SENATE ENDORSES INCREASING GPA FOR GRADUATE ADMISSION
Acting on a request from the Graduate Administrators Council, the Faculty Senate voted recently to recommend revisions to the university policy on graduate admissions standards.
At its April 18 meeting, the senate endorsed a recommendation that the minimum cumulative grade point average for regular admission to a master's program be raised from 2.5 to 2.8 (on a 4.0 scale), and that 3.0 be the minimum standard for regular admission to a doctoral program.
In a letter to senate chairman Paul Champagne, Provost Jo Ann Gora said, "The changes are requested because the university admission standard for regular admission to a graduate program is very low (2.5 undergraduate GPA) compared to the 3.0 graduate GPA required to remain in good standing as a graduate student."
The senate also voted to endorse a recommendation from the Graduate Administrators Council and Gora that a graduate student satisfaction survey be undertaken each year.
The recommendation, which was forwarded to the president, called for the survey to be pilot-tested at the end of the spring semester among students in several graduate courses. The survey would be available online in fall 2001.
"Participation will be encouraged until the implementation of the next catalog, at which time the survey will be required," said Gora, who noted that the university currently requires an undergraduate assessment survey.
"This kind of routine assessment of graduate student satisfaction will provide valuable data to individual programs," she said in her letter.
In other matters, the senate voted to continue three issues to the 2001-02 academic year: Policy for Responding to Allegations of Scientific Misconduct, Procedures for Responding to Allegations of Scientific Misconduct, and Salary Inequity.
The following have been appointed to serve as chairs of the Faculty Senate standing committees:
- Undergraduate Curriculum and Programs - Harold Wilson.
- Undergraduate Academic Policy and Procedures - Cynthia Ghaemmaghami.
- Graduate Studies - Gilbert Hoy.
- Scholarly Activity and Research - Robert Rose.
- Student Services - Deborah Bauman.
- Promotion and Tenure - Paul Champagne.
- Faculty Status and Remuneration - Fran Hassencahl.
- Nominations and Elections - Christopher Lovell.
- Administration, Finance and Academic Support Services - William Drewry.
- Library - James English.