Graduate Academic Policies

Graduate psychology students meeting all entrance requirements will be classified as regular graduate students. Students who do not fulfill all entrance requirements may be admitted on a provisional status until they correct the deficiency. Any such deficiencies must be removed within one calendar year of a student's admission as a provisional student. It is only in rare instances that a student will be accepted on provisional status.

Students wishing to obtain a graduate degree must maintain a consistently high academic performance throughout their program. An overall B average, i.e., 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, is required for all degrees. Only grades of "A," "B," "C" earn graduate credit. Grades of all students are recorded in the registrar's office. Grading is on the following basis:

A "UW" indicates an unofficial withdrawal. Students who register for a class but do not attend it are automatically given the grade of "UW" which will influence the grade average the same as an "F." A temporary mark of "RD" (Report Delayed) will be used in special cases of extreme hardship where an extension is warranted and approved by the dean. A student must appeal for an "RD" grade before the end of the semester. Normally, a grade incurred in one semester must be made up by the end of the first six (6) weeks of the next semester or the grade will automatically become a "W." A "W" can be made up only by repetition of the course. No grade other than an "RD" may be altered once it has been reported to the registrar's office unless an error was made in grading or recording. These changes can only be made upon written approval of the instructor, the Dean and the Registrar.

The following grades are also used in Rosemead records with special significance for the professional aspects of the programs:

Independent Studies are an integral part of the Biola University experience. An Independent Study is a course which is initiated by the student, who then works independently toward the goals and objectives outlined by the professor on the Arranged Course form. Students who are in good standing and not on probation are eligible to enroll in an Independent Study. Required courses may not be taken by independent study. Permission of the dean is required for students to take more than six (6) units of independent study and/or arranged coursework during their program.

The academic program at Rosemead is designed to prepare graduates for licensure (on the doctoral level) by the professional licensing boards of the various states. Because of the professional nature of Rosemead's program, students are required to maintain the standards of the psychological profession as defined by the American Psychological Association, the state of California and the professional psychologists who comprise Rosemead's faculty. As a part of Biola University, which serves a broad spectrum of evangelical churches, Rosemead also has both a doctrinal statement and a statement of conduct (See general information section of catalog). Prospective applicants should be familiar wit the standards. Students who do not abide by these standards or other institutional policies and procedures may be subject to probation or dismissal from the program.

A student failing to maintain the minimum grade point average of 3.0 will be placed on academic probation. The following semester, should the student not meet the minimum -cumulative grade point average (3.0), he or she will automatically be dismissed. A student cannot graduate while on probation.

A student may only be allowed a combination of two "U"s, "F"s and/or "C"s (understood to include both C+ or C-); a third "C," "U" and/or "F" brings automatic elimination from the program.

No graduate credit in psychology will be given by examination or validation. Students who possess an excellent but non-transcripted background in an area of study may, with the permission of the advisor and chair of the Committee on Academic Qualifications, validate by examination to receive a waiver for a required course. No unit credit is given fo such validation. Successful validation allows the student to take additional equivalent elective hours in the program.

All course and academic requirements must be completed within eight years for the Psy.D. and Ph.D. degrees, beginning on the date of the student's first registration for graduate study at Rosemead. Note: If the program is not completed within the eight-year limit, the student must register again as a full-time student. Requirements in Student Handbook.

The normal full-time load for a Rosemead student in psychology is 12 to 16 hours per semester, but not less than nine hours. Without the advisor's approval, a student may not carry over 16 units in any semester. Doctoral students are considered full time for a maximum of two years in the dissertation phase of their program. Part-time registration of less than nine units is permitted only with permission of the dean. Rosemead does not admit part-time students to its degree programs. For full statement on satisfactory academic progress see Academic Standards section of catalog.

Pre-internship, internship and dissertation (ABD) status students must continue to register and pay the required fees each semester appropriate to their status. Students unable to register in person for internship or ABD status will be charged a special registration fee and be registered in absentia by the Office of the Registrar. (See fee schedule.) Students in dissertation status who have completed their required units in dissertation research and all pre-internship students must register for three additional units each semester until the dissertation is completed.

Doctoral students may transfer up to 30 semester hours of applicable graduate-level courses in psychology (nine of these may be applied to master's-level courses) and/or up to 14 hours of theology and Bible applicable to Rosemead's program (nine of these may be applied to master's-level courses) from an accredited graduate school or theological seminary. Graduate courses with grades of B or above at accredited institutions are considered as acceptable on a transfer basis Practicum credit in the amount equal to one Rosemead practicum of three hours may be transferred by Psy.D. students after completion of Rosemead's practicum prerequisites. These hours will be counted toward the 30 hour transfer maximum. Practicum transfer credit will be granted only when it is shown as practicum on an official graduate transcript. Ph.D. students are required to take all 12 practicum hours while in residency. Rosemead will not evaluate non-traditional learning or non-transcripted work experience for academic or practicum credit. When students wish to use transfer credit for a required course in the Rosemead curriculum, it is their responsibility to provide documentation assuring the equivalency of course content. Competency examinations may be given to verify equivalence to Rosemead required courses. Documentation may include catalog descriptions, syllabi and other supporting materials fro the professor of record or department, as deemed necessary.

Students entering Rosemead with a minimum of 30 undergraduate units of Bible and/or Theology from accredited Christian colleges or universities are eligible for a reduction of up to 8 units of required Theology courses. To qualify for this reduction students must have earned no lower than a B- grade in the undergraduate coursework. Content of the undergraduate courses must be compatible with the Theology course(s) being waived. Reduction units will be determined by the Registrar's Office in consultation with Rosemead's Admissions and Academic Qualifications Committee.

A student who fails to register in any given semester without arranging for a leave of absence or formal withdrawal is eliminated from the program by default.

Inactive students are those who have requested and been granted a leave of absence from their program. A leave of absence may be granted upon petition for change of status if there is deemed sufficient reason for interrupting the program and intention to return to the program. Change of status forms are available from the Rosemead Office. A leave of absence must be renewed by petition each semester and may not exceed two consecutive semesters. A leave of absence longer than two semesters will require withdrawal from the program and a petition for readmission if the studen later wishes to regain active status. The committee responsible for processing readmission requests is the Admissions and Academic Qualifications Committee. Each leave of absence must receive the approval of the student's advisor and the final approval of the dean.

A person who has been terminated from Rosemead may make reapplication to the program a minimum of two years after termination. The reapplication should be in the form of a letter and include a new application form, at least two current references and any desired supporting materials. The letter should be addressed to the Rosemead Admissions Committee stating the reasons for requesting readmittance as well as any other issues deemed relevant by the applicant. The letter should directly address the causes for dismissal. The application will be considered with the regular admissions pool. The admissions committee will review the request and may take one of two actions: (A) deny the request; or (B) approve the request and refer to faculty for final approval or disapproval. The results of the faculty decision will be communicated to the applicant by the dean.

A student who has attended Biola University and has dropped out for one semester or longer will be required to file an application for readmission and pay a fee of $15. Students enrolled for any semester, but who fail to pre-register for the following semester, will be charged a $45 reapplication fee should they choose to return for that semester. Readmission requires the submission of a formal petition for readmission, action by the Admissions and Academic Qualifications Committee, and final approval of the dean. This policy is in effect for students in any status, including internship and dissertation.