College isn't easy. They don't just give diplomas away at Southern Methodist. Courses are challenging, and professors are demanding. If you expect to graduate, you'll have to work hard studying, attending classes, taking exams, and writing papers.
Four years is a long time to be perfect. Most of us falter at some point along the way. Maybe calculus is your Achilles heal. Maybe you go through a bad breakup and have trouble dragging yourself to class every day for a semester. Whatever the reason, it's not hard to fall behind, and once you have, it can be tricky to catch up.
Attorney-advisor Joseph D. Lento and his Education Law Team don't believe a bad semester, or two should prevent you from finding success and going on to a rewarding career. They know the law; they know your school's rules and procedures, and they're ready to put this knowledge to work for you. The attorneys at the Lento Law Firm can't take your classes for you, but they do know all the best strategies for keeping your academic future on track. If you're facing probation or even dismissal, you owe it to yourself to find out what they can do for you.
Academic Progression at Southern Methodist University
At SMU, academic progress is defined under an academic standing policy. That policy is relatively straightforward. As long as you maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0, you're in “good” standing. If you fail to reach this mark, though, there are consequences, and these can sometimes be serious.
First, if at the end of any term, your cumulative GPA has fallen below 2.0, you are placed on Academic Probation. Probation comes with some minor restrictions. For instance, you can only take one summer course while on probation. The far bigger concern when you're on probation, though, is getting off of it. You have up to two semesters to improve your GPA. As soon as you do so, you return to good standing. However, if you don't improve to a 2.0 in this time frame, you are then subject to suspension.
Suspension lasts for at least one semester, and while you are serving that suspension, you are not allowed to transfer any credits from another institution. In other words, you can't keep working on your degree.
You can return to SMU, but only after going through a reinstatement application process. You should also know that reinstatement is not guaranteed. You'll need to be able to demonstrate to the university that you've identified what led to your failures before and that you've come up with a working plan to overcome those challenges. Should SMU deny your application, your suspension then becomes permanent dismissal. In addition, you can be dismissed if you continue to struggle after being readmitted.
Dealing With Academic Standing Decisions
Southern Methodist doesn't offer any formal means of challenging standing decisions. Such decisions are based on GPA, and that's not normally subject to review.
There are options, though, for dealing with the threat of an academic sanction.
- If your academic deficiencies are the result of extenuating circumstances, like a serious illness or a death in the family, you can apply directly to the dean of your school or college for more time to improve.
- Any time you feel you are being mistreated in class, you should report that mistreatment to your instructor's department head or to the dean of your school or college. You may be entitled to some form of grade relief.
- If you have a disability, your instructor may be required to provide educational accommodations. Students with ADD, for instance, are often entitled to more time to complete assignments. Even if your disability wasn't diagnosed when you took a class, you might still be able to appeal that course grade on the grounds that you needed those accommodations and didn't receive them.
- Some low grades are the result of academic misconduct accusations. Your professor can decide you plagiarized a paper, for example, and punish you with anything from a lower grade on the assignment to an F in the course. However, you have a right to appeal the professor's findings, the sanction, or both to the SMU Honor Council
- A few instructors still offer makeup work and extra credit to students, especially if your grade is borderline. However, you may have to ask them directly in order to get such assignments.
- Some faculty are also open to grade negotiation. They may be willing to reconsider all your work from a semester and, sometimes, in retrospect, may see that work in a new light. Alternatively, you can try making a specific argument, such as arguing that your high final exam score demonstrates you mastered the material enough to deserve a higher course grade.
Joseph D. Lento and his Education Law Team know about all of these options and others. They can review your particular situation with you and develop a plan for challenging your sanction. Then, they'll help you put that plan into action, whether that means helping you gather evidence of your academic potential, working with you to draft an appeal, or advising you on which faculty and administrators you should talk to and what you should say.
Of course, if you should ultimately find yourself suspended, Joseph D. Lento and his Team also have experience filing formal reinstatement appeals. They know what committees look for in these documents, and they know how to make you look your best.
Premier Education Attorney-Advisor, Joseph D. Lento
Students sometimes ask: how exactly is an attorney-advisor supposed to help me with academic issues? It's a fair question. It's not like you're on trial for shoplifting. You need help with your grades. That's normally a matter of studying harder or finding a tutor.
As the information on this page suggests, though, succeeding in college is often as much about navigating bureaucracy as it is about writing papers and taking exams. No one knows more about dealing with bureaucracy than attorneys, and no one knows more about dealing with educational bureaucracy than Joseph D. Lento and his Education Law Team. That team was assembled specifically to handle student conduct and academic progress issues.
Joseph D. Lento and his Team are on your side. They understand that no one is perfect, and they're committed to the idea that a few mistakes shouldn't keep you from earning your degree and going on to a successful career. They'll fight to make sure you're treated fairly and that you get all the rights you deserve. You've worked hard to get to this point. Don't let that hard work go to waste. To find out more about how you can fight dismissal, contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-555-3686, or use our automated online form.
