decide. In some programs, the students begin taking specific classes related to their major as early as their third semester of study. Students are required to declare their major before registering for their third semester.

To declare a major, a student must submit a Declaration of Major form to Student Services (forms are available from Student Services and on the student website. The appropriate Department Head will review the request and admit students in good academic standing (2.0 cumulative GPA or higher).


The college is committed to producing leaders of excellence. Therefore, all students must maintain at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA in the courses that are a part of the Common Core. In order to graduate, students much achieve a minimum 2.7 GPA (B-) in all courses specific to their major. They must also earn a grade of C or higher in all the courses taken in their major.

Students transferring from other colleges will have their transcripts evaluated to ensure that the content meets the expectations of the college. Where it does, those courses will be applied toward their major; where it does not, those courses will be applied toward elective credits. Students who wish to take classes at other colleges should get approval in advance from the Registrar in order to be sure those classes will be accepted toward their major.

B. Awards

Academic Honors
Dean’s list: Matriculated students are eligible for the Dean’s List when they earn a minimum of 15 credits with a GPA of 3.5 or above (on a 4.0 scale) in the preceding term.

Graduation Honors: Graduation honors are awarded to students with final cumulative GPA’s of 3.5 or higher. One of the following honors shall be indicated on the academic record and diploma of the graduate as applicable: “Cum Laude” for cumulative GPA’s of 3.5 to 3.74, “Magna Cum Laude” for cumulative GPA’s of 3.75 to 3.89, and “Summa Cum Laude” for cumulative GPA’s of 3.90 to 4.00.

The Wilberforce Leadership Award
Each spring one graduating student is given the Wilberforce Leadership Award by the Office of Student Development. William Wilberforce served as a Christian in the English Parliament during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Wilberforce spent over forty years fighting to bring an end to the institution of human trade. One month after his death in 1833 parliament passed a law abolishing slavery in the British Empire . The King’s College strives to impart the highest of ideals to its students. Many of these ideals are exemplified in the life of William Wilberforce. These values have been distilled into the Seven Ideals that the college seeks to pass on to all its graduates. They are: life transformation, world focused, cause centered, leadership building, idea guided, risk taking, and results oriented. This award is given to the graduate that has most exemplified these ideals during his or her time at The King’s College.

C. Registration and Enrollment
Time is set aside each semester to register for the upcoming term. The registration process is completed electronically with the help of the Student Services Center. Students may not attend classes until all tuition and fees are paid or the Office of Financial Services has approved a payment plan and received the first scheduled payment. Students are responsible to insure that they accurately complete electronic registration. Penalties incurred because of student errors are the responsibility of the student.

Permitted Academic Load
While 12 hours constitutes full-time status, the typical academic load for a semester at King's is 15 hours. To register for more than 18 hours, students must obtain permission through the Student Services Center.

Adding and/or Dropping a Course
During the first week of the semester, students may add a course through the student portal and may drop a course through Student Services. Courses dropped during the first week will not appear on student transcripts.

Withdrawing from a Course
After the add/drop period, students may withdraw from a course through Student Services. Students who withdraw before the sixth week of the semester will receive a “W” on their transcript; students who withdraw after the sixth week will receive either a “WP” (withdrawn passing) or a “WF” (withdrawn failing) based on the grade earned to that point. Please refer to “Withdrawal and Refund Policies” in the “Fees and Expenses” section of the catalog to determine whether a refund in warranted.

Failure to attend class does not constitute withdrawal. Students who fail to attend class will be subject to King's attendance policies.

During shorter terms, the add/drop period and withdrawal period will be prorated and could be as short as a single class session. Students and faculty should consult the academic calendar for these deadlines.

Auditing Course
Students may audit classes with the permission of the Registrar and the professor. Auditors receive no credit for the course and must pay the appropriate fee ($80 per course for students taking 12 credits or less and no fee for students in Good Standing taking 13 or more credits). Note: While professors are not required to grade assignments submitted by auditors, they may, at their discretion, require regular attendance and/or work to be submitted. Check with the professor for details.

Incomplete Grades
A grade of incomplete (“I”) is only given for personal emergencies (such as a serious illness, or death or serious illness in the student’s immediate family). An “I” cannot be given because course work has not been turned in or work is late or for any other reason. It is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor immediately of any situation that would cause him or her to miss assignment deadlines or examinations.

Requests for granting an “I” must be submitted in writing by the faculty member to the Registrar and must include adequate relevant documentation of the circumstances justifying the incomplete grade. The student who has been granted an “Incomplete” must complete all course requirements six weeks after the end of the semester. If a student fails to complete an exam or other assignments within the specified six-week period, his or her course grade will be calculated by assigning a zero to that exam or assignment.

Academic Transcripts
Transcripts of student records are available from the Registrar’s Office upon written request of the student. To release transcripts, student accounts must be paid in full. There is a $5 fee per transcript, which must accompany the request.

D. Class Attendance and Punctuality
Students are expected to punctually attend all regularly scheduled sessions of each course. Students who arrive late or leave early will be recorded as absent. A student who misses seven class periods for any reason will be academically withdrawn from the course with a grade of “AW” recorded on the transcript (calculated as an F in the GPA). Students who are academically withdrawn from a class will receive no refund of any fees to which they may otherwise be entitled. Absences due to personal emergencies may protect the grade students earn in a course but it does not extend the amount of days they are allowed to be absent. Students should guard their days carefully. Note: In classes that meet once a week, the maximum number of days a student can be absent for any reason is three. In classes that meet twice a week, the maximum number of days absent is six.

