University Policies and Procedures

When does the semester begin and end? When is the last day you can add a class? These frequently asked questions can be answered by reviewing the academic calendar. The university expects students to know these deadlines and holds students accountable for meeting them.

Understanding and meeting the financial commitments to CU Denver is also important. The Bursar Important Dates calendar provides billing information and corresponding deadlines. Missing these deadlines can cause a financial hold to be placed on a student’s account, which cannot be removed until payment, in full, is received.

​Schedule Adjustment Form (SAF)

A schedule adjustment form is used when students can't add or drop courses through UCDAccess. This form may be used when there is a time conflict between two classes, or if a course overload is being requested. Dropping a course or withdrawing from the semester can also be accomplished with this form.

From the second week of classes to Census Date, additional steps to enroll may be required. Please consult with your advising office.

Additional steps to enroll in a course from the second week of classes to Census Date may be required. Please consult with your advising office​.

Academic dishonesty is defined as a student’s use of unauthorized assistance with intent to deceive an instructor or other such person who may be assigned to evaluate the student’s work in meeting course and degree requirements.

Plagiarism is the use of another person’s distinctive words or ideas without acknowledgment. Examples include:

• ​Word-for-word copying of another person’s ideas or words
• The mosaic (the interspersing of one’s own words here and there while, in essence, copying another’s work)
• The paraphrase (the rewriting of another’s work, yet still using their fundamental idea or theory)
• Fabrication of references
• Submission of another’s work as one’s own
• Neglecting quotation marks on material that is otherwise acknowledged.

Cheating involves the possession, communication, or use of information, materials, notes, study aids or other devices not authorized by the instructor in an academic exercise, or communication with another person during such an exercise. Examples include:

• ​Copying from another’s paper or receiving unauthorized assistance from another during an academic exercise or in the submission of academic material
• Using a calculator when its use has been disallowed
• Collaborating with another student or students during an academic exercise without the consent of the instructor

Fabrication involves inventing or counterfeiting information like creating results not obtained in a study or laboratory experiment. Falsification, on the other hand, involves the deliberate alteration of results to suit one’s needs in an experiment or other academic exercise.

This is the submission of academic work for which academic credit has already been earned, when such submission is made without instructor authorization.

The misuse of academic materials includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Stealing or destroying library or reference materials or computer programs
• Stealing or destroying another student’s notes or materials, or having such materials in one’s possession without the owner’s permission
• Receiving assistance in locating or using sources of information in an assignment when such assistance has been forbidden by the instructor
• Illegitimate possession, disposition, or use of examinations or answer keys to examinations
• Unauthorized alteration, forgery, or falsification
• Unauthorized sale or purchase of examinations, papers, or assignments.

Complicity involves knowingly contributing to another’s acts of academic dishonesty. Examples include:

• ​Knowingly aiding another in any act of academic dishonesty
• Allowing another to copy from one’s paper for an assignment or exam
• Distributing test questions or information about the materials to be tested before the scheduled exercise
• Taking an exam or test for someone else
• Signing another's name on attendance roster or on an academic exercise

Good Academic Standing and Academic Probation

Students are expected to maintain progress in their degree program, as defined by being in “good academic standing.” Good academic standing requires minimally a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 on all University of Colorado course work.

Students who fall below a 2.0 cumulative GPA will be put on the status of Academic Probation. If a 2.3 term GPA is not earned during any semester while on Academic Probation, a student will be placed on the status of Restricted Academic Probation, which only allows a student to enroll in a maximum of 6 credit hours or 2 classes. Finally, a student on Restricted Academic Probation who fails to earn a 2.3 term GPA will be placed on the status of Academic Suspension. Students on Academic Probation or Restricted Academic Probation who fail to raise their cumulative GPA to 2.0 or higher within 30 credit hours or five semesters (whichever happens sooner) will be placed on academic suspension.

See the University Catalog for full policy details.

