1. Course Registration and Withdrawal

1.1 Overview
1.2 Course Selection
1.3 Course Registration
1.4 Course Drop/Withdrawal
1.5 Dissertation Continuation and Thesis Continuation

2. Grading System and Quality Point Average

3. Academic Standards and Degree Requirements

3.1 Code of Student Conduct
3.2 Course Credit and Academic Calendar
3.3 Academic Classifications
3.4 Academic Requirements
3.5 Changes in Requirements
3.6 Continuity of Program
3.7 Prerequisite/Advanced Undergraduate Courses
3.8 Incomplete Grades
3.9 Time Limitations
3.9.1 Commencement

4. Administrative Procedures

4.1 Personal Information
4.2 Student ID Cards
4.3 Health Insurance Fee and Waiver
4.4 Parking

5. Petitions

5.1 Overview
5.2 Change in Status Classification
5.3 Change in Major/Degree Program
5.4 Course Waiver
5.5 Course Repeat and Course Substitution
5.6 Transfer Credit
5.7 Time Limit Extension
5.8 Non-Graduate Engineering Courses

1 - Course Registration and Withdrawal

1.1 Overview
Degree program curricula, course descriptions, and faculty information for each academic department are listed below in the Academic Programs section. Students must follow the curriculum of their program of study published in the Graduate School of Engineering Student Guide and Catalog the year in which they matriculate. Any change in course work or other program requirements must be approved by the student’s program adviser or departmental graduate officer. In addition, students must complete any preparatory courses stipulated at the time of admission.

Registration is mandatory. Any student attending a course who has failed to register properly before the end of the third week of classes in a given semester will not receive a grade at the end of the semester, even if s/he has completed all required course work.

Due to last minute scheduling changes, the Graduate School of Engineering must occasionally substitute faculty or change class meeting times after the registration period has begun. Any student who initially registered for the original course will automatically be registered for the new version should no major schedule conflicts be apparent. Otherwise, the Graduate School will contact all registered students for alternatives. Students should not register for an excessive number of courses or for double sections with the intention of dropping half or more of the courses during the first week of classes. Over-registering complicates course and room scheduling and closes courses prematurely to genuinely interested students.

Any student who is financially withdrawn by Student Accounts prior to the start of any given semester will not be permitted to register for that semester until s/he rectifies the outstanding financial obligation.

Northeastern University reserves the right to cancel, postpone, combine, or modify any course.

1.2 Course Selection
Minimum Required Number of Courses
Full-time students in the Graduate School of Engineering must enroll on a continuous basis and carry a minimum of twelve semester hours of credit per semester. Full-time students for whom English is a second language must enroll on a continuous basis and carry a minimum of eight semester hours of credit per semester.

Any student who holds a Stipended Graduate Assistantship is considered full-time if enrolled in a minimum of six semester hours of credit. All graduate students who are registered for Dissertation or Thesis Continuation or for Dissertation are considered full-time. The Graduate School does not require part-time students to maintain any minimum enrollment.

The Graduate School maintains a course schedule on-line that lists the expected course offerings for the academic year. Students should formulate a program of study in consultation with their assigned program adviser or departmental graduate officer during Fall Orientation.

Courses other than required core courses are offered according to demand and are subject to faculty availability. Students should pre-select courses whenever possible and plan to take them when offered, maintaining flexibility with alternate courses in mind. Not all courses are offered every year; however, the Graduate School will do everything possible to assure continuity of programs and to permit students to make continuous progress towards their degrees.

To register for a course offered by another graduate school at Northeastern, a student must have approval from the Graduate School of Engineering before s/he can request permission from the other graduate school to register for the course. More information is available below in Section 5.

Full-time students may register for a maximum of sixteen semester hours per semester. Part-time students may register for a maximum of eight semester hours per semester. However, a student may petition his or her program adviser or departmental graduate officer for a course overload.

Students who need assistance in course selection, course sequencing, waivers and/or transfer credits should contact their program adviser, departmental graduate officer, or the Graduate School of Engineering.

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1.3 Course Registration
Students may register for all regularly scheduled courses using the myNEU web portal or the Telephone Voice Response System (617.373.8000), beginning several weeks prior to the start of each semester and running until the end of the second week of classes. The myNEU web portal is a comprehensive self-service system for members of the University community. Students may create a myNEU account at www.myneu.neu.edu. Instructions for telephone registration are available in the Graduate Course Offerings booklet published each semester by the Registrar’s Office. All course registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.

