Academic Policies
About Us
Academic Policies
Technology Requirements
At Robert Cavelier University, electronic communication is the preferred medium for students, faculty, and staff. To take advantage of this technology, it is required that students, faculty, and staff acquire and maintain e-mail access with the capability to send and receive attached files.
To navigate the Internet, it is recommended that the latest version of one of the following browsers be used:
Mozilla Firefox
Google Chrome
Robert Cavelier University also provides documents that can be accessed using Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available without cost to students at www.adobe.com.
Robert Cavelier University strives to prevent the spread of computer viruses by employing the latest virus detection software on all university-owned computer systems; however, Robert Cavelier University makes no guarantee related to the unintentional propagation of computer viruses that may go undetected by our virus detection software.
Robert Cavelier University will not be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages of any kind, including but not limited to: loss of data, file corruption, or hardware failure, resulting from the effect of any malicious code or computer virus unintentionally transmitted by university staff members, faculty, students or affiliates.
Robert Cavelier University strongly recommends and urges all faculty and students to seek out and install adequate virus detection software and to routinely check for, and install, the most recent updates to their anti-virus software no less frequently than once each month for their computer and operating system.
Technical Specifications and Instructions
In general, students access course materials using a computer or laptop (PC or Mac), a modern web browser, and a high-speed Internet connection.
Robert Cavelier University does not Student Support the use of tablets, smartphones, or other similar devices for taking any of the courses in the program. While some course material might be accessible on those devices, students are likely to encounter technical issues that may prevent them from completing courses.
Specific courses may have additional technical requirements as specified in individual course syllabi.
Proctoring
All students at Robert Cavelier University must participate in proctored activities throughout the program. Proctored activities include exams and presentations. There will be proctored exam for the selected courses. Additionally, students complete a live presentation in the Capstone course.
Students taking a course that has a proctored exam must complete the proctored exam to pass the course. Information about proctoring, including the technical requirements and how to schedule a live proctored exam, will be provided to students in the courses where it is required.
Attendance Policy
To achieve academic success, students at Robert Cavelier University are expected to attend online lectures and participate in-class activities.
In the online learning environment, attendance is defined as:
Logging in to the online learning environment at least once per week.
Completing academic engagement activities as defined on the syllabus e.g. quizzes, discussion, etc.
Checking email regularly for notices.
Quality contribution towards online discussions with faculty members and instructors
Specific attendance policies are included on each course syllabus, as applicable.
Academic Credit Policy
Semester credit hours at Robert Cavelier University are equivalent to commonly accepted and traditionally defined units of academic measurement. Each course at Robert Cavelier University is measured by the achievement of established course learning outcomes and the amount of time a typical student should spend to accomplish these outcomes. Specifically, a one (1) semester credit hour requires a minimum of 45 hours of student work with one-third of the time (15 hours) focused on academic engagement and two-thirds of the time (30 hours) focused on student preparation. For a three semester credit hour course, a minimum of 135 hours of student work is required, divided between 45 hours of academic engagement and 90 hours of student preparation.
Academic engagement may include, but is not limited to, the following:
Reviewing a class lecture
Taking an examination
An interactive tutorial
Computer-assisted instruction
Contributing to an online discussion
Attending a study group assigned by the institution
Initiating a course-related contact with a faculty member
Student preparation may include, but is not limited to, the following:
Homework (including reading and study time)
Completing an academic assignment
Completing an academic project
Estimated time for all activities within a course is in the syllabus.
Leave of Absence Policy
Students can request a Leave of Absence (LOA) between courses for personal or professional reasons. Each individual LOA can be requested for up to two (2) consecutive 3-credit courses. A student may not take more than 6 months (24 weeks) or ½ of the program length, whichever is shorter, of LOA in a calendar year.
All LOA requests must be submitted in writing to the student’s Academic Advisor, and need to include the start date, return date, and reason for the LOA. Student Support reviews the request and notifies the student of the decision within seven (7) calendar days.
Students who fail to return to RCU, as indicated on the return date, will be terminated from the program.
RCU does not permit students to take a leave of absence during a course session.