Academic Honor Code:
As college students, the degree of honesty and integrity employed when creating and preparing work is expected to be of the utmost quality. Dishonest preparation and submission of work assigned—and in particular, plagiarism—will not be tolerated and may lead to failure of the course and dismissal from the institution. In the MLA Style Manual (New York: MLA, 1998), Joseph Gibaldi writes that “to plagiarize is to give the impression that you wrote or thought something that you in fact borrowed from someone, and to do so is a violation of professional ethics.”

In addition, it is understood that student participation in this and all courses implies a knowledge of and agreement with the Honor Code.

E. Grading Policies

Unit of Credit
Unit of credit: The unit of credit is the semester hour. Each semester credit hour represents the equivalent of 750 minutes of instruction.

Grading Scale
The following grades and their grade-point equivalents apply:

Grade Reports
Grade reports are available online at the end of each term. The report will indicate the cumulative GPA, the grade point average earned for the semester, and any academic status such as probation or suspension.
A warning is issued at mid-term if academic work at that time endangers a student’s academic standing for the term. Any student earning a D or lower at the mid-term evaluation (in any course) will be sent a warning.

Grade appeals and/or Grade Corrections
Student complaints concerning a grade must be filed with the Office of the Registrar (in writing) within thirty days of the end of the semester. A copy of the complaint must also be sent to the instructor who reported the grade. The instructor must authorize any change in a grade issued for a course.

Grade corrections may be made solely on the basis that there was an error in the computation or recording of the grade. Under no circumstances will a grade be changed later than ten weeks after the end of a semester.
If the student’s complaint is based on alleged unfairness by a faculty member, the student may appeal to the Academic Petitions Committee. In extraordinary circumstances and at the discretion of the Provost, an independent faculty committee may be convened to adjudicate academic disputes. The decision of the faculty is final.

F. Repeating Classes
Classes in which a student scored below a C may be repeated one time. Previous grades for the class will remain on a student’s transcript. The grade for each class will be entered on the transcript. The highest of the grades for that course will be used in computing a student’s cumulative grade point average. However, both grades will count toward the term GPA in the semester the course was taken. Courses taken at other institutions will not be used in computation of King's grade points.

G. Academic Status
A student at King's is considered to be either “Good Standing” or “On Probation.” Such a determination is made on the basis of the student’s GPA for the previous semester. A student is in “Good Standing” if his or her GPA for the previous semester is greater than or equal to 2.0.

Student Classification – at the end of any given semester

Academic Probation
Any student whose Semester GPA is less than 2.0 will be placed on academic probation. Notification of this change of status is sent by the Registrar to the student and to Student Services on a date no later than the first day of the term following the term in which the probation was earned.

Students who fail to follow the restrictions of their probation will be placed on Academic Suspension. Student Services will notify the Registrar of any students who fail to follow the conditions of their probation.
Removal from Probation
Students on Probation must successfully complete 12 consecutive credits with a GPA of 2.0 or higher in order to remove themselves from Probation. These 12 credits must be completed before the next two regular (spring and fall) semesters elapse. A student on Probation may take some of these courses during a summer term, and doing this does not diminish the time allowed for completion of the full 12 credits. This policy applies both to full-time and part-time students.

Academic Suspension
Suspension from The King’s College for academic reasons is for a period of at least one regular (spring or fall) semester. Students who are suspended retain none of the privileges or security clearances of King's students. Academic suspension will occur in any of the following situations:

• A student on Probation who does not complete 12 consecutive credits with a GPA of 2.0 or higher within two regular semesters from being placed on probation
• Any student who fails to pass 32 credits after attempting 48 credits, or who fails to pass 64 credits after attempting 80 credits (including transfer credits)
• Any student on probation who fails to follow the restrictions of his or her probation.

At the end of each term, the Registrar is to notify the Provost of students whose academic performance meets the criteria for suspension. The Provost will then bring these cases to the Academic Affairs Committee for their review and recommendation.

Readmission After Academic Suspension
In order to be readmitted to King's after academic suspension, a student must petition the Office of the Registrar for reinstatement. The petition will be considered by the Academic Affairs Committee. Reinstatement may be granted at the discretion of the Committee. If the student is reinstated, he or she will be placed on probation. Should the student again meet the criteria for Academic Suspension, he or she will be dismissed from The King’s College. Dismissal is considered final.

Retention Rates
The King’s College year-to-year retention rate is 74%.

H. Study and Other Institutions
Students matriculating at The King’s College may attend another institution and have such credits acknowledged on their transcript at King's on a pre-approved basis. Approval needs to be obtained in advance using the form available from the Registrars office or Student Services. Acceptance of credit will be on a transfer basis with grades and grade points not recorded on the student’s King's record.

I. Student Responsibility
Students may confer with the Student Services staff to discuss graduation requirements, curriculum choice and order of study. However, it will always be the responsibility of the student to fulfill graduation requirements and promptly submit required forms to the Registrar’s office.

J. Exceptions to Official Policy
Exceptions to the regulations concerning the requirements for graduation are not valid unless they are approved by the Provost, the Academic Affairs Committee and the Registrar. Requests for such exceptions or for other exceptions to academic policies must be submitted in writing and become part of the student’s permanent college record.

K. Student Records and Privacy
The King’s College recognizes and desires to protect the rights to privacy of the student, to protect the student from inappropriate access to their educational data and to protect the right of the student to challenge the contents of his record(s) for inaccurate or misleading information.