• Table of Contents
• The Graduate School Handbook

• Graduate Education
• The Graduate School and the Administrative Board
• Graduate School Staff Directory
• Graduate Education References
• Graduate School Calendar

• General Academic Requirements and Regulations
• Admission and Matriculation
• Eligibility
• Course Credit
• Registration
• Residence Credit
• Graduate Grading
• Assistantships and Fellowships
• Tuition and Other Charges
• Graduation
• Medical or Personal Issues
• Withdrawal from the University
• Policies and Procedures
• Students as Faculty
• Certificate Programs
• Dual Degree Programs
• Generative AI Guidelines

• Degree Requirements
• Master's Degree
• Doctoral Degree

Eligibility

A student may become ineligible to continue studies at UNC-Chapel Hill and The Graduate School for academic reasons and student code violations. For more information, please refer to the University Registrar's Policy Memo No. 7: Cancellation, Withdrawal, and Suspension.

Academic Eligibility

Under certain circumstances a student will not be allowed to continue in The Graduate School. Registration in following semesters for academically ineligible students will be canceled automatically.

A student becomes academically ineligible to continue in The Graduate School for the following reasons:

1. Receives a grade of F, F*, XF, or nine or more hours of L.

• The computation of hours taken will include courses for which the student has received a grade of H, P, L, or F, as well as equivalent grades for courses taken through inter-institutional registration where other permanent letter grades may be assigned.
• Undergraduate courses taken as a graduate student will not be included in this computation.
• If a student completes or withdraws from one academic program and begins study in another academic program, all grades remain part of the permanent record. The grades for any courses to be credited toward the new program will be included in the calculation of academic eligibility.
• Students may refer to Graduate Grading for a more detailed description of grading policies.

2. Fails a written or oral examination for the second time.

• Once a student is notified of failing a written or oral exam for the second time, the student automatically becomes ineligible for further graduate work.
• See Failure of Examinations for Master's degree or Doctoral degree.

Reinstatement

When special circumstances warrant, a student made academically ineligible under the conditions stated above may be reinstated upon petition initiated through the student's academic program. Students and academic program representatives must develop an appropriate academic plan as part of the Request for Reinstatement to Graduate School Form.

The student's director of graduate studies must submit the petition together with a statement endorsing or declining to endorse the student's request to The Graduate School. Final approval rests with The Graduate School. Graduate School staff are authorized to consider routine, first instances of reinstatement requests. If there is a disagreement between the student and academic program, or for any subsequent reinstatement requests, the Academic Policy Committee of the Administrative Board of The Graduate School will hear and vote on the situation. Decisions are final and cannot be appealed.

Academic eligibility reinstatement solely to award the degree is generally not permissible. If a student is declared academically ineligible based on their final term of work, the degree will not be awarded and an academic plan for degree completion should be developed as part of a reinstatement.

After academic eligibility reinstatement, any subsequent grade below P or failure of an attempt of written or oral examinations will result in the student becoming academically ineligible again.

Students declared academically ineligible in one graduate program who later apply and are accepted to another graduate program should contact The Graduate School for direction on their academic standing with the University.

Student Honor Code

Students are subject to the regulations of student government under the Honor Code. Students may become ineligible to continue studies at UNC-Chapel Hill for student code violations. Instances of suspected plagiarism, cheating on examinations, or other violations of the Honor Code should be reported either to the Office of Student Conduct or the Office of the Dean of Students.

It shall be the responsibility of every student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to support and comply with the enforcement of the Honor Code, which prohibits lying, cheating, or involving academic processes or interactions with University, student, or academic personnel acting in an official capacity.

It shall be the further responsibility of every student to hold themselves, as members of the Carolina community, to a high standard of academic and non-academic (i.e., teaching, research, and personal) conduct; namely, to conduct oneself so as not to impair significantly the welfare or the educational opportunities of others in the University community.