University Catalogues

Academic Policies and Procedures

Students enrolled in any division of the university are responsible for familiarizing themselves with (and understanding) the implications of all institutional policies, procedures and requirements affecting progress toward their academic goals. These include, but are not limited to, degree and major course requirements and the university’s grading and course-repeat policies. Students who ignore these policies, procedures and requirements do so at their own risk. See the Student Handbook for additional information.

Attendance Policy

Students are expected to attend every class session. For full semester courses, students (whether currently registered in the course or not) must start attending classes by the first class meeting after the add/swap period ends.

An enrolled student who misses the first week of class and is not present at the first class meeting after the add/swap period ends needs faculty and department chair approval to remain in the class. If the add/swap period has ended, instructors retain the right to deny admission to a course to any student who is not yet enrolled.

After a course has met for two weeks, students may not register for it and may not start to attend classes, including those classes for which they are already registered. Instructors must report missing students as “no-shows” to the Registrar at the end of the second week of classes.

Exceptions to this policy can be made only in the following cases:

  • The student has been attending one section of a course but needs to switch to another section.
  • The student has been mistakenly placed in the wrong course and needs to be reassigned.

In such cases the exception will be made by the chair of the relevant department on a case by case basis.

An enrolled student may not be absent from class for a prolonged period of time. The definition of prolonged period is:

  • Two or more consecutive weeks during any fall, spring or summer term;
  • Two consecutive classes during a four, six, eight or ten week session;
  • Any absence during an intensive course.

In cases of a prolonged absence, faculty members should notify either the Registrar’s Office or Academic Services.

This attendance policy will be in effect even when a student misses class due to medical or personal reasons, subject to the University’s obligation to accommodate students with disabilities. Exceptions for medical or other hardship will be worked out through an interactive process and on a case-by-case basis.

A faculty member may hold students to a more restrictive attendance policy, as specified in the course syllabus.

A student not meeting the Attendance Policy may be administratively withdrawn from a course by the Registrar’s office.

Course Away Policies and Guidelines

Once enrolled at Bentley, students can transfer up to 10% of their Bentley program from other institutions through the Course Away Policy. Students are responsible for ensuring they understand and adhere to the Course Away credit maximum.

  • Courses must be pre-approved through the Course Away process.
  • Students take courses elsewhere at their own risk. Students should exercise care as to whether they think courses taken elsewhere will offer the proper foundation for their subsequent coursework at Bentley.
  • A minimum grade of 2.0 (C) must be earned to be eligible for course credit.
  • Students are permitted to take courses away only during interim periods between terms or during the summer term.
    • Please note: Permission to take courses outside of Bentley during Fall or Spring terms will only be granted for students with extenuating circumstances and for compelling reasons. Requests to take courses during Fall or Spring terms must be approved by the Associate Provost of Academic Services and Operations.
  • For seniors intending to graduate in May, and who are approved to take courses away in the Spring term, official transcripts must be received in time to be processed prior to graduation. (Please see the Registrar’s office for deadlines and special instructions.)
  • The Registrar's Office reviews courses students wish to take at institutions outside of the U.S., but in their home country.
  • Students taking in-person courses at institutions outside of the U.S., but not in their home country, must submit the request and corresponding course syllabi to the Cronin Office of International Education for review.
  • Internships and/or internship courses are not eligible for Course Away credit except for approved internship by the Cronin Office of International Education.
  • Students opting to take a course at another institution must ensure they meet the prerequisites established by that institution.
  • Courses must be credit-bearing courses comparable to 3 or more semester credits and may not duplicate previous coursework. Please note: CEU (Continuing Education Unit) courses are not transferable.
  • A maximum of 6 total credits may transfer into a major and 3 total credits may transfer into a minor.
  • Course and Major Focus Communication Intensives may not be transferred to satisfy this requirement.
  • Course Away approvals apply to undergraduate program requirements only.
  • The earned grade will not appear on the transcript. TR will be posted with the earned credit.
To receive credit for approved courses:

Students are required to have official transcript from the college or university where a course was taken sent to the Bentley Registrar's office in order to have credits added to the Bentley transcript. Students should contact the Registrar's office of the college or university where they were enrolled for information on having a transcript sent to Bentley. 

  • Request an official transcript from the outside institution and have it sent to the Office of the Registrar at registrar@bentley.edu.
  • If the transcript needs to be sent via mail, it should be directed to: Bentley University, Office of the Registrar, Course Away, 175 Forest Street, Waltham, MA 02452 .
  •  Transcripts for summer courses away are due by October 15 of the same year; transcripts for winter courses away are due by March 15 of the same year.

