Office of Advising
Office of Advising
The Office of Advising assists students, faculty, and prospective students in navigating SUNY Geneseo's curriculum. Advising at Geneseo is a one on one relationship between a student and a faculty advisor and/or a student and a professional advisor in which the student shares their interests and career plans and the advisor assists in building an academic and co-curricular path through the institution.
Affirming Our Values
The Office of Advising serves all students at SUNY Geneseo, and to serve all students well, we must acknowledge that our culture remains one in which students of color, and especially black students, continue to face racial injustice. In line with President Battles’ May 31 avowal of SUNY Geneseo’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, we affirm our support of those who denounce and actively resist racism and injustice. Our educational values in the liberal arts tradition ask us to think deeply and critically, to read broadly, and to act ethically and responsibly in our immediate and wider communities. To that end, we encourage all students to explore the ways Geneseo's curriculum teaches about identity, intersectionality, and human diversity.
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Office of Advising
106 Erwin Hall
One College Circle
Geneseo, NY 14454
Phone: 585-245-5541
Email: advising@geneseo.edu
Office Hours
Mon - Fri. 8:00am - 4:00pm
Key College Policies Related to Advising
These policies are copied and pasted from the 2024-2025 Undergraduate Bulletin and Student Handbook.
- Academic Standards
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All matriculated students are expected to maintain satisfactory levels of academic achievement (at least a 2.00 cumulative grade point average and appropriate levels of credits completed satisfactorily in each semester) throughout their tenure at Geneseo and to make satisfactory progress toward their degrees. Note that some departments and programs require higher grade point averages for admission to and/or progress in the major. The Advising Office monitors students’ progress at the end of each fall and spring semester.
The College recognizes that some students will need assistance in making the adjustment to the demands of college work. The College’s academic standards regulations provide short-term, provisional requirements intended to help these students make satisfactory progress toward their degree.
Changes or revisions in Academic Standards are approved by the College Senate and distributed by the Advising Office. Academic Standards and other academic policies for students in the Access Opportunity Program are available from the Director of AOP.
Good Standing
Good standing status for a semester is defined for full-time, matriculated students as: (1) the successful completion of a minimum of 11 credits of coursework (8 credits for students in their first semester at Geneseo), and (2) a minimum term and cumulative grade point average of 2.00. Students should note that financial aid and many scholarships, including Excelsior, have higher credit requirements for students to remain in good standing; students should look at the terms for their individual aid packages.
Good standing status for a semester is defined for part-time, matriculated students as: (1) the successful completion of all attempted credits; (2) a minimum term and cumulative grade point average of 2.00.
Credit Warning
Students are placed on credit warning if they do not earn the minimum number of required credits:
- Full-time, matriculated students who do not earn 11 credits
- Part-time, matriculated students who do not earn all the credits they attempted
- Full-time, matriculated students in their first semester who do not earn 8 credits
Academic Warning
Students are placed on Academic Warning if they complete the minimum number of required credits and their Term GPA is under a 2.0, while their cumulative GPA is over 2.0.
Academic Probation
Matriculated students are reviewed for academic probation at the end of each fall and spring semester. First-semester students, whether first-year or transfer, are not subject to academic probation. Matriculated students who have completed at least two semesters at Geneseo will be placed on probation if their cumulative GPA falls below 2.0 or if they have two consecutive semesters of Credit Warning. Any student placed on credit warning, academic warning, or academic probation will will receive a letter from the Director of Advising or Dean of their College recommending that the student take such actions as seeking academic counseling and reviewing work schedules. Students placed on academic probation will be required to receive academic advisement before registration. Students on probation must meet the criteria for good standing in their next semester or they will be dismissed. Unless otherwise stipulated by the Director of Advising, students on probation are not precluded from participation in college-sponsored co-curricular activities, unless indicated by that activity.
Notes:
- The College defines a “full-time” load as 12 credits registered and paid for. The minimum number of credits required to meet the good standing status is not the same as a “full-time” load.
- Students receiving financial aid should consult the Financial Aid Office concerning credit minimums for eligibility to receive or retain financial aid.
- Attendance at the Beginning of the Semester
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All students are expected to attend each meeting in the course in which they are registered, beginning with the first scheduled class meeting; the only exceptions to the foregoing are students who add the course later in the Drop/Add period or who have made prior arrangements with the instructor.
