Progression Requirements

• Progression and Graduation Requirements: Degree Programs
• Academic Probation: General BA/BSc Degree Programs
• Progression and Graduation Requirements: Honours Degree Programs
• Academic Probation: Honours Degree Programs
• Concentration or Specialization in a Major
• Minor/Option Requirements
• Admission to Limited Enrolment Honours Programs: Arts & Science
• Unclassified Studies

Students in a general BA/BSc degree program without designation may progress and graduate if they achieve an overall grade point average (GPA) of 4.00. A student whose cumulative GPA is less than 4.00 but not less than 2.00 (D) will be allowed to proceed on academic probation for 4.0 further credit attempts. Refer to the Academic Probation: General BA/BSc Degree Programs section which follows.

A student whose cumulative GPA is less than 2.00 must withdraw from the university.

Academic decisions are made at the completion of each full year of study in May or upon completion of a minimum of 4.0 credit attempts (passed or failed attempts).

Students who fail more than 5.0 credits (or equivalent, including repeated courses) will be required to withdraw from the university.
(All failed grades on the transcript are counted, including repeated courses and XF, DR.)

An undergraduate student (registered in an honours or general degree program) is placed on academic probation in the general degree program without designation when they have completed a minimum of 4.0 credits at Laurier, and achieve a grade point average (GPA) between 2.00 (D) and 3.99.

In order to clear probation, students must raise the cumulative GPA to at least 4.00 (C-) by the end of the probationary period, which will extend to the end of the term (May, June, August, December) in which they complete a fourth 1.0-credit attempt (or equivalent) after being placed on probation. The cumulative GPA calculated to determine whether or not the student has cleared probation will include all (be there 4.0 or more) credits completed by the end of the probationary period. A student who fails to clear probation after completing 4.0 credits will be required to withdraw from the university. Exceptions to this rule are described below.

A student who has been placed on probation and who at the end of the probationary period obtains a GPA of at least 5.00 (C) on a minimum of 4.0 credits taken after being placed on probation, but whose cumulative GPA is less than 4.00 will have until the end of an additional probationary period to raise the cumulative GPA to 4.00.

If a student's cumulative GPA falls below 4.00 (C-) after probation has been cleared, the student will be required to withdraw from the university.

While on probation in general degree programs, students in the Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Human & Social Sciences, Faculty of Liberal Arts, and Faculty of Science, (excluding students registered in a non-BA/BSc degree program) will be allowed to register in a maximum of 2.0 full-credits (four 0.5-credit courses) per term. The restriction will be lifted and students will be able to proceed with a regular course load once they have cleared probation. During this period, students are required to contact an academic advisor for guidance.

Students on academic probation in the General BA and BSc (except adult probation) may not cross-register in courses at the University of Waterloo, nor attend another university on a Letter of Permission.

Students who fail more than 5.0 credits (or equivalent, including repeated courses) will be required to withdraw from the university.
(All failed grades on the transcript are counted, including repeated courses and XF, DR.)

Students who fail more than 5.0 credits (or equivalent, including repeated courses) will be required to withdraw from the university.

(All failed grades on the transcript are counted, including repeated courses and XF, DR.)  

Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science - Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Faculty of Liberal Arts, and Martin Luther University College Bachelor of Arts, Economics - Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, Bachelor of Design, Bachelor of Fine and Applied Arts

Effective for honours degree programs offered by the Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Liberal Arts, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences,  the Economics program in the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, and Martin Luther University College these are the grade point average (GPA) requirements:

Students progress from year to year in an honours subject, if they achieve a GPA of 4.00 (C-) overall. Faculty of Arts students in an Honours program also require a minimum major GPA of 5.00 to proceed to year 4 in the major. Students in an honours BA degree are able to graduate in an honours major if they achieve a grade point average of 5.00 overall and 7.00 (B-) in that honours major. Economics majors also require a minimum major GPA of 5.0 to progress year to year.

Students enrolled in honours BBA, BBTM, BFAA, BKin, BMus, BMusTh, BSW programs (Year 1 BBA students are excluded), who fail to achieve the standing required for admission to the subsequent year of their program, may upon the recommendation of the chair and the appropriate dean, proceed on academic probation. The terms of the probation will be determined by the chair and the dean. The approval for academic probation will be communicated to the student on LORIS by the Office of Enrolment Services. An honours student in the above degrees may proceed on probation only once.

NOTE: Students enrolled in Honours BA or BSc programs, or students completing Year 1 in the Honours BBA program are excluded from progressing in honours on probation.

Students in honours BA and BSc programs who do not meet the major GPA progression requirement for their current program, must revise their major, or progress in the General degree program without designation. If the overall GPA is deficient for the honours program, the student must revise their degree to the  three-year general program without designation. Students with an overall  GPA between 2.00 (D) and 3.99 will be placed in the General degree program on academic probation. Those with an overall GPA below 2.00 on a minimum of 4.0 attempted credits are required to withdraw from the university.

Students who fail more than 5.0 credits (or equivalent, including repeated courses) will be required to withdraw from the university.
(All failed grades on the transcript are counted, including repeated courses and XF, DR.).

A concentration (or specialization), is a structured plan of study (to a maximum of 2*) within an honours major requiring a minimum of 1.5 credits (typically included within the credits for the major). Refer to program major sections for course and GPA requirements.

*Only one concentration is allowed for students in the Bachelor of Business Administration program.

The concentration/specialization appears on the official transcript for honours students only.

Regulations pertaining to all Minors/Options include:

1. Minors: Minimum of 3.0 credits, with 2.0+ senior credits required.
2. Options: Minimum of 4.0 credits, with 2.0+ senior credits required.
3. No fewer than 2.0 credits shall be obtained at Wilfrid Laurier University.
4. Must be adjunct to the major; no student may declare a major and a minor in the same discipline.
5. Maximum of two minors/options allowed.
6. All common and program requirements for the secondary program must be fulfilled.
7. Minimum cumulative GPA of 4.5 is required for a minor. If an option or minor requires a higher GPA, that GPA applies.
8. Not available to those in undesignated General BA and General BSc programs.
9. Majors, specializations, concentrations and minors (including options) are all printed on an official transcript. Only majors are printed on the degree parchment.

• Requirements for specific minors/options are included in the Departments section of the: Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Faculty of Liberal Arts, Faculty of Music, Faculty of Science, School of Business and Economics - Economics Department and Martin Luther University College.
  
• Declare a minor/option using LORIS confirmation (March-April) or using a Program Selection Form prior to graduation; the minor can also be declared on the addendum of the Application to Graduate on the student's LORIS account.

There may be instances where student demand for entry or progression into Year 2 of an honours program in the Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Faculty of Liberal Arts and the Faculty of Science exceeds the availability of student spaces. Students who meet the minimum criteria for progression from Year 1 to Year 2 will be considered for admission.

A student's overall GPA calculated from all courses taken at Wilfrid Laurier University will be used to determine admission to these limited enrolment honours degree programs. Departments which intend to use other methods of determining GP(A) criteria for entry to honours programs will so advise students no later than October 1 in the fall term of the student's first year.

The regulations for General BA/BSc degree programs will apply to students registered in unclassified studies, except where additional requirements are specified.

Students who fail more than 5.0 credits (or equivalent, including repeated courses) will be required to withdraw from the university.
(All failed grades on the transcript are counted, including repeated courses and XF, DR.)