Statement of Academic Policy and Statement of Academic Integrity

Course Requirements

For a CMC degree, students must complete at least thirty-two semester courses of academic work, in addition to the required work in physical education. This means an average of four courses per semester for graduation in four years. At least sixteen courses must be successfully completed while students are enrolled at Claremont McKenna College (CMC) (see “Residence Requirement”).

A course at CMC is considered the equivalent of four semester hours or six quarter hours. The number of actual hours spent in class or in a laboratory may vary with the subject matter and the level of the course. Transfer credit, summer school credit, study abroad credit and some other credit may also be counted toward the courses required for graduation, in accordance with established college policies.

General Education Requirements

The general education requirements of the College are designed to challenge students to explore new fields, and to improve their verbal and written skills under the conditions provided by the CMC environment. A crucial part of CMC’s education is small class settings with interaction between students and highly qualified faculty.

The general education requirements are described in detail in the CMC catalog. General education requirements, with the exception of the senior thesis, should be completed by the end of the sophomore year.

Normally, general education requirements are completed at Claremont McKenna College. In some cases, courses completed at other colleges may be approved for general education requirements by the appropriate department chairs. Students entering CMC as freshmen (first time college degree candidates) may not complete more than four general education requirements off-campus (in summer school, through Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate programs, during study abroad, etc.). For more detailed information see “Transfer Credit” and the CMC Catalog.

Senior Thesis Requirement

1. Students must complete a senior thesis in one of their major areas under the supervision of a faculty reader who teaches within that major, unless granted a special exception. The senior thesis must include a serious piece of scholarship in written form and should serve as a capstone experience to a student’s undergraduate education.
2. The senior thesis readers will have full responsibility for assigning grades: this includes content, formatting, grammar, style, etc.
3. Students who have an off-campus major may write their senior thesis in that major under the appropriate course at the major’s sponsoring college. CMC students may use this thesis in lieu of the senior thesis at CMC. If the off-campus major does not offer a senior thesis under its own course number, students must register for the senior thesis at CMC. Students who have a CMC major and an off-campus dual or double major may choose to complete the thesis in either major.
4. Students will receive one course unit of General Education credit for the senior thesis. Students will earn that GE credit in the semester that they complete the thesis. Departments that wish to offer a 2-semester thesis option may offer a thesis preparation course or thesis seminar course for students who want to do a 2-semester project. This preparatory course may be of variable credit, from 0 to 1 unit, depending on the department’s preference. Departments may make this course as formal or informal as necessary.
5. Students who wish to write a senior thesis outside of the major must compose a 3 to 5-page (doublespaced) proposal outlining the project they wish to complete, their rationale for selecting a topic outside of their major, and an explanation of how the proposed project serves as an appropriate capstone experience to their undergraduate education. This proposal must be approved by the student’s major department chair, senior thesis reader, and the reader’s department chair. Department chairs may approve proposals for theses outside the major if they determine the project to be an appropriate capstone experience for the student. Students must submit the proposal and all signatures to the Registrar at the time they register for thesis. Students who receive approval to complete a thesis outside of the major will be registered for the thesis course under their reader’s departmental coordinator.
6. Students must submit their senior theses to the Registrar’s Office in accordance with the guidelines published in the Senior Thesis Syllabus. The Registrar’s Office establishes the due date, distributes the senior theses to readers and applies grade penalties for those who submit their theses after the due date/time according to the following penalty structure: one grade point reduction (i.e., A to A–) for theses turned in up to 24 hours late, two grade points reduction (i.e., A to B+) for theses turned in from 24 to 72 hours, three grade points (i.e., from A to B) for theses turned in from 3–5 days late, additional full letter grade (three grade points) for each subsequent week (5 days) of lateness (or part thereof).
7. Students who have registered for a one-semester thesis may petition the Academic Standards Committee for permission to change to a two-semester project if they meet the following conditions: 1. The special petition to extend the thesis project must be filed no later than the last day to withdraw from classes without academic penalty in the first semester of the senior year. This petition is available from the Registrar’s Office; 2. The student must submit a working bibliography, a full outline, and a rough draft of at least one chapter of the thesis along with the petition.
   
   The student’s reader(s) must submit a written evaluation of the student’s work including an opinion on whether the student’s request to extend the thesis project is appropriate given the work submitted to date. Submission of the required materials in no way constitutes a guarantee that the Academic Standards Committee will approve the student’s petition. However, students who cannot or do not submit the required documents by the deadline may not petition for a thesis extension at all.

Waiver of General Education Requirements

Requests for waiver of general education requirements may only be granted by the Academic Standards Committee. Such petitions must be accompanied by a recommendation from the department involved supporting the request.