Students who know in advance that they will be out of class during the first two days of class should notify the Office of Advising and the instructor. With the exception of religious observances, the instructor determines whether an absence is excusable. Therefore, students should make every effort to communicate directly and promptly with their respective instructors if they are absent.
- Minimum Grades
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Students must repeat courses in their majors in which they received a grade of D or E if those courses are designated as “minimum competence requirements” by the major department. Minimum competence in those courses is demonstrated by earning at least a C- grade. Students may not enroll in any subsequent courses having any minimum competence requirements as prerequisites unless the minimum grade of C- has been earned in the prerequisites or unless special permission is granted by the chair of the department.
Students who receive special permission to take a subsequent course and who earn a final grade of C or better in that course will not be required to repeat the minimum competence prerequisite course(s) in which a grade of D was earned. Consult the individual department program descriptions in the Undergraduate Bulletin for the list of courses identified as requiring “minimum competence” in each major.
Note: that a C- grade may not be sufficient to meet the College standards of 2.0, or the higher grade point averages required by the School of Business and the School of Education.
- Repeat Course Policy
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Although there are restrictions on repeating certain courses, generally, students may choose to repeat courses in which they have earned grades of D, E, F, U, or W. Courses in which students earned grades of P, S, C- or higher, may not be repeated. The repeat course option is subject to course availability. Credits for a repeated D course will be counted only once toward graduation. Students who wish to repeat a course assume responsibility for knowing what, if any, repeat restrictions apply to any particular course. Restrictions are noted in individual course descriptions in the Undergraduate Bulletin. Invalid or improper enrollments may result in loss of registration, grades, and/or credits.
If a student violates the Repeat Course Policies by enrolling in a course that they are ineligible to repeat, the student may be administratively withdrawn from the course. Students may not use the Pass/Fail option for repeating courses in which grades of D or E were earned.
Financial Aid Notice: Students receiving aid should consult the Financial Aid Office before repeating a course. Repeated courses may have an impact upon financial aid eligibility.
Grade Calculations in Repeated Courses
Repeated courses will be reported as follows: a) the original and the repeat grade(s) appear on the transcript; b) only the higher (or highest) grade is included in the calculation of the cumulative grade point average. When a student earns the same grade in a repeated course a) the grade is calculated once in the cumulative grade point average and b) the credits and quality points are applied to the most recent term or semester in which the grade was earned.
- Incomplete Grade Policy
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A temporary grade of “I” (incomplete) may be awarded when a student has been unable to complete a course due to circumstances beyond his or her control. Instructors determine whether an “I” grade is appropriate and work out a plan for completion of required work with the student. A grade of “I” must be converted to a letter grade within six weeks of the start of the semester following the semester in which the “I” was awarded. If the “I” is not converted to a letter grade within six weeks of the following semester, it will be converted to an “E.” An extension of the six-week period is permissible, if the supervising faculty member agrees. The faculty member must contact the Registrar’s Office to request the extension and indicate the new deadline for completion.
Students with “I” grades are not eligible for the Dean’s List during the semester in which the “I” was awarded. Students with financial aid awards should contact the Financial Aid Office prior to requesting any extension of the “I” grade.
It is highly recommended that students and faculty submit an incomplete grade agreement with the Office of the Registrar.
- Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism
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Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the representation of someone else’s words or ideas as one’s own, or the arrangement of someone else’s material(s) as one’s own. Such misrepresentation may be sufficient grounds for a student’s receiving a grade of E for the paper or presentation involved or may result in an E being assigned as the final grade for the course.
Any one of the following constitutes evidence of plagiarism:
- direct quotation without identifying punctuation and citation of source;
- paraphrase of expression or thought without proper attribution;
- unacknowledged dependence upon a source in plan, organization, or argument.
Academic Dishonesty Policy and Procedures
Academic dishonesty includes cheating, knowingly providing false information, plagiarizing, and any other form of academic misrepresentation. Should incidents of academic dishonesty occur, the following procedures will be followed:
I. A faculty member suspecting dishonesty will confer with the student so accused, within a reasonable time after the alleged offense has been discovered.
A. If the student denies responsibility and the faculty member is convinced that the student is not responsible, the matter is dropped.
B. If the faculty member is convinced that the apparently unethical behavior was unintentional, the faculty member will help the student understand what was done wrong and how to avoid doing so in the future. Unintentional violations should be reported by the faculty member in accordance with Section III below.