PREREQUISITE WAIVER PRACTICE 

If a student's intended course away is needed to meet the corequisite or prerequisite for a course at Bentley, the prerequisite waiver form must be accompanied by documentation confirming that the student is registered for the course away. 

The prerequisite waiver form and the proof of course registration must be submitted to the Registrar's office at registrar@bentley.edu. Without this documentation, the student will not be permitted to register for the Bentley
course with the applicable corequisite or prerequisite.

Please refer to the Course Overload Policy for information on credit limits during the summer and winter terms. 

Transfer Credit Policy

This policy applies to undergraduate transfer students who have earned credits at another accredited institution.  Students seeking to receive Bentley credit for coursework completed at another institution must submit copies of course syllabi, course descriptions, and an up-to-date transcript to the Transfer Admissions office. These materials must be submitted by July 15 for students admitted for the fall semester, and January 15 for students admitted for the spring semesterMaterials submitted after these deadlines will not be considered for transfer credit.  Credit will be evaluated by the Transfer Admissions team, in consultation with faculty, to determine if the course learning outcomes/curriculum match 70% of a course offered at Bentley.  Additionally, a student must have received a C or higher in the course to receive Bentley credit.   

Incoming Advanced Standing Credit Policy

This policy applies to undergraduate students entering Bentley as new students who are seeking credit for exams or college/university courses taken while enrolled in high school. Incoming first-year students may be able to transfer up to 30 credits.  A complete list of approved advanced standing program policies can be found here. Students should submit materials related to these policies as soon as possible, but no later than the first day of classes of their first semester.

Course Overload Policy

Full time student status is defined as enrollment in 12-16 credit hours. Authorization to carry more than 16 credit hours in any one semester is generally given only to students with a 2.7 or higher cumulative grade point average (GPA), or to students with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher and a minimum of 75 earned credits. In special cases, students may file a petition with Academic Services to waive the GPA requirement. Students may not exceed a total of 19 credit hours in any given semester.

Summer Course Overload Policy

Students may enroll in no more than 13 credits of summer course work, 16 if their current GPA is at least a 2.7. This includes summer credits earned at Bentley*, regardless of course delivery mode, transfer credits earned at another institution through the Course Away process, or a combination of Bentley and Course Away (transfer) credits. Students taking courses for credit beyond this limit may not apply the additional course credits to their academic program.

*Summer courses are defined as courses taken between the end of the Bentley spring semester until the beginning of the Bentley fall semester in any given calendar year. Bentley summer courses include May intensives.

Winter Course Overload Policy

Undergraduate students may only register for, and take one, Bentley course during the winter session period in December/January. Due to the compressed workload inherent in these intensive courses, students are strongly discouraged from taking additional courses outside of Bentley during the winter break.

Course Prerequisites

Students are not permitted to attend courses unless all prerequisites are satisfactorily completed, either through Bentley courses or transfer credit.

Departments are not obligated to grant waivers to accommodate a student’s required course of study. Students may petition the appropriate department chairperson for a waiver of a prerequisite for a particular course. The university makes every effort to notify students who fail to meet the appropriate prerequisites. The responsibility, however, is the student’s and the university has the authority to remove students from courses without notice.

Course Repeat Policy

Generally, students are not permitted to repeat courses for which they have received a passing grade, i.e., a D- or higher. The university’s policy on repeating courses is designed to assist students in meeting the cumulative grade point average(s) needed to graduate. Students may only repeat passed courses to raise their overall grade point average (Bentley GPA) and/or the grade point average for courses in their major(s) (Major GPA) to satisfy their graduation requirements, based on the guidelines outlined below. Note that students may not earn duplicate credit for the same course.

All earned grades from Bentley courses, including F’s, will be calculated in a student’s Bentley GPA even when a course is later repeated. In the instance where a student must repeat a major course to meet a minimum Major GPA of 2.00, the grade from a repeated course, unless lower than the original grade, will substitute in the Major GPA(s). The original grade in the major course will be calculated in the Bentley GPA but will no longer be included in the Major GPA(s).

Cumulative grade-point average (GPA) restrictions are as follows:

  • Repeating a major passed course: Major GPA must be below 2.00 and course grade must be below a C.
  • Repeating non-major passed courses: Bentley GPA must be below 2.00 and course grade must be below C.

A student can repeat a course a maximum of two times after the original attempt. This includes grades of F, W and AU.

Students who opt to repeat a prerequisite course may not enroll concurrently in the subsequent course.