Major Requirements

All students must complete the requirements for a major to graduate. The requirements for CMC majors are listed in the CMC Catalog. Many CMC students complete a dual or double major. For further information on major requirements, see the CMC Catalog. Also, degree progress worksheets for each CMC major are available in the Registrar’s Office.

Waiver of Major Requirements

Department Chairpersons have the authority to grant individual substitutions for or exceptions to requirements for the major.

Double Counting of Major Requirements and General Education Requirements

General education requirements in the humanities and social sciences must be completed through courses outside of a student’s major. Students may “double count” courses for general education and major requirements with the following restrictions:

1. For the general education requirement in the humanities, all students must complete at least two courses in the humanities, selected from foreign literature, literature, philosophy, or religious studies. Students majoring in one of these fields must complete courses in three of the four fields (i.e. two general education requirements outside of the major together with courses in the major field). Students majoring in two of the four fields in the humanities also must complete courses in three of the four fields. In practice, they are allowed to “double count” only one course for both a major requirement and a general education requirement.
2. For the general education requirement in the social sciences, all students must complete at least one course in three of the following fields: economics, government, history, and psychology. Students majoring in one of these fields must complete a course in each of the four fields (i.e. three general education requirements outside of the major together with courses in the major field). Students majoring in two of these fields also must complete a course in each of the four fields. In practice, they are allowed to “double count” only one course for a major and a general education requirement.
3. Students with off-campus and interdisciplinary majors, except for Management-Engineering and Science & Management majors, must complete at least a total of six general education requirements in the humanities and the social sciences fields listed above. The appropriate selection varies per major. A list with recommendations is available from the CMC registrar.

Double Counting of Courses in the Major

Students may not count one course for more than one major requirement; i.e., a dual major in history and government may not use a course cross-listed as both government and history for both areas of the major. If two areas of a double major require the same course, students must complete a substitute course for one of the majors. Students may double count a course for a sequence and a major requirement, or for a sequence and a general education requirement, but not for both.

Double Counting of General Education Requirements

One course may not be used to meet two general education requirements. Students may double count a course for a sequence and a general education requirement, or for a sequence and a major requirement, but not for both.

Grades and Grade Point Requirements

Students must earn a final, cumulative grade point average of at least C (6.00), based on all grades received in courses taken while enrolled at CMC during the regular academic year (six times as many grade points as the number of courses attempted at The Claremont Colleges). See “Transfer Credit and Off-Campus Programs” for information on selected summer school courses which may be counted towards the CMC grade point average.

Students must also earn at least a C (6.00) average in all courses taken while enrolled at CMC during their senior year. With permission of the Academic Standards Committee, students may use their last two full-time semesters together with any part-time work at CMC for the calculation of the senior C.

Finally, students must earn at least a C (6.00) average in all courses taken while enrolled at CMC in their major field(s) of study, whether these courses are required for the major or not. If students retake a course in the major, which they had previously failed, the original F will not be counted in the calculation of the major grade point average. The original F will be counted in the calculation of the cumulative grade point average, and if appropriate, the grade point average in the senior year.

Students with a double major must earn a C (6.00) average in each field of their double major. Students with a dual major must earn at least a C (6.00) average in the combined fields of the dual major. For further information on grades, see “Grades.”

Residence Requirement

Students must spend at least two years, including the senior year, and successfully complete at least sixteen courses while in residence at CMC. “In residence” is defined as being registered as a full-time student (at least three full courses) at CMC or in one of its sanctioned programs. Students who have completed all general education and major requirements and plan to enter 3-2, graduate, or professional programs early, may, with the approval of the Academic Standards Committee, satisfy the residence requirement in one year.

Other Degree Requirements

Additional general, major, or departmental requirements as noted in the catalog or as voted by the faculty must also be met. These may include core and major field courses, physical education courses, and comprehensive examinations.

Meeting Degree Requirements

Students must satisfy the general education and major requirements in effect in the year they enter the College. If requirements are changed in subsequent years, students may choose to satisfy either the requirements that were in effect when they entered, or all of those in effect after the change. However, students who are not registered at the College for two or more years, must satisfy the requirements in effect when they reenter the College.

It is the responsibility of each student to ensure that he or she completes all requirements for graduation. The Registrar issues one notice to each student about academic progress towards graduation, usually two semesters before anticipated graduation. Students must review major requirement with the appropriate department chairs.

If students need to take a course, which is no longer offered or is no longer offered in its prior format, they may petition the appropriate department chair to substitute an equivalent independent study or to indicate an alternate course.

Courses taken off-campus may not be used to meet general education or major requirements unless students have received written approval from the appropriate department chair in advance. Students are responsible for obtaining such approval, and for giving a copy to the Registrar prior to completion of the course.

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