Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar
Ilker Baybars, Dean of Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar
Mark Stehlik, Associate Dean for Education
http://www.qatar.cmu.edu/
Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar is Carnegie Mellon's first and only undergraduate branch campus. The campus opened in 2004 as part of a collaborative effort with the Qatar Foundation to bring outstanding American education programs to the Middle East. The University shares their commitment to maintain the same quality of instruction and standard of student performance demanded on the main campus.
Degree Offerings
Carnegie Mellon Qatar offers five academic programs: Biological Sciences, Business Administration, Computer Science, Computational Biology, and Information Systems. To learn more about them, see their respective main campus college sections in the Undergraduate Catalog. The purpose of this section is to describe the policies of the Qatar campus that are independent from those of the Pittsburgh campus and outline procedures that are common to students in all programs in Qatar.
Policy Statement
Carnegie Mellon Qatar complies with common University policies unless otherwise noted. The curriculum requirements for the Biological Sciences, Business Administration, Computer Science, Computational Biology, and Information Systems majors are identical to those of the Mellon College of Science, Tepper School of Business, the School of Computer Science and the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Academic Standards and Actions
In general (allowing that since the CMUQ majors are drawn from four different colleges on the Pittsburgh campus implies some reconciliation is necessary), the same academic standards and actions apply to all programs at CMUQ as at the Pittsburgh campus.
Academic Actions
Students carrying either a full-time course load (defined as 36 or more units) or a part-time course load (defined as fewer than 36 units) are subject to academic actions.
Dean's List
Students earn Dean's List recognition in a given semester by achieving one of two minimum standards. They must either earn a semester QPA of 3.75 or higher (while taking at least 36 factorable units and receiving no Incompletes) or earn a semester QPA of 3.50 or higher (while taking at least 45 factorable units and receiving no Incompletes).
Other Actions
Students (other than those in their freshman year) are subject to academic actions if they fail to make minimum progress toward their degree. Minimum progress is achieving a semester QPA of at least 2.0. Students who begin a semester enrolled in 36 or more factorable units and later drop below 36 units are subject to academic actions regardless of their semester QPA.
Freshman students are not subject to academic actions unless their semester QPA is below 1.75.
Probation
Probation occurs when a student's semester record fails to meet the minimum standards described above. Students are removed from probation if they complete at least 36 factorable units and raise their cumulative post-freshman QPA above 2.00. The school may continue a student's probation if the student's cumulative record does not meet minimum standards but his or her semester record suggests that the student may do so by the end of the next semester.
Suspension
If a student fails to meet the minimum standards described above at the end of the probation semester, the student will be suspended. Suspension is for a minimum of one year and the student is required to follow University procedures for departing from campus. At the end of the year, the student may petition to return to Carnegie Mellon by completing the following steps: ask the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs in writing for permission to resume their studies; submit a completed Return from Leave of Absence Form to the registrar. Provide transcripts for any courses taken at other colleges or universities during the suspension even though academic credits earned during a suspension do not transfer back to Carnegie Mellon.
To get approval to resume their studies the student must demonstrate that they are better prepared to perform above the minimum standards for graduation than before they were suspended. Students coming back from suspension return on probation in the semester of their return.
Drop
A student that fails to meet minimum standards at any point after returning from a suspension is subject to a drop action. A drop action is a permanent severance; the student is required to follow University procedures for departing from campus and may not enroll again in the future. For a poor-performing student, the typical progression of academic actions is Probation, Suspension, then Drop but the intent of the academic actions are to take measures that are in the student's best interest and therefore the school may bypass one or more of these steps in an unusual case.
Other Regulations Affecting Student Status
Prerequisites and Waitlists
All students registered for a class will have matched the course reservations and completed any course prerequisites for that class. A student that is unable to register and has questions about reservations or prerequisites should see Sheila Rian in office C1174.
Any student on the waitlist for a class that has questions about their ability to eventually enter the class should see Sheila Rian in office C1174. She will determine why they are not on the roster and if she can add them to the class. Students come off wait lists based on the order they went on and any course priority. The course instructor does not determine who comes off the waitlist.
Priority order for coming off of the waitlist is as follows:
- Students for whom the course is required in their major
- Students approved for a minor that requires the course
- Seniority
Adding a Class
Students may add classes to their schedule under the following rules:
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Students may only add a full semester course through the first 10 class days of the semester.
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They may only add half semester mini courses through the first 5 class days of the course.
Withdrawing from Courses
CMUQ follows the Carnegie Mellon policies on withdrawing from courses:
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Students who wish to withdraw from a course without receiving a “W” grade must do so before the published CMUQ deadline. After that date, students may withdraw from a course up to the last day of classes and receive a “W” as a grade for it. After the last day of classes student may not withdraw from a class.
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A student carrying a full-time course load (defined as at least 36 factorable units) as of the last day to add (10th class day) may not drop below 36 units after that time.
Course Repeats
When a course is repeated, all grades will be recorded on the official academic transcript and will be calculated in the student’s QPA. This is the case regardless if the first grade for the course is a passing or failing grade, including Pass/Fail.
Undergraduate students who wish to repeat a course already passed must obtain approval from the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs. When a student takes a course s/he has already passed, only one set of units will count towards graduation requirements.
