Academic Policies and Student Forms

Students in the J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication are expected to comply with the academic requirements and regulations listed in the University section of the Undergraduate Bulletin.

The college adheres to university policy on academic dishonesty, found in the University section of the Undergraduate Bulletin. Ethical behavior is essential to any communication professional, and it is expected of students in the College of Communication. Cheating, plagiarism, unapproved collaboration or falsifying work in whole or in part are infractions that can result in failure in the assignment or course or even dismissal from the college.

You are assigned a faculty adviser with whom you should confer at least twice each term. Among other duties, the faculty advisers help you plan and accomplish your program of studies. However, it is wholly your responsibility to know and fulfill the requirements for graduation specified for your selected program. For more information, visit the advising page on our website.

Courses in the Diederich College of Communication often include faculty-guided performance in the classroom, theatre, studio and laboratory, as well as on- and off-campus professional activities.Any absence from class, regardless of the reason, prevents students from getting the full benefit of the course. For that reason, it is important to be present. However, COVID-19 has created a need for greater flexibility since students should not come to class if they are ill or if they risk exposing other students. Students who miss so many classes that they cannot succeed academically may be withdrawn from the class with a grade of WA (withdrawal due to excessive absences).Attendance policies will be announced by individual teachers in their syllabi and are often covered in their first class meetings. Students are responsible for knowing each course’s absence regulations and are bound by the policies for that course. In general, many instructors allow students to be excused from four 75-minute periods or from six 50-minute periods in a three-credit course, or from four 50-minute periods in a two-credit course, or from eight 50-minute periods in a four-credit course. However, this may vary from class to class, and students are responsible for knowing the attendance policy and meeting the requirements for each individual class.

If you plan to take courses during the summer at other institutions, you are strongly urged to have the course approved before enrolling. Otherwise, there’s no guarantee Marquette will accept the credits you earn. Approval is based on course descriptions in the institution’s current bulletin. Download the approval form here.You are also responsible for having the institution send official transcripts sent immediately upon completion of any courses to Marquette University, Office of the Registrar, P.O. Box 1881, Milwaukee, WI 53201.

Grades of C- and above in courses offered by the Diederich College of Communication are accepted toward majors and/or minors offered by the college, provided students have a minimum grade point average of 2.000 in the major or minor. Grades of D+ or D generally do not fulfill the credit hour requirement for a major or minor in the Diederich College. Students who receive grades of D+ or D in a Diederich College of Communication course should contact the department chair, who determines whether the course can be accepted. If not accepted, the chair can suggest that the course be repeated or replaced by a substitute course. If students receive a grade below a C in a major or minor course offered by another college on campus, that department chair must be consulted. Credit is given only once for repeated courses. See the University Repeated Courses Policy.

A student in the J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication may appeal a final course grade that he/she feels was assigned in error. The student must exhaust all possibilities of resolving the problem with the faculty member assigning the final course grade before embarking on the formal appeal process. Please download the Grade Appeal Procedure.

All papers produced by students in all College of Communication classes are expected to conform to professional standards of lucidity, coherence, grammar, spelling and punctuation. Oral presentations are expected to conform to professional standards of lucidity, coherence and grammar. Instructors will consider these factors, as well as substance, in grading written and oral presentations.