Academic Amnesty

Students previously enrolled in any Rutgers undergraduate unit, with a record of poor academic performance, including a cumulative grade point average below 2.000 and five or more consecutive years of hiatus, who are seeking to complete a degree at Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), may apply for Academic Amnesty.

To qualify for amnesty eligible students must demonstrate academic proficiency by meeting the following requirements: students must complete 12 new degree credits of coursework with a grade-point average (GPA) of 2.500 or better within a single academic year from active reenrollment. Within that first year of amnesty reenrollment, students are limited to no more 15 credits in a fall or spring semester, and no more than 8 credits in a Summer Session. Students who wish to pursue Academic Amnesty should meet with the associate dean of academic programs.

If Amnesty is granted, a transcript adjustment is applied to the student's record creating a new GPA based only on coursework completed since active re-enrollment. Credit for any prior Rutgers coursework completed with grades of D or better, will count toward degree completion, but these prior grades will no longer be calculated into the GPA.

In other words, successful Amnesty students will only keep prior degree credits earned with grades of D or higher, and the GPA will include only grades earned after the point of Amnesty re-enrollment.

Eligibility

Only students with a hiatus of 5 or more consecutive years from Rutgers University and a cumulative GPA below 2.000 may apply.
Prior to being awarded Amnesty, students must demonstrate academic proficiency by completing 12 new Rutgers degree credits with a cumulative GPA of 2.500 or higher, within one academic year from the date of enrollment ( The 12 credits must be completed in consecutive Fall and Spring semesters, plus one summer session immediately before or after the first term.)

Conditions

All students, regardless of original school of enrollment within Rutgers, who will be re-enrolled in the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, must satisfy all SEBS requirements (Core Curriculum, Major, Degree Credits, and Experiential Learning) for degree completion and comply with all SEBS academic standards. Students must follow one set of SEBS core course requirements and major requirements from a single Rutgers University – New Brunswick Undergraduate catalog. Students must consult with their Undergraduate Program Director in the major and the Associate Dean overseeing Scholastic Standings to determine the appropriate catalog and program of study prior to taking new courses.
Proficiency requirements must be satisfied within one academic year from the date of first amnesty-eligible re-enrollment. The proficiency GPA standard of 2.500 or higher will be based on the first 12 completed credits. Withdrawing from a semester does not increase the amount of time an Amnesty candidate has to complete the proficiency requirements.
If Academic Amnesty is awarded, regardless of previous accumulated credits, all students must complete a minimum of 30 graded degree credits in residence at Rutgers–New Brunswick for degree completion. Proficiency course work completed at Rutgers–New Brunswick may be counted toward residency.
Once Amnesty is awarded, students will not be eligible to use the SEBS Repeated Course Policy for any subsequent grades of D or F.
Students may apply for Academic Amnesty once. Once Amnesty has been granted, students may not, at a later time, ask for Amnesty to be rescinded or modified. For example, students granted Academic Amnesty may not later request that grades from courses taken prior to re-enrollment, with a grade of D or higher, be computed in the GPA.

If Academic Amnesty Is Approved

All previous Rutgers grades of F will be "E-credited". The prefix E on a course credit indicates that no credit is earned toward the degree and no grade computed in the cumulative GPA.
All previous grades of D or better will be "J-credited". The prefix J on course credits indicates that those credits are earned toward the degree, but the grade is not computed in the cumulative GPA. J-credited courses may be used to fulfill major, minor, and general education degree requirements.
If the student's major requires a grade of C or higher in a course, where the student previously earned a D grade, the student must repeat the course. In such cases, an "E-prefix" will be applied to the D grade, and only the new grade will calculate into the cumulative grade point average.

If Academic Amnesty Is Not Approved

Upon review of Amnesty Requirements, candidates who have not met the conditions to be approved, must still meet the scholastic standings standards of academic progress for the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences.

For More Information

For more information on eligibility and how to apply for Academic Amnesty please contact the SEBS Office of Academics Programs or email scholasticstanding@sebs.rutgers.edu.