MA Program Policies

PROGRAM POLICIES: A STUDENT'S GUIDE TO SELECT PROGRAM POLICIES AND COLLEGE

PROGRAM OF STUDY: Upon admission, each student should devise an individualized program of study in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies.

ADVISING: All students should periodically meet with the Director of Graduate Studies. The Director holds office hours on a regular basis during the fall and spring semesters. Their office hours appear on the History Department’s homepage and on the Department's bulletin board outside NAC 5/144. During the fall and spring semesters, appointments are not necessary for office hours, although it is recommended that you inform the adviser in advance to avoid scheduling conflicts with other students. During the winter and summer breaks, advising is by appointment only and the availability of the graduate and undergraduate advisers will vary. During college breaks, students requiring help with completing paperwork or clarifying complex questions related to College policies should make an appointment with the Graduate Adviser in the Dean of the Humanities Office.

COMMUNICATIONS: The vast majority of departmental correspondence, announcements, and updates are sent via email to the CCNY accounts of all registered students. Students should regularly check for and read the departmental correspondence sent to their CCNY accounts. Likewise, the Director of Graduate Studies is available to address students' questions by email as well as in person.

THE ACADEMIC CALENDAR: Each semester, the College publishes an academic calendar that lists the academic schedule and the most important curricular deadlines for the College community. Students should consult the Academic Calendar at the beginning of each semester and note all the deadlines that pertain to them. Among others, the deadlines for registering for classes, for the resolution of "incompletes" and for "withdrawal" from current classes all appear on the Academic Calendar.

REGISTRATION FOR CLASSES AND REGISTRATION HOLDS: Students entering the M.A. program register for classes in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. All students register for classes through CUNYFirst. Students should note the dates for registration listed under their CUNYFirst account and they should register for classes at the earliest date possible, in order to ensure their admission to classes of their choice.

Students with registration holds will not be permitted to register for classes until they take action to have them removed. It is the student’s responsibility to resolve all holds before the end of registration for the upcoming semester; for this reason, it is strongly recommended that all students check their CUNYFirst account well in advance in order to identify and resolve in a timely manner any registration issues. .

GOOD STANDING: All M.A. students are required to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher in their History coursework. Furthermore, the College requires that all graduate students maintain an overall GPA of 3.0. Earning a grade of B- or lower in an M.A. course is a cause for concern because it puts a student in jeopardy of falling below the required GPA. The College will automatically place students on academic probation if their overall GPA falls below a 3.0. Students who fail to restore their GPA to 3.0 or higher after the first semester on academic probation will be subject to dismissal from the program. Students on probation should devise their plan for further study in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies and must seek the removal of any academic holds on their registration with the Graduate Adviser in the Humanities Office.

INDEPENDENT STUDY: In certain circumstances a student may wish to request to pursue an Independent Study with an individual faculty member. An Independent Study is only granted to meet special student needs that are not covered by regular course offerings. The granting of an Independent Study is at the discretion of the Department Chair and the faculty member, who is responsible for filing the "Request for Independent Study" with the College. Each instructor will structure independent study courses differently. The student should establish the content with the instructor and seek clarification of the individual instructor's availability, expectations, and requirements for final work before the submission of the "Request.". There are limits on the number of Independent Study courses that may count towards the History degree at City College. The Program adheres to the following guideline:

A maximum of nine credits in Independent Study may be credited towards the degree, including any credits earned in HIST B9900 Thesis Research and the graduate section of the Research Colloquium.

CUNY EPERMITS: With the prior approval of the Director of Graduate Studies students may take up to six credits of graduate-level History courses at other CUNY campuses via e~permit in CUNYFirst. Students must put in writing to the Director of Graduate Studies the academic rationale for the request of an e~permit course: courses taken without prior approval by the Director may not be accepted for credit toward the completion of the MA Degree in History at CCNY.

WITHDRAWALS: If a student is unable to keep up with the coursework for a class, it is strongly recommended that the student "withdraw" from that class. After consulting with an adviser the student can withdraw from a class in CUNYFirst. Students who wish to withdraw from a class with a grade of "W" must do so before the deadline for withdrawal set by the College and listed on the academic calendar.

INCOMPLETES: In the case that the College deadline for withdrawal from classes has passed and a student cannot complete their work for a class by the end of the semester, the student should request an "incomplete" of their instructor well before the College deadline for the instructor's submission of grades. The granting of the "incomplete" remains at the discretion of the instructor, and in the case that it is granted the instructor will set the deadline for completion of the work. If an incomplete is granted, students MUST turn in their missing work to the instructor before the College's official deadline for the instructor's submission of a letter grade to replace the "INC." The College deadline for incompletes in graduate courses appears on the Academic Calendar. Per College rules, unresolved incompletes--that is, incompletes for which a grade has not been received by the pertinent deadline--automatically become "F"s.

CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity: Students should familiarize themselves with the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy. 

APPEALS: A student who has a grievance about a letter grade should appeal first to the instructor involved. If no resolution can be reached, the student should then consult the Department Chair and, finally, the Graduate Adviser in the Office of the Dean of the Humanities. The appeal of other academic matters governed by College-wide policies should be made directly to the Dean of the Humanities.

TRANSFER CREDITS: Students entering the Program who have done graduate-level coursework in History that was not for an awarded degree may apply for transfer credits. To apply for transfer credit the student must complete and submit to the Director of Graduate Studies their part of the "Application for Advanced Standing," a form available through the Division of the Humanities and the Registrar’s Office, along with all the supporting materials necessary for an evaluation of the courses for transfer credit, such as the pertinent transcripts, course syllabi, and written work. At the time of writing, there is a residency requirement of 24 credits at The City College. Consequently, the Program may accept up to six credits from other institutions.