Religious Observances Policy

Bentley University is committed to supporting a diverse and inclusive campus culture. We recognize the diversity of religious traditions represented in the campus community, and affirm the rights of students to receive reasonable accommodations when their sincerely held religious observances conflict with an academic requirement, except when such an accommodation would create an undue hardship. We offer reasonable religious accommodations in accordance with Massachusetts state law and Bentley core values.

Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 151C, Section 2B states:

Any student in an educational or vocational training institution, other than a religious or denominational educational or vocational training institution, who is unable, because of his religious beliefs, to attend classes or to participate in any examination, study, or work requirement on a particular day shall be excused from any such examination or study or work requirement, and shall be provided with an opportunity to make up such examination, study, or work requirement which he may have missed because of such absence on any particular day; provided, however, that such makeup examination or work shall not create an unreasonable burden upon such school. No fees of any kind shall be charged by the institution for making available to the said student such opportunity. No adverse or prejudicial effects shall result to any student because of his availing himself of the provisions of this section. A copy of this section shall be published by each institution of higher education in the catalog of such institution containing the list of available courses.

The following are guidelines for students and faculty to follow in order to arrive at an agreed upon accommodation:

For students:

If a student anticipates being unable to attend class, take an exam, or turn in an assignment because of a religious observance, they are strongly encouraged to discuss their needs with their professors at the outset of the semester, but not less than two weeks before the day of the religious observance in order to ensure that the faculty member and the student can adequately determine an appropriate accommodation. Students are expected to work with the faculty member to identify an accommodation that satisfies the specific need of the student while maintaining the necessary academic requirements.  In general, reasonable religious observance accommodations will be made for the day of the religious observance but not for any days preceding or succeeding it.

For faculty:

Faculty are expected to respect the religious traditions of their students and make reasonable accommodations when academic requirements conflict with a student’s sincerely held religious beliefs or practices, unless when such accommodations would cause undue hardship. Faculty should not expect the student to disclose their religious affiliation in order to receive a religious accommodation. Faculty are expected to work with the student to identify an accommodation that meets the student’s needs and those of the class and that maintains equity for all students in the class. A day missed under this accommodation cannot be counted against the attendance policy.

For students and faculty:

Academic Services is a resource to students and faculty when determining reasonable accommodations for religious observances. Students and faculty can reach out to Academic Services at any time with questions regarding how to agree upon a reasonable accommodation. A student is encouraged to work with their professors directly, but they may also choose to work solely with Academic Services, who will then liaise with their professor. Once an accommodation is agreed upon, that agreement should be documented in writing; an email between the student and professor can serve as such documentation.

Pass/Fail/D Course Policy

As Bentley attracts more highly qualified students and offers a greater range of challenging courses, the pass/fail option has become a way for interested students to risk taking elective courses that are intellectually challenging without jeopardizing their GPA as long as they pass the course as defined below.

Policy:  Available for sophomores, juniors and seniors;

  • The pass fail option can be used for one (1) course in the Bentley curriculum.
  • A pass/fail option can only be used for courses that are Business electives, Arts and Science electives, or Unrestricted electives.
  • A student who earns a D-, D or D+ in a course for which they have enrolled pass/fail, will have the letter grade recorded on the academic record. The grades of D-, D or D+ earned in a course for which a student registered pass/fail will be averaged into a student's overall grade point average.
  • Students are not permitted to use pass/fail grades toward their Foundations for Success, Business Dynamics, Context and Perspectives, Business Environment or major courses. 
  • That pass/fail option may be used for courses taken in a minor, with the exclusion of the Business Administration minor.
  • That pass/fail option may not be used for Honors courses.
  • Blended term students are restricted from taking pre-program required courses or courses for advanced credits standing as pass/fail.
  • Students may not use the pass/fail option for courses taken in Bentley-sponsored education abroad programs.
  • Students may not use the pass/fail option for internships, directed studies, tutorials, Service Learning (SL) 120, SL 121, or faculty-led international courses.
  • An academic department may request that a particular course be excluded from the pass/fail option.  Exclusions are noted with “not eligible for P/F” along with course prerequisites in course listings.
  • A Pass/Fail declaration must be indicated by the student prior to the end of the drop period. No faculty member or department chair can waive this deadline.

  • The decision to take a course pass/fail is irrevocable. Pass/Fail declarations should be checked for accuracy. No changes will be permitted after the deadline.

Grading Scale:

  • Faculty will submit letter grades that will be converted by the Registrar's Office.  The pass/fail designation will be updated after all grades are received.
  • A "P" (C- through A) will earn academic credit and is not calculated in the term and cumulative GPA.

  • A "D-, D or D+" will earn academic credit and is calculated in the term and cumulative GPA.

  • An "F" will not earn academic credit and is calculated in term and cumulative GPA. 

