1. THE FLAGSHIP ACADEMIC STANDARD

Students must meet two requirements to remain in good standing in the Chinese Flagship program. They must (a) earn a final grade B or better (a B- does not suffice) in each Chinese course they take and (b) maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher at the end of each academic term.

Students who fail to meet ONE of these requirements at the end of a given academic term will be placed on Flagship probation (see below), while anyone failing to meet BOTH requirements at the end of a given academic term will be dismissed from the Flagship program (details below).

• A. FLAGSHIP PROBATION

  Students who fail to meet ONE but not both requirements of the Flagship Standard are automatically placed on probation. To regain good standing in the program, students on probation must earn a B or better in Chinese in the subsequent academic term and achieve a minimum GPA of 3.0 in all coursework taken in the subsequent academic term (we realize that it may be mathematically impossible to bring a cumulative GPA back about a 3.0 in a single semester, but the student must show that the downward trend has reversed). If either of these requirements is not met, the student is dismissed from the program.

  Important: grades from non-Flagship Chinese courses cannot be used to reset probation. In other words, if a student is on probation before studying abroad for a summer or semester (other than CHIN 215 in our Taiwan program), the student will remain on probation until returning to campus and taking an on-campus Chinese Flagship course, regardless of the grades earned while abroad.

• B. DISMISSAL FROM THE FLAGSHIP PROGRAM

  Students who are dismissed from the program during fall or spring semester (vs summer) have the option of taking the following course of action to seek readmission to Flagship:

  Take a lower numbered Chinese course in the subsequent semester (permission of the Department of Modern Languages required) and then earn a B or better in the Flagship course that led to the probation (permission of the Department of Modern Languages must be obtained to repeat the course that led to the probation), present a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, and petition the Flagship Program for readmission.

• C. IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION

  Regardless of the technicalities of your linguistic achievements (i.e., grades), your performance in a language curriculum (good or bad) is typically the result of a set of factors that are at least partially under your control:

  • a. Strategic effort

    Hard work is essential, but working hard in the wrong ways may not yield adequate results. We strongly encourage you to ask your teachers for detailed advice on what you can do differently. If your teacher says that you need to study harder or spend more time on Chinese, and you feel like you are already spending as much time as your classmates (or more), try to get additional advice on how you should be spending that study time and what they perceive to be your biggest weaknesses.

  • b. Healthy habits and good time management

    Despite your best intentions, if your priorities or habits are not conducive to your being well prepared for each day of class, you cannot succeed. You need to be honest with yourself and seek the input of someone you trust to help assess your life patterns and make necessary adjustments. You may need someone to hold you to any changes you have set for yourself.