A credit hour is the unit by which academic work is measured. Each course is assigned a number of credit hours and these are specified in the section of this catalog titled Courses. A student enrolled in a face-to-face course should expect approximately 15 hours of instruction for each credit hour.

See also, Hours Attempted and Earned & Equivalent Hours . 

Students who have an adjusted cumulative GPA below a 2.0 are placed on academic probation. Students on academic probation may enroll in up to 14 credit hours during a 13-15-week session, up to 7 credit hours during a 5-12-week session, and up to 4 credit hours during a 4-week or less session.

Students who have an adjusted grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher are in good standing. Students’ academic standing cannot be changed until 12 credit hours of credit courses have been attempted. Thereafter, students are governed by the academic standing table which follows.

After any change in academic standing, no further change can be made until at least 12 more credit hours have been attempted. However, students may be removed from academic probation at the end of any term during which their overall grade point average is a 2.0. Students on probation who achieve a term GPA of 3.0 or better, while earning at least nine hours of credit during one term, will be in good standing for the following term.

The academic standing of students whose grade point average is below 2.0 is determined by the following table.

Adjusted Cumulative Credit Hours Attempted

These Academic Standing, Probation, Dismissal and Reinstatement policies apply to all AACC students, but students who receive financial aid are also subject to the more stringent “Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy” on the Financial Aid webpage.

The number of quality points earned for each credit course is the product of the credit hour rating of the course multiplied by the quality point value of the letter grade assigned. For example, students who complete a three-hour credit course with a C grade earn three times two, or six quality points; those who complete a four-hour credit course with a B earn four times three, or 12 quality points. The calculation of a student’s adjusted GPA does not include the grade designations as listed below). See an academic advisor with any questions.

Anne Arundel Community College recommends that students read grade requirements for all AACC courses and majors.  Some courses and majors have grade requirements for students to receive credit for achieving State of Maryland general education standards, to advance to a subsequent course, to be admitted to a particular major and/or to graduate from a particular major. 

Students seeking credit for transferring in courses should refer to Credit for Previous Learning  catalog page.

The PA grade represents a grade of C or better in courses designated Pass/Fail (PA/F).

Students with a PA grade earn the stated number of credit hours, but a PA grade has no quality point value and is not computed in the grade point average (GPA).

The instructor of a course is the only individual authorized to assign a grade or to change a grade. Once a grade has been assigned and entered into a student’s record, an instructor may request the registrar to make a grade change only if there has been an error in the determination of the grade. Otherwise, a grade once entered is final and shall not be changed except when it can be unequivocally demonstrated that it was physically or emotionally impossible for the student to file a withdrawal form because of incapacity or sudden, forced departure from the area.  In such a case, the student may petition the Committee on Academic Standards to authorize the instructor to change a grade of F to WP (withdraw passing) or WF (withdraw failing).

Should a student have a grievance about an assigned grade or evaluation rating, the student should follow the grievance about academic assessment procedure.

The grade point average and credit calculations on the Anne Arundel Community College transcript include only credit courses taken at Anne Arundel Community College.

• Quality point total is the number of quality points a student earns. Each grade report shows the student’s quality point total for the term and the cumulative quality point total since admission.
• Grade point average (GPA) is calculated by dividing the total quality points by the total credit hours attempted.
• Total cumulative grade point average includes all attempts in all credit courses for which students receive letter grades of A, B, C, D, F or FX.
• Adjusted cumulative grade point average does not include the previous grade(s) earned in a course when the course has been repeated (R), forgiven (Y), or which has been granted academic clemency (Q). See grade calculations not included in the GPA above.

Students who have demonstrated academic progress in a new program of study may petition the Committee on Academic Standards to request academic forgiveness of courses that cannot be applied to meet a program requirement in their new program of study. If the Committee on Academic Standards approves the request for academic forgiveness, the courses will still appear on the student’s transcript, but are marked as forgiven and are not included in the adjusted grade point average. It is important to note that all courses not applicable to the new program of study will be forgiven, regardless of grade earned. In some cases, this procedure will have a negative effect on the student’s adjusted grade point average. All requests must be carefully reviewed with an academic advisor before submitting a petition.

Some courses restrict award of credit based on overlap of content as noted in the course description. Students who take two courses for which they cannot receive credit for both will have one of the courses marked as forgiven. However, both grades remain on the student’s record and transcript.

Courses cannot be forgiven after a degree or certificate has been awarded. However, a student who has demonstrated progress toward a new program of study may request course forgiveness for courses that could not be applied to a previously awarded degree or certificate.

Please note: Having courses forgiven will usually not resolve any Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) violations caused by the forgiven courses. If courses are forgiven, the Financial Aid SAP Policy will use the new adjusted grade point average, but the forgiven course credits will still be counted as attempted credits. See Financial Aid webpage for more information.

See also: Re-Enrollment/Forgiveness of Courses/Academic Clemency  due to meeting Academic Committee Standards guidelines.

Academic Clemency is designed to provide former Anne Arundel Community College credit students, who have not been enrolled at the college for a minimum of five years, an opportunity to return to Anne Arundel Community College without the burden of previous poor academic performance (i.e., grades of D, F or FX). Upon re-enrollment at Anne Arundel Community College after at least a 5 year absence, students who have demonstrated academic progress by completion of a minimum of 12 credits with a minimum grade of “C” in all courses attempted, may petition the Committee on Academic Standards for Academic Clemency.  If the Committee on Academic Standards approves the request for Academic Clemency, the student may choose a maximum of 15 credits be forgiven based on Academic Clemency. The 15-credit clemency is intended as a one time use regulation per student. The courses will still appear on the student’s transcript, but are marked as forgiven based on Academic Clemency and not included in the adjusted grade point average.  Courses that are forgiven for Academic Clemency cannot be applied towards a degree or certificate.  Academic Clemency may only be granted to courses taken at Anne Arundel Community College and only to students currently enrolled at the college. The request for Academic Clemency must be approved prior to the student being awarded a degree or certificate and may be granted one time only. Developmental courses will not be considered for Academic Clemency.

Regardless of whether classes and grades are forgiven by AACC, all attempted classes and grades will be included in the calculation of Satisfactory Academic Progress and used to confirm eligibility for Financial Aid. The calculation utilizing all grades for required courses is consistent with the U.S. Department of Education Regulations. Students should consult with the Financial Aid Office regarding individual circumstances.

Reasonable accommodation will be granted to students showing satisfactory academic progress who are called to military service (appropriate documentation is required). All active duty and reserve military students should check with instructors on or before the first day of class to determine course policy with regard to short term deployment (e.g. the attendance policy for the course). Most courses are structured such that a single deployment of one to two weeks during a term allow for the student to complete the work missed upon return or take an incomplete. Incompletes may be taken only with permission and cooperation of the instructor and must be requested by the student. It is the responsibility of the student to complete all work missed whether taking an incomplete or completing the work in a timely manner within the term enrolled. Students taking an incomplete should refer to the Incomplete Work section. Student communication with the instructor is key.

However, a few courses have internal or external requirements such that make-up work cannot be accommodated. Students deployed while taking such a course must withdraw (see below). Students showing satisfactory academic progress and having to leave a program due to military service requirements must withdraw from the course(s) and will be allowed to re-enter the program by retaking the course or courses from which they had to withdraw. There are courses in some programs in which the student may be able to take an “incomplete” and finish the course in cooperation with the instructor, even with deployments that extend beyond one to two weeks of time. Military students suspending studies in courses with required lab components, clinical components, and/or competency requirements will be allowed re-entry provided the student meets standard departmental and/or program entry requirements. The student will be re-entered into an open seat in the next available class cycle.