Incomplete Grades Policy

As a general rule, all coursework must be completed by the end of the semester in which the course is offered.  An incomplete grade is a temporary designation issued when required work, which can be made up, is not completed by the end of the semester.

Eligibility for an Incomplete Grade

  • An incomplete grade may be granted to a student at the discretion of a faculty member as an accommodation due to the student experiencing unforeseen and extraordinary circumstances at the end of the semester.
  • A student must have consistently demonstrated passing academic work prior to the request for an incomplete. 
  • Incompletes are not automatically granted for students who miss large amounts of class due to illness or personal circumstances. Instructors must not issue an incomplete due to lack of class attendance and/or a lack of completed work. An incomplete grade should not be issued in the following situations:
    • The student needs to attend and repeat most of the course.
    • The student stopped attending class.
    • To allow the student the opportunity to complete additional work or improve upon previously completed requirements after the semester has ended.
  • A faculty member’s failure to complete grading by the deadline is not a permissible reason to issue an incomplete. When a grade designation is required, the faculty member, Registrar, and department chair will coordinate such designation.

An incomplete grade issued in the fall or winter session term must be completed no later than March 1 of the subsequent spring semester. An incomplete grade issued in the spring or summer term must be completed no later than October 1 of the subsequent fall semester.  Faculty members have the discretion to require outstanding coursework to be submitted earlier than the deadlines stated above. Faculty members should email the Registrar’s office to set a deadline earlier than those stated above. It is the student’s responsibility to work with the faculty member to clear the incomplete grade.

An incomplete grade not completed within the required period will automatically convert to an ‘F’. The completion deadline for an incomplete grade may not be extended. A faculty member has up to one year from the last day of the semester for which the incomplete was granted to change a grade. A change of grade may not be submitted after this one year period without permission from the Associate Provost for Academic Services and Operations.

Final Grade Dispute Policy

In very rare instances, students may dispute a course grade. Such cases will be considered by a faculty-led review process described below. Every attempt should be made to preserve confidentiality for all involved in the process.

At any point during the process, the student may terminate the process and accept the original course grade. The Bentley University administration, including deans, has no authority to change course grades. Following are the steps to dispute a final course grade:

  1. All grading disputes shall begin with the student arranging a conference with the instructor. The student must initiate the dispute resolution process within 30 days of the posting of the final course grade.
  2. If the dispute has not been resolved after the student-instructor conference, the student may choose to request a conference with the department chair of the instructor’s primary department, which is normally the department in which the course is offered. If the course in question has a course coordinator (such as for the General Business courses), the course coordinator shall be included in this meeting, even if he or she is from a different department.
  3. If the instructor for the course with the disputed grade is the department chair, the student should contact the chair of the Faculty Senate and request a Hearing Committee.
  4. Prior to the conference with the department chair, a written, detailed explanation of the complaint, along with supporting documents, will be submitted by the student to the department chair.
  5. After the conference with the student, the department chair shall consult with the instructor:
    1. If the department chair believes that the instructor graded correctly, the process ends and the course grade will not be changed.
    2. If the department chair believes that the student may have been graded incorrectly, the department chair will suggest that the instructor consider reevaluating the course grade.
  6. If the instructor still does not believe a course grade change is warranted, the department chair shall request that the chair of the Faculty Senate convene a Hearing Committee of three tenured faculty members to resolve the case.
  7. The chair of the Faculty Senate is directed to choose by lot three tenured faculty members from all eligible faculty members. Members of the instructor’s primary academic department are ineligible. The chair of the Faculty Senate will ask the three member hearing Committee to select a committee chair, who will inform the instructor’s department chair that the Hearing Committee has been formed, except in the case where the instructor is the department chair.
  8. The Hearing Committee will examine all evidence from the instructor and from the student disputing the course grade. Within one week of the Hearing Committee’s final decision, written findings and the Hearing Committee’s decision will be forwarded to the student, instructor, department chair and course coordinator, if appropriate.
    1. If the Hearing Committee rejects the assertion by the student that the course grade is incorrect, the process ends and the grade will not be changed.
    2. If the Hearing Committee decides in favor of the student and the instructor is unwilling to follow the Hearing Committee’s recommendation, the Hearing Committee shall direct the registrar to replace an F or other grade with an S grade. The course counts toward graduation, but is not included in the student’s grade point average.
  9. Within 10 days of receiving the Hearing Committee’s written decision, the student must respond in writing to the Hearing Committee chair, accepting either the Hearing Committee’s decision or the original grade. If the student does not respond, the original grade stands. Then the Hearing Committee will inform the registrar, department chair, instructor, course coordinator and student of the outcome of the dispute process.