C. If the student admits the act of dishonesty, the penalty will be an “E” on that assignment/test, a final grade of “E” for the course, or other appropriate penalty as determined by the faculty member depending on the severity of the infraction and the significance of the assignment. When an “E” is levied on an individual assignment/test, the faculty member may require the student to complete additional work in order to continue in the course. Violations should be reported by the faculty member in accordance with Section III below. If the faculty member believes that the dishonesty is severe enough to warrant suspension or dismissal from the College, he or she should refer the case to the Student Conduct Board.
If the student wishes to appeal the severity of the grade assigned by the faculty member, the student will follow the procedures stated in the College academic policy for appeal of grades.
D. If the student denies responsibility and the faculty member is not convinced that the student is not responsible, the case is referred, with supporting documentation, to the Student Conduct Board for action. The faculty member will delay assigning a grade for the course or the assignment until the Student Conduct Board makes a determination of responsibility or no responsibility and takes appropriate College conduct action. Appeal of the conduct action is explained in the College Conduct Procedures. The faculty member will assign a grade after considering the findings of the Board.
If the student wishes to appeal the severity of the grade assigned by the faculty member, the student will follow the procedures stated in the College academic policy for appeal of grades.
E. A student suspected of academic dishonesty may not withdraw from the course until the charges have been resolved. A student who receives an “E” in the course for academic dishonesty cannot obtain a “W” for that course.
II. The Student Conduct Board will be convened to hear cases of academic dishonesty when any of the following occurs:
A. The student denies responsibility and the faculty member is not convinced that the student is not responsible.
B. The faculty member is not convinced that the admitted violation was unintentional.
C. The faculty member believes that the violation is severe enough to warrant suspension or dismissal from the College.
D. The student has been involved in a previously documented incident of academic dishonesty.
III. Whenever academic dishonesty occurs, a faculty member will provide the department chairperson, the dean of academic planning and advising, the dean of students, and the student with a written report of the violation, any penalty imposed and the counseling provided by the faculty member. In order to ensure that a pattern of misconduct is not established, the Dean of Students will place a copy of the faculty member’s statement, with a copy of the dishonest materials (where applicable) in the academic dishonesty file in the Dean of Students Office. This statement and supporting documentation will be destroyed no later than three months after the student’s graduation. Decisions of the Student Conduct Board will be placed in the student’s personnel file. Materials placed in the academic dishonesty file may not be released to outside agencies. Contents of the student’s personnel file may be released only as stipulated in the College Records Policy.
IV. If a student witnesses an act of academic dishonesty, she or he should report it to the faculty member of the course involved. That faculty member will handle the matter according to the steps as outlined above.
V. For the purpose of this policy, plagiarism shall be considered to be deliberate representation of someone else’s words or ideas as one’s own or the deliberate arrangement of someone else’s material(s) as one’s own.
Any one of the following constitutes plagiarism:
A. Direct quotation without appropriate punctuation and citation of source.
B. Paraphrase of expression or thought without proper attribution.
C. Dependence upon a source for a plan, organization or argument without appropriate citation.
- Grade Appeal Process
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The College recognizes that it is the instructor’s prerogative to determine a grade. Responsibility for resolving grading disputes is shared among the instructor, the student, the department chair and the Associate Provost for Academic Success
The Director of Advising can assist students with the grade appeals process. The Associate Provost for Academic Success oversees the grade appeal process.
If a student believes that they, she, or he has been graded unfairly, the first step is to schedule a meeting with the instructor to discuss concerns. If, after talking with the instructor, the student continues to believe they, she, or he has been graded unfairly, the student may file a written appeal with the department or program chair. The appeal must be lodged no later than four weeks into the semester following that in which the disputed grade was earned. The only grounds for appealing an instructor’s grade is a student’s belief that a grade has been assigned on a capricious or arbitrary basis. That means:
- The assignment of a grade to a particular student on some basis other than her/his performance in the course;
- The assignment of a grade based on more exacting or demanding standards than were applied to other students in the course;
- The assignment of a grade by a substantial departure from the instructor’s previously announced standards (for example, using criteria not specified in the syllabus).
After reading the written appeal, the department or program chair will consult with both the instructor and the student in reaching a recommendation on the appeal.
If the student is not satisfied with the departmental recommendation, she, he, or they may submit a written appeal to the Dean of Academic Planning & Advising. The Dean may convene a committee of faculty to review the case and make a recommendation to the Dean.
Recommendations of a department chairperson, the Dean of Academic Planning & Advising and faculty committees are advisory only and are not binding on the instructor.
