ACADEMIC REGULATIONS
The academic regulations include the requirements which must be
fulfilled in order to graduate
with a given degree, as well as any general rules which structure
the academic experience of the
student. Such rules pertain to standards and procedures used in
determining academic standing
and progression, to methods of evaluation, registration in
courses and overall conduct of the
student. For non degree students the academic regulations for the
General programs will apply
except where additional requirements are specified.

    The academic regulations governing a student's
program shall be those in
effect at the time of initial registration at Wilfrid Laurier
University, except that when academic
regulations are changed prior to the completion of the academic
program, the student may
choose to have the new regulations apply. If the student is not
registered in any Wilfrid Laurier
University course for a period of 18 or more consecutive months,
the academic regulations in
effect at the time of re-entry to the academic program shall
apply.

 Residence Requirements for a Degree
For a General degree, all students, including those transferring
from another university, must
complete at this University a minimum of five senior credits (or
equivalent) including at least
75 percent of the minimum number of senior courses in the major.

    For an Honours degree, all students, including those
transferring from
another university, must complete at this University a minimum of
10 credits (or equivalent)
including at least five senior credits (or equivalent) in the
Honours discipline. Individual
departments may require that students complete specific courses
and/or years at this University.
Exceptions to these regulations must be approved by the Dean of
the Faculty offering the
Honours degree.

 Requirements for Additional Undergraduate Degrees
Students are permitted to register at any time in only one degree
program and, except as
provided for on pages 72, 113 and 129, will be permitted to
obtain a degree only in the degree
program in which they are registered. Students who have already
obtained an undergraduate
degree may earn an additional and different undergraduate degree
designation. Such students will
be required to complete a minimum of six credits beyond the
minimum requirements of the first
degree. If all requirements of the second degree have not been
met within the six credits,
additional courses will be required. Approval by the Dean of the
Faculty in which the second
degree is taken is required.

    A second BA (or BSc) degree will be awarded when the
student successfully
completes at least 10 additional credits (or equivalent) at this
University beyond the minimum
requirements of the first degree; at least five credits (or
equivalent) must be at the senior level.
Such a program must be structured within a discipline different
from that of the major(s) or
Honour(s) program(s) of the first degree, and must be approved by
the Dean of the Faculty in
which the second degree is taken. This regulation applies also to
transfer students with degrees
from other universities.

    Students who have graduated with a General degree
and wish to proceed
to an Honours degree in the same discipline may apply to the
department to do so. When a
student fulfils all program requirements, as determined by the
Department and the Dean of the
Faculty, the Honours degree shall be awarded.

 Requirements for Graduation After Three Years of an
Honours Program
Any student eligible to enter the Fourth Year of an Honours
program not on probation may elect
to receive a General degree provided that all the courses
normally constituting the first three
years of the Honours program, including at least 75 percent of
the total number of courses
required for that program, have been completed and that the GPA
specified for continuation in
the Honours program has been achieved. This policy does not apply
to the Honours Bachelor
of Business Administration program or to the Honours Bachelor of
Music program.
Petitions
A student may appeal to the appropriate Faculty Petitions
Committee any decision taken by an
individual or body acting in the name of the University which
affects the academic standing of
the student and which the student believes was taken unfairly.
Please note that each faculty may have individualized procedures
for the settlement of
disagreements within the faculty and the student is encouraged to
make use of those procedures
prior to commencing a Faculty Petition. Please make the inquiries
at the office of the Dean of
the Faculty for information in this regard. Further, with respect
to grade re-assessments, see the
additional information under the heading: Evaluation of Student
Performance, Grade Re-
Assessment. With respect to a petition for deferred examinations,
see the additional information
under the heading: Evaluation of Student Performance, Final
University Examinations, Deferred
Examinations and Special Examinations. With respect to
disciplinary decisions, see the additional
information under the heading: Academic Privileges and
Responsibilities, Conduct and
Plagiarism and Cheating.
There are two types of appeals to a Faculty Petitions Committee.
Firstly, an appeal may be filed
on the grounds that the normal Faculty or University rules,
Calendar requirements and
regulations have not been properly or fairly applied to the
student's circumstances. In this
instance, the Faculty Petitions Committee will review the
circumstances and the rule and it shall
make a decision accordingly.
The second type of appeal is when a student asks the Faculty
Petitions Committee for relief from
the Faculty or University rules, Calendar requirements and
regulations because of extenuating
circumstances, such as illness or bereavement. In this type of
appeal, the Faculty Petitions
Committee will review the extenuating circumstances and it may
exercise its discretion to grant
an exception to the student.
Both types of appeal shall be in writing on the required form, in
accordance with the established
procedures for petitions. A copy of the current procedures and
the required form may be
obtained at the Office of the Registrar or the Office of the Dean
of the Faculty. All petitions
shall be commenced by filing the appropriate forms, not later
than six (6) weeks following the
student being advise of the decision to be appealed.
As the student will not be able to appear in person before the
Faculty Petitions Committee, it
is important that the student ensure that all relevant materials,
including a written detailed
synopsis of the circumstances pertaining to the appeal, is
submitted as part of the petition.
The Faculty Petitions Committee will consider and decide all
petitions within six (6) weeks of
the filing of the petitions with the Office of the Registrar. The
student will be advised of the
decision and the reasons therefore in writing.
A decision of a Faculty Petitions Committee may be appealed by
the student to the Senate
Student Appeals Committee, in accordance with the Procedures for
Considering Appeals by
Senate Student Appeals Committee.
A copy of those procedures is available at the Office of the
Registrar. An appeal of a decision
of a Faculty Petitions Committee shall be made within one month
of the date of the decision.
With the exception of the regulations pertaining to Grade
Appeals, no petition or appeal may be
commenced where the student has graduated from the program to
which the petition or appeal
relates.