Makeup Work
All assignments are due on the date specified on the course syllabus.
A student who will be absent for a legitimate reason (ex: military service, medical issue, required travel, or a family emergency) and who will be unable to complete coursework on time must contact their Academic Advisor at least seven (7) working days in advance of the absence unless an emergency prevents them from doing so. The student must provide documentation of the absence to the Academic Advisor before its occurrence, whenever possible. The Academic Advisor will review the documentation to ensure that the absence falls into one of the categories defined as legitimate. If it does, the Academic Advisor and student will create a plan for making up missed work.
If a student does not submit an assignment by the deadline indicated on the syllabus because of an absence without contacting their Academic Advisor before the absence, unless extenuating circumstances prevent them from doing so, the student will not be able to make up the missed work.
Additionally, if the student will be absent for a reason not listed above, they will need to make a plan to complete their work before the absence, as make-up work will not be allowed.
Course Extensions
Course extensions of up to seven (7) calendar days may be granted in a case of a personal or family emergency. Students must submit a request for a course extension in writing to their Academic Advisor. The request must include the reason that the course extension is needed and include backup documentation, as applicable.
For approved requests, a student will have the length of the extension to complete and/or submit all remaining course work to the course instructor. The final grade for the course will be issued after the work has been submitted, or at the conclusion of the course extension period, if the student fails to complete the work.
Multiple course extensions on the same course are not allowed.
Grading
At Robert Cavelier University, letter grades are awarded following each student’s demonstration of the prescribed learning objectives and outcomes of each course as follows:
Score | Letter Grade | GPA Points |
90-100 | A | 4.0 |
80-89 | B | 3.0 |
70-79 | C | 2.0 |
60-69 | D | 1.0 |
0-59 | F | 0.0 |
Students may also receive the following designations, as appropriate, which do not receive any GPA points:
W (Withdrawal): Students who withdraw from a course receive a grade of “W.” This grade is excluded from the calculation of the CGPA, but the course counts toward credit attempted in satisfactory academic progress evaluations.
TC (Transfer Credit): Semester credit granted for semester credits accepted in transfer from other institutions.
R (Repeated Course): Students have the option of retaking a course if they want to improve an unsatisfactory grade. Once a letter grade is recorded for the repeated course, the original grade will be replaced by an “R” grade. The grade points earned from the latter grade will be used in computing the cumulative grade point average. A maximum of two courses can be repeated for a better grade during the program. The original grade will be replaced with an “R” and excluded from GPA calculation, whether it is better or worse than the new grade. There is no guarantee of a better grade when a student repeats a course.
Robert Cavelier University faculty may choose to use a performance-based grading component within a course. The course syllabi provide more information about this option and all other course-specific grading information including a comprehensive list of graded assignments, assessments, and related weighting.
Grade Reporting
Instructors will report final grades within seven (7) business days of the end of a term. Grades will be reported in the online learning environment. Students can access their grade reports by using their login id and password.
Grade Appeals
Students who believe they have been graded unfairly may appeal their final course grades. The burden of proof in appealing a grade rests with the students. For a change in grade to be recommended, students must show that the grade originally given was unjustly or unfairly awarded.
To appeal a grade, students must contact Student Support within five (5) days of final course grades being reported in the Student Management System. The appeal must explain why the grade received was incorrect and include Student Supporting evidence.
Student Support will review the appeal and discuss the appeal with the course instructor within five (5) days. The instructor will make a recommendation to Student Support on whether or not the grade should be changed.
Student Support will provide the instructor’s recommendation to the Chief Academic Officer for review. The Chief Academic Officer’s review will be completed within five (5) days. The Chief Academic Officer may approve the recommendation or provide an alternate recommendation to the Instructor. If the Chief Academic Officer provides an alternate recommendation to the Instructor, they will discuss it and agree to a final recommendation within five (5) days.
The final recommendation, approved by the course instructor and the Chief Academic Officer, will be provided to Student Support. The student will be appropriately notified by email of the final decision.
Student Support will change the student’s grade, as indicated, and place a record of the appeal and final recommendation in the student’s academic file.