To add a course after the second week of classes, a student must complete a Graduate School Late/Closed Course Registration Form, available in the Graduate School of Engineering or the Registrar’s Office. The course instructor and a representative from the Graduate School must sign this form.

All courses have a pre-determined maximum enrollment capacity. Once course enrollment reaches this number, the course is closed. To register for a closed course a student must complete a Graduate School Late/Closed Course Registration Form as above. The Graduate School normally grants permission to enter a closed course in cases where the student has an impending prospective date of graduation, if the course is essential to the student’s program, or if the course cannot be taken in a subsequent semester.

1.4 Course Drop/Withdrawal
Students may drop courses without penalty or tuition liability through the second week of the semester using the myNEU web portal or the Telephone Voice Response System. Students who wish to drop a course after the second week of the semester must file a Graduate Course Drop Form at the Registrar’s Office. Tuition refunds after the second week are made at a decreasing rate through the fifth week of the semester, as described above. After the fifth week a student who drops a course must pay full tuition for that course. In addition, students who drop a course after the third week will earn a grade of ‘W’ (Withdrawn) for that course. It is not possible to withdraw from a course after the ninth week of the semester.

Ceasing attendance or notifying the course instructor of intent to withdraw is not sufficient and does not constitute an official withdrawal. Students will be charged for the course tuition and will earn a grade of ‘F’ should they fail to follow official withdrawal procedures.

More information regarding the course drop and tuition refund schedule is available on-line at www.neu.edu/registrar/billing.html.

1.5 Dissertation Continuation and Thesis Continuation
Students who have not completed their Dissertation or Thesis but who have already registered for the specified sequence or required number of credits must register for Dissertation Continuation or Thesis Continuation in each subsequent semester until the Dissertation or Thesis is completed.

Dissertation Continuation and Thesis Continuation do not carry semester hours of credit; however, students who register are considered to be in full-time status. During graduation clearance the Graduate School of Engineering will retroactively register students who fail to register for the correct sequence of Dissertation Continuation or Thesis Continuation. Once these retroactive registrations are posted on a student’s record, Student Accounts will send a tuition bill to the student.

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2 Grading System and Quality Point Average

Student performance in graduate courses is graded according to the following standard:

Individual faculty members may choose not to use -plus and -minus designations when assigning grades. If they elect to use whole letter grades only, they must announce this to the class at the beginning of the semester.

Northeastern University calculates academic performance with a formula called Quality Point Average (QPA). QPA is the product of the numerical equivalents of the letter grades above and the number of semester hours in a given course. For all intents and purposes, QPA is the same as Grade Point Average, or GPA.

A student’s QPA is a cumulative calculation that includes all coursework, even those courses which do not count towards degree requirements, such as prerequisites.

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3 Academic Standards and Degree Requirements

3.1 Code of Student Conduct
The Graduate School of Engineering will initiate immediate disciplinary action in all cases where a student has failed to adhere to Northeastern University rules and regulations for proper student conduct. Among others, cheating, fabrication, facilitating academic dishonesty, and plagiarism are considered violations which may result in immediate dismissal from the Graduate School. Students should refer to the University’s Graduate Student Handbook for additional information. The Handbook is available on-line at www.neu.edu/admissions/academics/handbook.

3.2 Course Credit and Academic Calendar
All credits are earned as semester hours, and all classes meet on a semester basis. Northeastern’s academic calendar is available in the Graduate Course Offerings booklet, or on-line at www.neu.edu/registrar. Students should consult this calendar for the opening and closing dates of each academic semester, and for other important information, such as Final Exam periods.

3.3 Academic Classifications
Students are classified according to their qualifications at the time of admission:

Regular students are those who meet in full all admissions criteria based on the standards established by the Committee on Graduate Study in Engineering.

Provisional students are those who do not qualify for regular admission based on established standards. In order to continue in the Graduate School of Engineering and be reclassified as a regular student, provisional students must attain a 3.000 QPA in their first eight semester hours of course work and fulfill any other specified requirements. Due to immigration regulations, international students are not eligible for admission as provisional students.

Special students are those who are not pursuing a degree. However, these students must also satisfy admission standards and perform work of a satisfactory level in order to continue taking courses.

Transitional students are those who are of acceptable quality but deficient in their undergraduate preparation with respect to the program of study they wish to pursue. Transitional students must generally complete a battery of remedial or undergraduate course work either before or concurrently with their graduate program as specified at the time of admission. These students must complete their transitional program of study to the satisfaction of their program adviser or departmental graduate officer to be re-classified as regular students

3.4 Academic Requirements
All students must satisfactorily complete an approved program of correlated work of graduate caliber and such other study as may be required by the academic department in which they are enrolled. Regardless of classification, any student whose record is not satisfactory may be withdrawn from the Graduate School of Engineering for poor performance.

