Law Students
Any students enrolled in the law program will be required to make satisfactory academic progress, as defined by the academic requirements of the law school.
A. GPA Requirements
Any student whose cumulative GPA falls below 2.00 at the conclusion of their first semester of law school will be placed on academic probation. A student whose cumulative GPA falls below 2.00 at the end of his/her second semester, or any semester thereafter, in law school will be suspended.
Any student who is suspended due to a grade point average below 2.00 may once again be eligible to receive assistance upon reinstatement by the dean or associate dean.
B. Pace
Law students must successfully complete pace towards their degree by completing 67% of cumulative attempted credits. Credits attempted and completed each semester are used in the annual evaluation of pace.
All attempted credits for the summer, fall and spring semesters will be used to calculate the pace completion rate of 67%. Any transfer credits from Study Abroad, National Student Exchange or any other outside courses are also evaluated to ensure they are accepted toward a student's degree requirements.
Successful completion is defined as receiving earned credit as defined by the U of I Academic Policy. For students receiving federal financial aid, attempted credits will be defined as the number of credits enrolled for as of the tenth day after the start of each term. This date is the U of I census date for financial aid evaluation purposes. For student not receiving federal financial aid, attempted credits will be defined as attempted hours recorded at the end of the semester in the Registrar's system.
Example of Maintaining Pace
Summary Table 5 – First Academic Year – Student Withdraws Fall Semester
| Semester | Fall | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| Attempted Credits | 12 | 12 |
| Completed Credits | 0 | 12 |
| Completion Rate | 0% | 100% |
| Cumulative Attempted | 12 | 24 |
| Cumulative Completed | 0 | 12 |
| Completion Rate | 0% | 50% |
After the first year, this student has completed only 50% of the courses attempted and is placed on financial aid probation (suspension). To get back on pace to meet the 67% rate for U of I, this student would need an academic plan that followed the course load as outlined below to regain financial aid eligibility. As you can see, if a student gets behind on the 67% rate, it can take more than a semester to get the total number of completed credits back up to the point where they regain good standing for the pace requirement of 67%. See Table 6 below.
Summary Table 6 – Example 1 – Second Year
| Semester | Fall |
|---|---|
| Attempted Credits | 12 |
| Completed Credits | 12 |
| Completion Rate | 100% |
| Cumulative Attempted | 36 |
| Cumulative Completed | 24 |
| Completion Rate | 67% (rounded up) |
*Student has regained Satisfactory Academic Progress by completing 67% (66.6% rounded up) of cumulative attempted courses..
As illustrated above, the minimum number of courses this student would have to attempt and pass for the next term is 12 credits. If this student failed to complete 100% of the courses attempted after the initial suspension, then an additional term or terms would be needed to get back on pace and regain financial aid eligibility. In this scenario, the student would be required to submit an academic plan, detailing the number of courses needed each term to get back on pace for her/his degree.
C. Maximum Attempted Credits Without A Degree
Students enrolled in law must have a minimum of 90 credits for graduation. Students who have attempted 150% of the minimum required for graduation, a total of 135 credits, will be suspended from receiving further financial assistance. Attempted credit hours are defined as the number of attempted credits in the Registrar’s system, or the number of earned credits, whichever is higher.