Satisfactory Academic Progress
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) evaluations will occur throughout the program, after every three (3) regularly scheduled sessions in a student’s enrollment period. At each Progress Evaluation point, Robert Cavelier University will look to see that the student:
Grade Point Average (Qualitative): The student has a cumulative GPA (cGPA) of at least 2.0 to be considered in academic good standing.
Pace of Completion (Quantitative): The student has successfully completed 67% of credit hours attempted.
Maximum Time Frame (MTF): The student must complete his or her program within 150% of the scheduled timeframe for completion as published in the Catalog.
Academic Warning & Continued Warning
Students who do not meet either of the above criteria at any evaluation point will be considered to be making unsatisfactory academic progress and will not be in Good Standing.
Warning
Students who are not in Good Standing will be placed on Warning status and will receive a warning notification via email. The Warning status will persist through the next evaluation period (three scheduled course sessions) until the following evaluation point. During this time, students will be provided an academic improvement plan to make progress toward regaining Good Standing.
Students who fail to achieve Good Standing, but who show that they are making progress toward regaining Good Standing at the end of the Warning period will be placed on Continued Warning.
Progress toward regaining good standing is demonstrated through students raising their Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) toward the minimum 3.0 average and showing the ability to complete the program within the maximum time frame of 150%. Both components of progress toward good standing must be met for a student to qualify for a Continued Warning.
A Continued Warning notification will be sent via email.
Continued Warning
Students on Warning status who do not regain Good Standing during the Warning period, but who show progress toward regaining Good Standing, may be granted one additional evaluation period (academic term) to continue their academic improvement plan and achieve Good Standing. This additional evaluation period is called Continued Warning.
Students who fail to achieve Good Standing at the end of the Continued Warning period will be terminated from the program.
Termination
Students failing to return to Good Standing at the end of the Warning period who do not meet the requirements for Continued Warning, or students failing to return to Good Standing at the end of the Continued Warning period will be terminated from Robert Cavelier University. Students will receive notice of Academic Termination via email and will no longer have access to the online learning environment.
Appeals
Students wishing to appeal the Academic Termination determination must do so in writing within ten (10) calendar days of receipt of the email notification.
Appeals should be directed to the Chief Academic Officer. All appeals should be made in writing and include appropriate documentation (e.g. a physician’s statement, accident report, evidence of grade miscalculation, etc.) showing that the failure to obtain Good Standing was beyond the student’s control. The Chief Academic Officer will notify students of the decision within ten (10) days of receiving the appeal. The Chief Academic Officer’s decision is final.
Probation
In cases where an appeal is accepted, that student is placed on Probation status for the next evaluation period (academic term) through the next evaluation point. During this time, students will be provided an academic improvement plan to regain Good Standing by the end of the Probation period. Students not achieving Good Standing at the end of the Probation period will be terminated from Robert Cavelier University. Termination following Probation cannot be appealed.
Transfer and Readmitted Students
Transfer students from outside the institution will be evaluated qualitatively only on the work completed at Robert Cavelier University. The maximum time frame is reduced for transfer students based upon the remaining length of the program in which they enroll.
Incomplete Courses
Robert Cavelier University does not issue incomplete grades.
Remedial Courses
Robert Cavelier University does not offer any remedial courses.
Course Repeat Policy
A failed course may be repeated in an attempt to earn a passing grade. Each attempt counts as attempted credit hours toward the Maximum Time Frame. Only the highest grade earned will be included in the computation of the cumulative grade point average (cGPA). The student transcript will list each course in which a student has enrolled and earned a grade. The failing grade will be changed to a grade of R on the transcript indicating that a particular course has been repeated.
Re-admittance
Students whose enrollment at Robert Cavelier University is terminated due to academic reasons will be eligible for re-enrollment after a waiting period of six (6) months. These students may be eligible to receive credit for courses previously completed at Robert Cavelier University per the transfer credit policy.
Graduation Requirements
To graduate from Robert Cavelier University and be awarded a Master of Business Administration (MBA), students must:
Successfully complete all required courses;
Earn a minimum of 15 credit hours in the program at Robert Cavelier University;
Be in academic good standing; and
Have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 or higher