To qualify for any degree from the Graduate School a student must attain a cumulative Quality Point Average (QPA) of 3.000 or higher with no more than eight semester hours below the grade of ‘B-’ in all courses applied toward that degree, exclusive of any prerequisite courses. However, prerequisite courses are calculated into QPA. The Committee on Graduate Study in Engineering allows students to take eight semester hours of credit beyond stated minimum degree requirements for the purpose of repeating failed required courses or substituting for elective courses in order to attain the required 3.000 QPA for the completion of degree requirements. Within the above limitations for extra or repeated courses, a student must repeat any required course in which s/he earns a grade of ‘F’ and earn a grade of ‘C-’ or better.

3.5 Changes in Requirements
The continuing development of the Graduate School of Engineering requires frequent revision of curricula. Each yearly publication of the Student Guide and Catalog will reflect such changes. Students are expected to complete the academic requirements of the program as described in the catalog published the year they began studies. However, students may pursue revised program requirements upon departmental approval.

3.6 Continuity of Program
Students are expected to maintain continuous progress towards their intended degree. A student who has attained eight semester hours of Incomplete grades and/or Withdrawals may, at the discretion of the Director of the Graduate School of Engineering, be withdrawn for failure to show continuous progress.

3.7 Prerequisite/Advanced Undergraduate Courses
Students are not awarded credit toward degree requirements for prerequisite courses unless expressly stated by the student’s academic department. Advanced undergraduate courses are sometimes approved for graduate degree credit. A student must petition his or her program adviser or departmental graduate officer in order to complete an undergraduate course for graduate credit. More information is available below in Section 5.

3.8 Incomplete Grades
Students who earn an ‘I’ grade in a course should not re-enroll in that course in a subsequent semester; rather, they must make arrangements to complete the outstanding work with the original instructor. The course instructor will change the ‘I’ grade to the appropriate letter grade when the deficiency which led to the ‘I’ is corrected to the satisfaction of and in the manner prescribed by the instructor. The period for changing such a grade is restricted to one calendar year from the date of its first being recorded on the student’s transcript.

3.9 Time Limitations
All credits earned or accepted for transfer from another institution are valid for a maximum of seven academic years in Master of Science degree programs and for five years in PhD programs once Doctoral candidacy has been established. More information is available below in Section 5.

3.9.1 Commencement
Each student who plans to complete degree requirements and graduate either in the spring or fall (or to earn a January diploma) must access and complete all required steps stipulated in the myCOMMENCEMENT area of the myNEU web portal. The Registrar’s Office will activate myCOMMENCEMENT at the beginning of each semester for the upcoming graduation date. It is the student’s responsibility to properly complete the myCOMMENCMENT procedures and to make sure that they have met all degree requirements, subject to confirmation by the Graduate School of Engineering.

Northeastern University awards diplomas thrice yearly, in January, May, and August, and holds commencement ceremonies in May and August. Students with a January completion may elect to receive their diploma by mail, or may receive it on-stage at the commencement ceremony of their choice. More information is available on-line at www.neu.edu/commencement.

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4 Administrative Procedures

4.1 Personal Information
All students are responsible for maintaining valid personal contact information on the myNEU web portal. A student may not use a departmental mailbox as his or her mailing address.

4.2 Student ID Cards
The Registrar’s Office issues photo ID “Husky” cards to all full-time students and to those part-time students who request a Husky card. A Husky card is required for access to certain University services such as Snell Library. More information is available at www.neu.edu/registrar.

4.3 Health Insurance Fee and Waiver
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts requires all students who are enrolled in a degree or certificate program and who carry a certain course load demonstrate evidence of coverage by a qualifying health plan for unanticipated medical costs. To this end, Northeastern University automatically enrolls students in the Northeastern University Student Health Plan (NUSHP). Students who have other insurance coverage may waive NUSHP. Waiver information is available through the myNEU web portal at www.myneu.neu.edu More information is also available from University Health and Counseling Services, on-line at www.uhcs.neu.edu.

In addition, all full-time students must submit proof of immunity from various diseases prior to registering for courses. Failure to fulfill this requirement can delay registration and result in a penalty fee and additional fee for a physical examination. Comprehensive health services information is available on-line at www.neu.edu/uhcs.

