A student can drop or add a course during a designated “grace” period outlined in the academic calendar. After the drop/add deadline, enrollment in a course is no longer permitted. If a course is dropped within this period, it will not appear on the student’s transcript. The drop/add deadlines are as follows: 7 days after the start of each semester, as noted in the academic calendar.
Students should also be aware of the tuition refund policy for dropped or withdrawn courses, which is detailed in the section titled “Tuition Refund of Dropped/Withdrawn Course.”
After the Drop/Add deadline, a student may withdraw from a course with the registrar’s permission and will receive a “W” (withdrawn) on their transcript. Students must submit written petitions to the registrar to withdraw from a course, and these petitions must be made within specific deadlines: 5 weeks after the start of each semester for both the first and second semesters, as indicated in the academic calendar. Withdrawing after this deadline or under other circumstances will result in a failing grade (“F”) for the course, unless an exception is approved by the Academic Dean or registrar. Students should also be aware of the tuition refund policy for dropped or withdrawn courses, as outlined in the section titled “Tuition Refund of Dropped/Withdrawn Course.”
A student who intends to withdraw from the IGSB must inform the registrar in writing and is responsible for any outstanding bills. If the student wishes to return to the IGSB within one academic year of their withdrawal, they should notify the registrar and typically will not need to reapply.
If a student receives a failing grade, the professor may allow them to take a reexamination or resubmit an assignment that meets the required quality to raise the grade to a passing level. This must be done within one month of receiving the failing grade. If the student successfully raises the grade, they will earn credit for the course, but the GPA for that course will be recorded as 0.0. Students can retake a course in which they earned a grade. When a course with an “F” is repeated, both the failing grade and the new grade will be included in the cumulative GPA. If a student repeats a course they have already passed, both grades will appear on the transcript, but only the first grade will affect the GPA.
The syllabus for each course outlines the due dates for assignments and the penalties for late submissions without an excuse. Students can request an extension by submitting a written explanation for their inability to meet the deadline before the due date. This request will be reviewed by a committee made up of the Academic Dean, the Registrar, and the Dean of Students, in consultation with the course professor. If the committee finds the student’s reason valid, an extension will be granted. The professor will decide on a new due date, which typically will not exceed three weeks from the original deadline. Only one extension is permitted per assignment. If the extension request is denied, the assignment will incur penalties for late submission.
In courses that require theses, papers, reports, or other special assignments, these written materials must be submitted by the date set by the professor. Students are expected to complete all work during the term. However, under special circumstances, a student may request an incomplete (I) with the professor’s agreement. The incomplete will be removed from the transcript upon completion of the course, following the guidelines outlined in the “Policy for Incompletes.”
Instructors have the discretion to manage late assignments, but the standard policy is a penalty of 0.5 grade points for each day an assignment is late (for example, two days late would result in a 1 point reduction, potentially lowering a grade from an A- to a C+). Additionally, students are not allowed to submit the same or similar assignments for more than one requirement at the IGSB without explicit approval from the instructor. Work completed for another institution (such as undergraduate courses) cannot be used to fulfill assignments at the IGSB. If there are any questions about potential overlap of work, students should consult their instructor.
Students granted an incomplete (I) by the extension committee must complete their work within the specified extension period, which typically ranges from one to four weeks. However, no extension can exceed twelve weeks after the last day of the semester in which the course was taken. If the work is not finished by the deadline, the “I” will be converted to an “F.” If a student completes the work on time, the instructor will assign a final grade. Exceptions to this policy can be made at the discretion of the Academic Dean.
Plagiarism is considered a serious academic offense that is never acceptable. At IGSB, it is viewed as a significant violation of ethical conduct. Plagiarism occurs when a person takes another’s intellectual property and presents it as their own. This typically involves using someone else’s words, phrases, sentences, or ideas without proper citation, including the need for quotation marks and footnote citations for direct quotes.
Plagiarism will be addressed as follows:
First Offense: The student will meet with the professor and/or the Academic Dean, and the incident will be documented in the student’s permanent record. The project in question will receive a failing grade, although the professor may choose to allow a substitute assignment.
Second Offense: If a second instance occurs, the student will face a one-year suspension. Re-admittance to IGSB requires approval from the seminary president in consultation with faculty and the Board of Trustees (BOT).
Third Offense: A third instance will result in expulsion from IGSB, preventing the student from graduating. This action will be determined by the faculty committee and the president, and must be approved by the BOT. Scholarship students who are expelled or withdraw due to plagiarism or other disciplinary actions must repay 75% of the total scholarships received.
All plagiarism cases must be reported to the Academic Dean, who will consult with the full-time faculty. Each case will be considered individually, and the standard procedures may not apply in every situation. For serious offenses (such as intentional or extensive plagiarism), the first step may be bypassed. Additionally, all second and third offenses will be reported to the local church consistory of which the student is a member and to the BOT for further action. The president and faculty will exercise discretion in these matters, and the student has the right to appeal to the BOT.
To ensure complete transparency, students must acknowledge any use of AI tools in their assignments at IGSB, just as they would with any other resources. This can be accomplished by adding a brief paragraph at the end of their assignments, specifying the AI tool used and how it was applied. Students should also include the prompts utilized to obtain results from the AI. Failure to comply with this requirement will be viewed as a violation of academic integrity policies and treated as plagiarism.