Advanced Standing Program Policy

Students enrolled in an Advanced Standing program at Bentley University take up to four graduate courses that are shared between their undergraduate and graduate degrees.

If a student decides to discontinue an Advanced Standing Program they should consider the following: 

  • Enrolled students can choose to discontinue their Advanced Standing Program at any point. Although students cannot typically re-enter the same Advanced Standing program, under special circumstances they may petition the program director to rejoin it.
  • Students have the option to reapply to another Advanced Standing Program once they discontinue their original program. Acceptance to the new Advanced Standing Program is not guaranteed.
  • Students switching from one Advanced Standing Program to another may not exceed a total of four graduate courses between programs. 
  • Discontinuing an Advanced Standing Program will terminate future program fees. However, students remain liable for previously assessed program fees. 
  • If a student discontinues an Advanced Standing Program during their undergraduate degree and has not yet completed four graduate courses, they may qualify to do a blended term during the last semester of senior year (fall or spring semesters only).  Blended term courses may be eligible to be applied to a future graduate program subject to the blended term rules.
  • If a student discontinues an Advanced Standing Program during their undergraduate degree program but is still interested in graduate study, the student may apply in their senior year to a graduate program through the Office of Graduate Admission.
  • Graduate courses taken as an undergraduate student through an Advanced Standing Program will count toward the undergraduate degree but may not count in any graduate program other than the original Advanced Standing Program. This rule applies even if the student discontinued the Advanced Standing Program while an undergraduate. However, courses taken through an Advanced Standing Program may be used as pre-requisites or as a justification for substitutions in a new graduate program.

Return to Studies after a Leave of Absence

Students who seek to return to Bentley to complete their degree after an absence of no more than two years are subject to the catalogue year degree requirements and policies in place when they first matriculated.  Students requesting to return to Bentley to resume their studies after an absence of more than two years are subject to the catalogue year degree requirements and policies in place at the time of their return. 

When possible, students returning after an absence of more than two but no more than five years will be awarded credit for courses previously completed at Bentley. These credits will be applied to meet the new program degree requirements with review by relevant departments.

Students who seek to return to Bentley to complete their degree after an absence of more than five years must reapply for admission through the Office of Undergraduate Admission. Students must submit a transfer application and fulfill the transfer application requirements by their respective deadlines.  Due to changing degree requirements, the undergraduate admission staff will determine which courses taken at Bentley (and elsewhere) will be accepted for credit under the current degree requirements for the term in which the student applies.  

Credit evaluations using the established transfer credit policies will be completed after a student has been potentially readmitted to Bentley and a maximum of 60 credits from all sources combined can be awarded. A maximum of two courses, typically six credits, taken towards major requirements will apply.

Substitutions to Undergraduate Academic Programs

Faculty design program requirements to ensure educational outcomes and accreditation needs.  Ultimately, students are solely responsible for understanding and fulfilling program requirements.

However, if a program requirement is unavailable, and this impacts a student’s ability to graduate in a timely manner, a department chair or program coordinator may approve a substitution under the following circumstances:

  • An academic requirement to complete a required or optional program is not available within one semester of the student’s planned graduation date.
  • An academic requirement to complete a required or optional program is available only outside of a normal fall or spring semester and would require the student to pay additional tuition and/or fees to complete the program.
  • The student demonstrates a compelling need for allowing a substitution within an academic program due to circumstances beyond the student’s control.

Students requesting a program requirement substitution must follow these guidelines:

  • For minor requirements, send a written request to the appropriate minor coordinator who will evaluate the request for substitution.
  • For major requirements, send a written request to the department chair who will evaluate the request for substitution.
  • Department chairs and/or program coordinators will not approve a student’s request for a course or other substitution for the following reasons:
  • Student misses a deadline for program declaration.
  • Student fails to review and understand the stated requirements of a program after declaring the program.

For any substitution request for an academic program, the decision of the department chair and/or program coordinator is final.

Undergraduate Posthumous Degree Policy

An undergraduate degree may be awarded posthumously to a student in recognition of their academic achievement at the time of their death. The degree will be awarded based on the following considerations:

  • The student was enrolled at the time of their passing.
  • The student was in good standing.
  • The student’s earned credits constitute at least 75% of the total credits needed for graduation.

A student who is not eligible for a posthumous degree may instead be awarded a memorial certificate which recognizes the student’s progress toward a degree and contributions to the Bentley community.

The Provost makes the final recommendation to the Board of Trustees. If approved by the Board of Trustees, the Registrar’s Office will confirm the degree or memorial certificate.