MEMO 

Dean of 

Graduate Studies 

SIR EET ADDRESS 

Maggie Benston Student 

Services Centre 1100 

Burnaby BC V5A 1S6 

Canada 

MAI I. INC ADDRESS

8888 University Drive 

Burnaby BC V>A 1S6 

Canada 

SFU

S.12-81

Senate

TEL

FROM Wade Parkhousc, Dean, Graduate Studies Q

RE GGR 1.3.6 Admission as a Qualifying Student and 1.3.8

Conditional Admission

[GS2012.01][GS2012.02]

DATE 23 April

2012

[GS2012.01KGS2012.02l

At its meeting of 6 February 2012, SGSC reviewed and approved the revision to GGR

1.3.6, Admission as a Qualifying Student, and GGR 1.3.8, Conditional Admission,

and is recommending it to Senate. This gives rise to the following motion:

Motion:

That Senate approves the changes to GGR 1.3.6 Admission as a Qualifying Student

and GGR 1.3.8 Conditional Admission

Effective Date is January 2013

encl.

Senators wishing to consult a more detailed report of curriculum revisions may do so by going

to Docushare: https://docushare.sfu.ca/dsweb/View/Collection-12682

If you are unable to access the information, please call 778-782-3168 or email

shelley gair(q)sfu.ca.

SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

ENGAGING THE WORLD

Revision of GGR 1.3.6 Admission as a Qualifying Student and GGR 1.3.8 Conditional

Admission

Over the last few years, it has become clear that faculty have been uncertain as to whether an

applicant should be recommended for qualifying or conditional admission, and as a result, the

two admission categories have been used interchangeably. These revisions make it clear when it

is appropriate to recommend admission as a qualifying student and when a conditional admission

is more appropriate. The revisions also clarify the nature

of the courses required under each

admission category.

Specific Changes:

1) The category of Qualifying Admission will be used solely for those admissions where the

applicant is required to take undergraduate courses only. Students admitted under the

designation 'qualifying'will not be permitted to take graduate courses and as such will only

subsequently be considered for admission to a regular master'sprogram.

2) The category of Conditional Admission will be used in cases where the applicant is required

to take specific graduate courses and obtain specified grades in the first one or two semesters of

the graduate program. The student must fulfill the conditions in order to continue in the graduate

program. Upon completion of the conditional requirements, the conditions will be removed and

the student will be granted regular admission.

3) The use of conditional admission for students who have not completed their degree or have

not provided evidence of meeting the English language competence requirement at the time of

admission, will be discontinued. These students will be granted regular admission provided they

complete their degree and/or provide evidence of meeting the English language requirement

within a specified period of time.

GGR 1.3.6 Admission as a Qualifying Student

FROM:

Normally, qualifying students will be working either to improve cumulative grade point averages

in order to meet the minimum University requirement, or to make up deficiencies in their

backgrounds to satisfy the graduate program committee in their area of interest. An applicant

may be recommended for admission as a qualifying student when it is expected that the

admission requirements for a master's or adoctoral program can be met through the satisfactory

completion of no more than 30 units of specified courses. A qualifying student who has

completed the make-up work may then apply under 1.3.3 or 1.3.4 for admission to a master'sor

doctoral program.

The minimum University requirements for admission as a qualifying student are as follows.

a) a bachelors degree, or the equivalent

b) submitted evidence of academic ability, usually in the form of references from qualified

referees

Admission as a qualifying student does not guarantee future admission to a master's or doctoral

program unless the offer of admission states that satisfying specific requirements within a

specific period of time will result in automatic admission to the program.

Normally a student will be admitted with qualifying status for a maximum of one year (three

consecutive terms).

TO:

An academic unit may offer Qualifying admission to applicants that an academic unit is

interested in admitting to their program, who clearly do not meet the

minimum academic

requirements for admission. The applicant will normally have completed a bachelor's degree but

may have a cumulative grade point average well below 3.00, or may lack the necessary academic

background for direct admission to the program. Qualifying students will typically be working

eitherto improve their grade point average in orderto meet the minimum University

requirement, or to make up deficiencies in their background to satisfy the graduate program

committee in their area of interest. An applicant may be recommended for admission as a

qualifying student when it is expected that the admission requirements for a masters can be

completed within one year, and can be met through the satisfactory completion of between 12

and 30 units of specified undergraduate courses. In all instances, expected grades for all courses

taken as a qualifying student must be established at the time of admission in order for the

qualifying student to be considered for regular admission to the degree program. If the student

fails to achieve the required grades, either additional courses will be required or admission to the

graduate program will not be approved.

A qualifying student who has completed the make-up work may then apply under 1.3.3 for

admission to a master's program.

The

minimum University requirements for admission as a qualifying student are as follows:

a) a bachelor's degree, or the equivalent

b) submitted evidence of academic ability, usually in the form of references from qualified

referees

Admission as a qualifying student does not guarantee future admission to a master's program

unless the offer of admission clearly states that satisfying specific requirements within a specific

period

of time will result in admission to the master's program.

Normally a student will be admitted with qualifying status for a maximum of one year (three

consecutive terms).

GGR 1.3.8 Conditional Admission

FROM:

Conditional admission may be offered to an applicant who is substantially ready to undertake a

program but who has not completed all admission requirements at the time

of application. An

offer

of conditional admission will specify the remaining requirements to be met and a limited

time period within which the requirements must be met. Normally, the requirements must be

fulfilled either prior to enrolling in the program, or within the first term

of enrolment.

TO:

Conditional admission may be offered to an applicant who does not meet the minimum academic

admission requirements but who is deemed to be substantially ready to undertake a graduate

program. For example, an applicant who has completed the degree required for admission to the

graduate program, but whose academic average is slightly below the minimum required for

admission to that program, may be considered for conditional admission. An offer

of conditional

admission will specify the courses that the applicant must complete in order to be granted regular

admission. These courses must be completed no later than the end

of the first term of enrolment.

If the intention is to determine whether the student is capable of successfully completing

graduate course work, the student will normally be required to complete at least two graduate

courses and obtain a specific grade in each course. Graduate courses taken while admitted

conditionally may be applied to the student'sgraduate program requirements.