CU Denver will use a fixed criterion across all colleges for determining eligibility for the Dean’s List. This policy applies to undergraduate students. For fall and spring semesters, students must successfully complete 9 hours in the semester upon which to determine grade point. These courses can be both within and outside of the college. Pooled courses will not be included in the calculation nor will they count towards the 9 hours required for consideration. The GPA set for inclusion in the Dean’s List is 3.75.

In the summer semesters, students must complete 6 hours as a basis for inclusion in the Dean’s List. Course inclusion will be the same as in fall and spring semesters. The GPA for Dean’s List in summer will also be 3.75

Colleges will collect data each semester on the number of students making the Dean’s List and report the number and percentage of total students in the college. Scholarships tied to Dean’s Lists in individual colleges may have additional requirements.

The Registrar’s Office will calculate the semester GPAs for all students two weeks prior to the due date for semester grades. Those GPAs will be the basis for determining the Dean’s List. Incompletes will not be considered in the calculation of minimum number of hours. The Dean’s List will not be recalculated to include completed incompletes.

The Grade Forgiveness policy allows undergraduate students enrolled at CU Denver to replace a limited number of poor grades earned in certain courses with a new grade after repeating the same course.

This policy applies only to undergraduate, degree-seeking students enrolled at and pursuing their first undergraduate degree at CU Denver.  

Rules for grade forgiveness:

1. 1000-2000 level courses taken at CU Denver are eligible
2. You must have earned a D+, D, D- or F in the course to repeat it through this policy
3. The course retaken must be an exact match for the previously attempted course
4. You may retake the same course one time through this policy
5. There is a maximum of 18 credits in your academic career
6. Both grades will appear on your transcript but only the higher grade will be calculated into your CU GPA
7. You will still be responsible for all normal tuition and fees for both the original course and the repeated course

See the Grade Forgiveness policy for more information or reach out to your academic advisor if you have questions. 

1. Submit the Grade Forgiveness request form by the deadline to enroll in classes through the student portal without instructor permission. Please refer to the Academic Calendar.
2. The Office of the Registrar will review your request and send you an email within three business days letting know you whether your request was approved. ​​

1. Choosing Your Major

2. Declaring Your Major/Minor

• In many instances, you can declare a major as early as you would like. However, if you are interested in pursuing a major that has specific prerequisites or qualification requirements, you must first meet those requirement prior to declaring the major. Ideally, you should declare a major by the time you’ve completed 45 – 60 credits
• To declare a major: click on the school or college in which your major resides. Each school or college will describe the process for major and minor declaration within their respective programs
• If you are planning a double major or major/minor program, you will need to go through both advising office’s processes. Advisors from both programs will work with you to ensure you understand the requirements and build the right courses into your academic plan
  

3. Changing Your Major/Minor Within Your Current School/College at CU Denver

• ​Contact your school/college advising office

4. Changing Your Major/Minor Across Different Schools/Colleges at CU Denver

• Intra-University Transfer (IUT) is the process by which a student changes their major which resides in one CU Denver School or college to a major or minor that lives in another CU Denver school or college. The form which facilitates this shift is called the IUT Form​
• Programs with Additional Admission Requirements. Some schools or colleges are more selective than others.​ This means that some programs requires you to meet specific GPA and/or course requirements before you can apply for IUT. Examples of these more selective majors are:
• ​The College of Arts and Media (CAM)
  
  
  • ​Music programs
    

• The Business School 

  • As a pre-business students, you will be considered for admission to the school based on: 
  • ​Your overall GPA in applicable course work from the University of Colorado and all previous institutions 

  • ​Your last 24 hours of work 

​You will receive priority consideration for admission to the Business School if you have an overall GPA of 3.0 or a GPA of 3.0 in your last consecutive 24 hours of work. 

Submit your completed IUT application directly to the Business School Advising office located on the fourth floor of the Business School Building, at the corner of 14th and Lawrence Street.

