6 Chapter 5: Academic Policies Refresher
Navigating Luddy’s Academic Requirements and Policies
As you progress in your Luddy education, understanding key academic policies becomes increasingly important. These policies can significantly impact your GPA, graduation timeline, and course access.
Extended X: Your Grade Replacement Option
The Extended X policy allows you to retake a course and replace the original grade in your GPA calculation:
- Eligibility: You must have received a grade lower than an A- in the original attempt
- Limitations: You can use Extended X for a maximum of 3 courses and 10 credit hours
- Process: Submit the Extended X form before the end of the second week of classes
- Important note: Both grades remain on your transcript, but only the second attempt counts in your GPA
Strategic use of Extended X can help you recover from a difficult semester, but remember it’s a limited resource.
Minimum Grade Requirements for Luddy Majors
Many Luddy courses require minimum grades in prerequisite courses:
- Most core programming courses require a C or better in prerequisites
- Some upper-level courses have higher grade requirements (B- or above)
- Your overall major GPA must be 2.0 or higher to graduate
Falling below these minimums may require you to retake courses, potentially delaying your graduation.
Registration Troubleshooting
Common registration issues and their solutions:
- Closed classes: Submit a permission request through the Luddy Student Portal
- Missing prerequisites: Contact your advisor if you believe you’ve met prerequisites through transfer credit or course substitutions
- Time conflicts: Submit a time conflict override request if you have a legitimate need to enroll in overlapping courses
- Waitlists: Join the waitlist and attend the first week of classes; many students get in from the waitlist
Pro tip: Register as soon as your enrollment appointment opens for the best chance at your preferred schedule.
Strategic Course Withdrawal
Sometimes withdrawing from a course is the best option:
- Automatic withdrawal period: Ends after the first week of classes (no record on transcript)
- Standard withdrawal period: Ends after the ninth week (W on transcript)
- Late withdrawal: Requires dean’s approval (W on transcript)
A strategic withdrawal is better than a failing grade, but too many withdrawals can signal red flags to graduate schools and may delay your graduation.
Understanding Prerequisites for Upper-Level Courses
As you move into 300 and 400-level courses, prerequisites become more critical:
- Map out prerequisite chains for your desired upper-level courses
- Be aware that some prerequisites may only be offered in specific semesters
- Plan at least 2-3 semesters ahead to ensure you can access advanced courses when needed