Double-Counting Courses
“Double-counting” refers to instances when a course taken to fulfill one requirement counts simultaneously toward a requirement in another major or minor program. An additional major must be based on at least nine independent courses, excluding prerequisites, and a minor based on at least five independent courses (“independent courses” are courses not counted toward core requirements for a major or other minor).
Course Overloads
A CMUQ student must have attained a QPA of at least 3.00 in the previous semester to carry an overload (defined as more than 51 units) of up to 62 units. A student wishing to pursue a greater number of units must petition to do so.
Independent Studies
Students may not register an independent study for courses that are normally available at Carnegie Mellon. Exceptions may be approved by the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs if courses are unavailable or legitimate schedule conflicts seriously hinder completion of degree requirements within four years of matriculation.
Non-Carnegie Mellon Courses
Carnegie Mellon University offers students the opportunity to take courses for credit through a cross-registration program and through the receipt of transfer credit from other accredited institutions. The Carnegie Mellon transcript will include information on such courses as follows:
Carnegie Mellon courses and courses taken through the university’s cross-registration program will have grades recorded on the transcript and be factored into the QPA. All other courses will be recorded on this transcript indicating where the course was taken, but without a grade. Such courses will not be taken into account for academic actions, honors or QPA calculations. (Note: Suspended students may take courses elsewhere; however, they may not receive transfer credit.)
Definitions
- A Carnegie Mellon course is one conducted under Carnegie Mellon regulations regarding course content and grading and taught by faculty under the supervision of a Carnegie Mellon academic unit. Courses taught by Carnegie Mellon faculty on the Carnegie Mellon campus qualify. Courses that are part of the regular offerings of other universities do not qualify, unless faculty at the other universities receive appointments at Carnegie Mellon and handle Carnegie Mellon students under Carnegie Mellon academic regulations.
- Courses offered for cross-registration are those taken through an agreement with Texas A&M University at Qatar; Georgetown School of Foreign Service in Qatar; Northwestern University in Qatar; Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar; and Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar that full-time students at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar can take up to one class a semester at their schools. Cross-registration requires the completion of a cross-registration form with the appropriate signatures from the home and host institutions. Completion of the form does not guarantee a space in the requested course. The agreement only applies during the regular academic year, normal course transfer rules apply in the summer.
Students may receive credit for courses taken outside of Carnegie Mellon if they successfully petition the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs in advance for permission. Students must take these courses for a letter grade and instruction must be in English for non-language courses. Credit (but not the grade) will transfer for courses with a grade equivalent to at least a “C” at some institution and at least a “B” at others as determined by the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs. It is difficult to get transfer credit approval for Business Administration, Computer Science, Economics, Information Systems, and Mathematics/Statistics core classes. The class's course description must be a close match to the Carnegie Mellon course and from an acceptable four-year institution. Students may take breadth and elective courses at a broader range of schools including two and three year institutions as long as the course is equivalent to a similar offering at Carnegie Mellon. Students may not receive credit for any courses taken on-line.
Students may not receive credit for more than five non-CMU courses during their undergraduate career as a Carnegie Mellon student. Classes taken prior to enrolling in Carnegie Mellon, during study abroad semesters, and as cross registration with other education City schools do not count toward the credit transfer limit. All students must meet the University's residency requirement of completing at least 180 units of Carnegie Mellon coursework.
Transferring
Between majors in Qatar
Students may transfer between majors at CMUQ on a space available and academic performance basis. Students interested in transferring should consult with the Assistant dean for Academic Affairs. First year students may not apply for transfer until they receive their spring mid-semester grades.
In Same Major between Qatar and Pittsburgh campuses
CMUQ and Pittsburgh students wishing to transfer between campuses but within their majors should consult with their home Academic Dean. Students are not eligible to apply for transfer between campuses until they meet the following conditions. BA students must have completed 70-208, Biology students 03-231, CS students 15-210, and IS students 67-272. Success of the application depends on the student's academic performance and the space available in the major on the campus they wish to join. Transfers between campuses are subject to the approval of the Academic Dean for the program on the campus that the student is seeking to join.
Transferring to Pittsburgh in majors not offered in Qatar
Students seeking to transfer to the Pittsburgh campus into a different major do so through the normal processed established by those departments.
Transfers to Qatar from other Universities
Transfer students from other universities must apply through the Carnegie Mellon in Qatar Admission office. If the admission office finds the applicant admissible, they forward the application to the Assistant dean for Academic Affairs who then determines if there is space available in the program and if the student's past academic performance warrants admission.
Campus Exchange
CMUQ and Pittsburgh students may study on the other campus for one semester on a space available basis and with the approval of both the home and host departments. Given the capacity limitation on both campuses, exchange between campuses is limited to an excess of two per cohort in any major beyond a balanced exchange. As an example, if two sophomore BA students travel from Doha to Pittsburgh in a fall semester then four sophomore BA students may travel from Pittsburgh to study in Doha that semester. Students from any major are welcome to study for a semester in Qatar but if space limitations apply, students from majors offered in Qatar have priority.
The number of students studying in Pittsburgh and Doha do not have to balance in the summer but space limitations and dual approvals still apply.
University Honors
Students maintaining a 3.5 QPA after seven semesters of full time enrollment or raising their QPA to 3.5 upon completing their graduation requirements graduate with university Honors.