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SAS Guidelines

Academic Amnesty

If you were enrolled at Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences*, with a record of poor academic performance and 5 or more consecutive years of hiatus*, you may be eligible to apply for Academic Amnesty in the School of Arts & Sciences (SAS). Please meet with an academic advisor to verify your eligibility prior to reenrollment.

To qualify for Academic Amnesty, eligible students must demonstrate academic proficiency by completing 12 new degree credits of coursework with a grade-point average (GPA) of 2.75 or higher within a single academic year from active re-enrollment.

If Amnesty is granted, a transcript adjustment is applied to your record creating a new GPA based only on coursework completed since active re-enrollment. Grades of D and F will be removed from the cumulative GPA and cannot be used to satisfy degree requirements. Grades of C or better will also be removed from the cumulative GPA, but CAN still be used to fulfill degree requirements.

*In addition to SAS, students previously attending Rutgers, Douglass, Livingston, or University Colleges can inquire about Academic Amnesty.

*Effective June 2023, by referendum vote, the SAS Faculty Committee for Academic Standing amended the required hiatus from Rutgers from 10 consecutive years to 5 consecutive years. The 5 year hiatus requirement applies only to applications received in June 2023 or later.

Eligibility

  • Only students with a hiatus of 5 or more consecutive years from Rutgers University and a cumulative GPA below 2.00 may apply.
  • Prior to being awarded Amnesty, students must demonstrate academic proficiency by completing 12 new Rutgers degree credits with a cumulative GPA of 2.75 or higher, within one academic year.

Conditions

  • Regardless of the prior Rutgers liberal arts unit of enrollment (Douglass College, Livingston College, Rutgers College, University College), all students will be re-enrolled in the Rutgers School of Arts & Sciences (SAS) must satisfy all SAS requirements for degree completion and comply with all SAS academic standards.
  • Previously suspended or dismissed students will be conditionally re-enrolled in the SAS in order to satisfy the Amnesty proficiency requirement by which students may qualify for Amnesty and full readmission.
  • Proficiency requirements must be satisfied within one academic year from the date of first amnesty-eligible re-enrollment and the proficiency GPA standard of 2.75 or higher will be based on the first 12 completed credits. Withdrawing from a semester does not increase the amount of time an Amnesty candidate has to complete the proficiency requirements.
  • If Academic Amnesty is awarded, regardless of previous accumulated credits, all students must complete a minimum of 30 graded degree credits in residence at Rutgers-New Brunswick for degree completion. Proficiency course work completed at Rutgers-New Brunswick may be counted toward residency.
  • Once Amnesty is awarded, students will not be eligible to use the SAS Repeated Course Policy for any subsequent grades of D or F.
  • Students may apply for Academic Amnesty once. Once Amnesty has been granted, students may not at a later time ask for Amnesty to be rescinded or modified. For example, students granted Academic Amnesty may not later request the return of degree credit for prior courses with D grades or request that grades from prior courses with a grade of C or above be computed in the GPA.

If Academic Amnesty is approved

  • All previous Rutgers grades of F and D will be "E-credited". The prefix E on a course credit indicates that no credit is earned toward the degree and no grade computed in the cumulative GPA. Credit from E-credited courses cannot be used to fulfil any major, minor, or general education degree requirements.
  • All previous grades of C or better will be "J-credited". The prefix J on course credits indicates that those credits are earned toward the degree, but the grade is not computed in the cumulative GPA. J-credited courses may be used to fulfil major, minor, and general education degree requirements.

If Academic Amnesty is not approved

  • Upon review of Amnesty Requirements, candidates who have previously sustained an Academic Dismissal from Rutgers University, and those candidates for whom degree completion is not viable, the Committee for Academic Standing will terminate enrollment at SAS.

For More Information

For more information on how to apply for Academic Amnesty and what the requirements are please contact one of the Academic Standing Deans or email .