4.4 Parking
Prior to the start of each academic year or semester, faculty, staff, and students can apply for a parking permit on-line. Parking applications are usually available during the week prior to the start of each academic term. Parking permits are issued on a first-come, first-served basis. There is a fee for parking at Northeastern. More information is available on line at www.parking.neu.edu.

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5 Petitions

5.1 Overview
The petition procedures described below are required in all cases so that the Graduate School of Engineering may maintain a complete and accurate file for all students. All petitions, unless otherwise noted, must be formally made on a Graduate School of Engineering Petition Form and approved by a student’s adviser or departmental graduate officer and by the Director of the Graduate School. Other approvals may be required as stipulated by the Graduate School upon petition review.

5.2 Change in Status Classification
Students may petition to change their student status from full-time to part-time study within the same program by filing a petition form in the Graduate School of Engineering. Departmental approval is not required in this case. However, students who hold an assistantship, or whose department requires full-time students to complete a Project or Thesis, must have departmental approval to change status. International students are subject to the rules governing their immigration status and should consult with an adviser in the International Student & Scholar Institute before filing a status change petition.

Those who wish to change status from part-time to full-time study within the same program must have completed a minimum of eight semester hours of course work with a minimum 3.000 QPA. Students in this case must petition their adviser or departmental graduate officer for approval.

5.3 Change in Major/Degree Program (Concentration)
A student who wishes to change his or her major area of concentration within the same program must submit a completed petition form to his or her program adviser or departmental graduate officer for approval. The adviser will then forward the petition form to the Graduate School for final approval. Note: A student who wishes to change his or her degree program must re-apply for admission to that program.

5.4 Course Waiver
A student may petition to waive any core, or required, course when s/he has completed equivalent or similar course work elsewhere. The student must submit a completed petition form, along with a course description and official transcript from the institution where s/he completed the course.

Note: Course waivers do not decrease the number of required semester hours in any program of study.

5.5 Course Repeat and Course Substitution
A student may repeat a course, in which case the original grade will remain on his or her academic transcript, but will not be calculated in the QPA. The second grade will stand, and will affect the QPA, regardless of performance. A “Repeat” code will appear on the student’s transcript. A student must repeat any core, or required, course in which s/he earns a grade of ‘C-’ or lower.

In the case of elective course work, a student may take an additional course beyond minimum program requirements in order to substitute for a course already taken. In this case, a student must file a petition for approval. A “Substitute” code will appear on the student’s transcript. The substitute course must be graduate-level.

Students may repeat or substitute a maximum of eight semester hours in their program of study. In all cases, the original course and grade will remain on the student’s transcript; however, the original grade will not be calculated in the QPA.

5.6 Transfer Credit
The Graduate School of Engineering allows up to nine semester hours of graduate credit earned from outside Northeastern University to be applied towards a Master of Science degree. A valid course must be 1) in the student’s field of study; 2) graduate-level; 3) from an accredited, or, if international, a recognized, college or university, and 4) carry a grade of B (3.000) or better. In addition, the course cannot have been used to fulfill any other degree requirements and must have been taken within the seven-year time limitation for degree program completion. The Graduate School advises students who wish to enroll in a course outside of Northeastern for transfer credit to file a petition prior to enrolling in that course.

A student must file a petition and attach a description of the course, as well as an official transcript from the institution where the course was taken. The petition must indicate if the outside course is meant to be equivalent to an existing Northeastern course. Semester hours of credit transfer in number, while quarter hours are converted to semester hours at a rate of 4 QH to 3 SH before being posted on the student’s academic transcript. Transfer credits are applied towards a student’s degree requirements; however, the grades are not calculated in the QPA.

5.7 Time Limit Extension
A student who cannot complete his or her program of study within the required time limit must petition for a time limit extension. The petition must include a specific course of action to be undertaken by the student to complete the degree program as soon as possible.

5.8 Non-Graduate Engineering Courses
To request that an advanced Northeastern University undergraduate course be applied to a graduate degree program of study, a student must file a petition for approval. The student must also provide a letter from the undergraduate student services coordinator stating that the course has not been used previously to satisfy any other degree requirements. No more than four semester hours of undergraduate coursework may be used towards a graduate degree.

A student who wishes to take a graduate course at another college within Northeastern must also file a petition for approval. The student must bring the approved petition to the Graduate School which offers the desired course and follow its registration procedure. Interdisciplinary degree students are not required to follow this procedure when the course is considered part of the degree program.

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