ADVICE FOR SUSPENDED AND DISMISSED STUDENTS

I’ve Been Academically Suspended. What Does That Mean And What Can I Do?

If you have been placed on academic suspension at the end of any given semester, it means that you are not allowed to return to Stony Brook and take courses during the following semester, unless you are granted special permission to stay on. Students are academically suspended when they fail to achieve at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA following a semester of academic probation.

If you wish to return to Stony Brook the semester immediately following your suspension, you may be eligible to submit a petition for immediate academic reinstatement. If your petition is approved you may return the following semester. If not, you will have to sit out for at least one semester and petition to return again at a later date.

Petitioning For Academic Reinstatement Following Suspension

The following are some considerations/suggestions to think about when petitioning for academic reinstatement, following suspension.

Who Should Consider Petitioning?

If you took a full-time course load and achieved a 2.0 or higher term GPA in the semester immediately prior to suspension you are eligible to petition for immediate academic reinstatement. If your GPA in the semester immediately prior to suspension is below a 2.0, you are not eligible to petition for immediate reinstatement.

Petitioning for academic reinstatement following suspension has no guarantee of approval. You are requesting an exception to the academic policy of the University, so you must make sure that you have a good reason(s) to make such a request. Before you decide to petition, whether it’s for immediate or later reinstatement, spend some time reflecting on your academic path and progress. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I in the right major? Do I like the courses I’m taking or am I just getting by? Do I even have a major yet?
2. Are my current academic goals realistic? (For example: If you hate the sciences and cannot seem to pass chemistry, then maybe medical school isn’t right for you…)
3. Am I making school my top priority or am I letting my job or social schedule take the lead? If I have to work, would I do better if I only worked part-time or only attended school part-time?
4. Am I experiencing debilitating family or personal problems that have prevented me from doing my best academically? Is this the right time for me to be in school or do other issues in my life need my attention, at least for now?
5. Is Stony Brook the right place for me? For some students, Stony Brook is not the best possible fit. Consider your comfort level here before automatically deciding to try to return.

Asking yourself these types of reflective questions may help you to determine if an immediate petition for reinstatement is the best course of action for you. Some students decide that for them, taking classes at another school, working, or just taking time to reevaluate their academic plans and progress can prove very fruitful in the long run. It’s important to petition when you are really ready to come back and prepared to make the kind of positive changes you will need to achieve academic success. Successful petitioning for reinstatement just for the sake of being reinstated, is likely to result in a repeat poor performance and put your academic future at the University in jeopardy.

How Does the Petitioning Process Work?

To petition for academic reinstatement, you’ll need to pick up a petition from the appropriate Academic Advising office and make an appointment to speak to an academic advisor. Students from the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business, the School of Journalism, the School of Atmospheric and marine Sciences, and those without declared majors, should go to the Academic and Pre-Professional Advising Center, E-2360 Melville Library. College of Engineering students should inquire at the CEAS Undergraduate Student Office, Room 127 Engineering Bldg

The petition process is multi-layered. If your first petition is not approved, and time permits, you may appeal the decision with a second petition. However, in order to ensure that your appeal will be reviewed, you must submit a new letter explaining your situation along with any new documentation you have.

What Kind of Documentation Do I Need to Submit With My Petition?

Petitions for reinstatement require the petition form itself, a letter from you explaining why you believe you should be reinstated at this time, supporting documentation, and a self-addressed stamped envelope.

You letter should address the following points:

1. The Past: Explain how you got into academic difficulty to begin with, what circumstances caused you to struggle academically.
2. The Present: Describe what you been doing since your suspension, taking courses, working, healing, etc.
3. The Future: Present an academic plan. An academic plan may clarify a potential major or change of major, outline a specific course load for a given semester(s) or project a graduation date. Submitting an academic plan can help the University to understand that you are serious about completing your degree and that you have put a reasonable amount of thought into how you’re planning to do so.

You should also include supporting documentation to help your case. Supporting documentation can include a number of different kinds of materials, depending on your circumstances. The following is a list of potential supporting documents:

1. Academic documentation; i.e copies of official transcripts or explanatory letters from academic departments or instructors
2. Medical documentation; i.e. a doctor’s note, hospital records, letter from a mental health counselor/therapist
3. Legal documentation; i.e. accident report, legal summons, court documentation, obituary or death notice, police report
4. Financial documentation; i.e. student loan or financial aid information, pay stubs, documentation of financial hardship
5. Letters of support; i.e. from employers or instructors

Petitions should be filled out neatly and completely. Letters accompanying petitions should be organized, succinct, and free of spelling, grammatical and typographical errors. Be sure to keep copies of all documents you submit for your own records.

What Should I Do If I Am Not Immediately Reinstated?

Students who are not immediately reinstated are required to sit out for at least one semester (meaning you cannot enroll in courses at Stony Brook for the semester following suspension) before petitioning for reinstatement. During that semester, a wise course of action would be to enroll in courses at another college, if possible, as a full-time student (at least 12 credits), and achieve the highest grades you can in that coursework. If you hope to eventually return to Stony Brook, the transcript from the other school you attend in the meantime can be used as documentation for your next petition for reinstatement.

Before enrolling in courses at another school, make sure you check with our Transfer Office, Room. 134 Administration Bldg, (631) 632-7028. A transfer advisor can let you know if the course(s) you’re planning to take at another school will satisfy DEC credits. If you need to know if such course(s) may satisfy major or minor program credits, you will need to see an advisor from the corresponding academic department. Not only can you use transcripts from other schools as documentation for reinstatement, but you can also continue to make progress toward your degree even while out on suspension.

If taking courses at another school is not an option for you, you may submit a letter(s) of support, for example, from an employer or other some other appropriate authority (i.e. doctor or counselor).

I’ve Been Reinstated; Now What Do I Do?

Congratulations! Now that you have been reinstated, it’s extremely important to make an appointment to see an academic advisor. Depending on where you are with your degree progress, you may need to see a general academic advisor (about DECS, course registration, etc.) and/or a faculty advisor from your major department. Starting off your first semester of reinstatement with an appropriate schedule is the first step to achieving your goals and recovering from a poor academic performance.

Once you are academically reinstated, you are given two semesters in which to bring your cumulative GPA up to a 2.0 or higher. You will be required to meet with an academic advisor at least once during each of your semesters of reinstatement. At the end of the second semester, if your cumulative GPA is at 2.0 or higher, you will be considered in good academic standing; if not, you will be academically dismissed from the University.

I’ve Been Academically Dismissed from the University; Now What Do I Do?

If you have been dismissed from the University, it means that at the end of two semesters of reinstatement following academic suspension, you failed to reach a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Please consult with the appropriate Academic Advising office for more information.

(Updated: 5/12/09)