• The College of Engineering, Design and Computing (CEDC)
  

• ​​As a pre-engineering student, you will be considered for admission to CEDC based on the following GPA Requirements: 

1. Direct admission to a bachelor of science major Minimum 3.0 overall GPA with a grade of B- or better in Calculus I OR Minimum 2.75 overall GPA AND a minimum 2.5 GPA (based on most recent course attempts) in Calculus I, Calculus II, and Calculus-based Physics I with corresponding lab, with a grade of C- or better in each course. 
2. For admission into the computer science major, calculus-based Physics I is not required, but will be accepted. 
3. Direct admission to the bachelor of arts in computer science major Minimum 2.5 overall GPA Completion of at least one of the following courses with a grade of C or better: College Algebra, College Trigonometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus I, or Calculus II Admission to pre-engineering (with a major interest) Students who do not meet the criteria for direct admission to a major will be considered for admission to pre-engineering with a major interest. Minimum 2.5 overall GPA Completion of at least one of the following courses with a grade of C or better: College Algebra, College Trigonometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus I, or Calculus II Once you have obtained the above, submit your completed IUT application directly to your intended department.  

Once you have obtained the above, submit your completed IUT application directly to the Engineering Student Services Center (ESSC) in the North Classroom Building #2605. All pre-engineering majors must submit an IUT application once they’ve completed 45 credits at CU Denver since starting on the pre-engineering track.

Academic Success Plan

The Academic Success Plan is a required activity for students on Academic Probation. It's intended to help students identify obstacles to their academic success and seek appropriate resources to help them meet their academic goals. Students should contact their assigned advising office to obtain the Academic Success Plan packet.

Academic Success Plans should be completed by the following deadlines to register for the listed semester:

Maymester and/or summer: April 15

Fall: July 15

Spring: December 15

Change of Record

The Change of Record form is used by university faculty and staff when a change needs to be made to a student’s academic record, usually a grade change. It requires both an instructor and dean’s signature before being processed by the Registrar’s Office. This form – for faculty and staff only – may be obtained in the Registrar’s Office or from the School’s/College’s Dean’s or Advising offices.

Concurrent Registration

The Concurrent Registration form may be used by degree-seeking students to register through their home campus for courses taught at other University of Colorado campuses. Concurrent Registration can only be conducted during the drop/add period at the host campus. Registration will not be allowed before or after this drop/add period.

Inter-institutional Registration

CU Denver students who want to take courses at the Community College of Denver will need to complete the Inter-Institutional Registration form. Inter-institutional Registration can only be conducted during the drop/add period at the host campus. Registration will not be allowed before or after this drop/add period. 

Intra-University Transfer (IUT)

The Intra-university Transfer (IUT) form is used for students enrolled in an undergraduate program at CU Denver who would like to transfer from one school or college to another or who would like to add or remove a second degree.

Military Experience Form

Students with military experience may be eligible to earn academic credit for this experience. Students should contact the Office of Veteran Student Services for an official completion of this form, signed by the Veteran Student Services Director.

Schedule Adjustment Form

A Schedule Adjustment Form (SAF) is used when students are unable to add or drop courses through the student portal/UCD Access. This form may be used when there is a time conflict between two classes, or if a course overload is being requested. Dropping a course or withdrawing from the semester can also be accomplished with this form.

From the second week of classes to Census Date, the SAF is also used by some schools and colleges to allow enrollment by instructor permission only since students cannot enroll via the student portal. The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) does not use the SAF during this time period. Instead, students will use the form, Instructor permission to Enroll in a course when students from CLAS wish to enroll in a class with instructor permission only.

Additional steps to enroll in a course from the second week of classes to Census Date may be required. Please consult with your advising office​.

Special Processing Form

The Special Processing Form is used to register for independent study, thesis, practicum, special studies, and variable credit. It requires both an instructor and dean’s signature for processing.

Tuition Appeals

Students who feel they have an extenuating circumstance that justifies an exception to financial obligations may submit a tuition appeal, which will be reviewed by the tuition appeals coordinator. Please note that students must first be withdrawn from the courses before a tuition appeal is considered.  For more information, please read the policies and procedures listed on the form. Read the policies and procedures for Tuition Appeals​​.