Part of the academic structure at Beacon College requires students to select their courses carefully at the start of each semester. Once courses have been selected, students may drop or add courses within the first week of the semester without penalty. After the final cutoff date, students who drop a class will have to complete a withdrawal form from the course, which goes on their permanent record.
Full-time students at Beacon College take between 12 and 15 credits per semester. The maximum credits that a student can take is 15, but with proper approval and a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.3, students can be considered to take more than the 15.
Students at Beacon College are expected to try their best and earn grades that reflect their academic achievements. However, if a student fails a required course, he will be required to take the class over again. Upon receiving a higher grade for the course that was retaken, both grades will appear on the student's transcripts, but the higher grade will be counted towards the cumulative GPA. This is the college's "forgiveness policy," which may only occur twice during the student's career at Beacon College.
If a student does not maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0, she may be put on academic probation for the upcoming semester. Being put on academic probation for two semesters in a row puts the student at risk of being dismissed from the college altogether.
Students at Beacon College will select a major from one of the three areas of study. Each degree has its own academic requirements for how many credit hours are necessary for completing the program. Students can also claim a minor in addition to their major.
All new students must take a college placement test to gauge their academic level. If students receive a "pass" on a specific portion of the exam, they may be exempt from having to take the general course during the academic year. Students can use the College Placement Test as a means of testing out of certain courses.
Provisional acceptance refers to students who do not meet the minimum qualifications to be admitted into Beacon College but exemplify potential and willingness to learn. Beacon College allows such students to attend with provisional acceptance. The provisional acceptance students have academic requirements that must be met. For instance, they must maintain a grade point average of 2.0 during their first year of school. Failure to meet the GPA standards may result in the student being terminated from the program. Students that meet or exceed the 2.0 GPA score shall be removed from provisional status and accepted into the program.