Academic Information and Policies
Registration
Students are responsible for their own class registration and should consult with the Program if they have questions regarding requirements. Students register for courses through Student Services Online (SSOL) during their designated Registration Appointment times. A list of your Registration Appointments is available in SSOL. For general information regarding registration periods, see the Academic Calendar. To register, you will need a course's five-digit call number, which is available in Vergil or the Directory of Classes. When registering, students must follow the guidelines and requirements of the Film & Media Studies program and consult with their advisor about any questions. Some courses may be restricted to students in a particular program only, or may require completion of prerequisites and/or permission from the department or instructor; these and any other special instructions will be listed in the course entry.
Students must register for the courses they wish to take, and they may not attend courses for which they are not registered, except with approval of the instructor in special cases.
You may add or drop courses without financial penalty through the first two weeks of the semester, known as the Change of Program period. For more information, see the Registrar's website and communications from your department.
Continuous Registration
Students in all degree programs are required to register in each semester until all degree
requirements have been completed or until the time-to-degree limits in the School of the Arts SAP policy has been reached. Students are exempt from the requirement to register continuously only when granted an official medical leave of absence by Student Affairs. For information regarding withdrawals or leaves of absence, see the School of the Arts policy on Leaves of Absence, Withdrawals, and Reinstatement.
Students are required to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements for the School of the Arts.
Adding and Dropping Courses
Students should consult the Academic Calendar for exact dates of the Change of Program Period and other deadlines. For more information about the registration process, visit the Registrar's website. During the Change of Program Period (i.e., the first two weeks of classes for the fall and spring semesters) students may add and/or drop courses through SSOL, without financial penalty. Students are not charged fees for courses dropped during this time, and courses dropped in the Change of Program period do not appear on the student's transcript.
After the Change of Program Period, students may continue to drop courses through Student Services Online (SSOL) during the Post-Change of Program Add/Drop Period. Courses may be added during this time only with the instructor's approval. Any fees or tuition incurred for courses added or dropped during the Post-Change of Program Add/Drop period will NOT be removed, however, those courses will not appear on a student's transcript. See the Registrar's website for detailed instructions on adding and dropping courses after the Change of Program period during the first two weeks of the semester.
Ceasing to attend classes or sending a notification to the instructor does not constitute dropping a course. Students who stop attending a course without formally dropping it by the deadline may be assigned a letter grade based on the same criteria as students who complete the course or the grade of a UW. For additional information regarding the School of the Arts grading system, please refer to the School’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policies. For more complicated registration processes such as cross-registration between schools after the change of program period, students should consult with the Director or Assistant Director of Academic Administration or the School of the Arts Office of Student Affairs, which can be reached at [email protected].
Cross-Registration
Students who register for a course offered by another department at the University, such as Art History or Philosophy, are subject to the registration policies and procedures of that school. Review syllabi for these courses carefully to be aware of departmental practices that may differ from those in Film.
General Policy on Course Requirements
The instructor will give all students a written syllabus for each course. Unless otherwise indicated by the course instructor on the written syllabus, the requirements to pass all courses in the School of the Arts are as follows:
Attendance at all class meetings. Unexcused absences will put students in danger of failing the class or receiving a Low Pass (“LP”). Ask your Medical Health Care Provider to provide a medical note if you have been under care for an illness that interfered with your attendance. If you would like assistance with this process, you may also contact the School of the Arts Student Affairs Office at [email protected].
Written work class assignments, and class participation. These should be completed as specified in the syllabus.
Instructors are asked to notify in writing any student in obvious danger of failing a class.
School of the Arts Academic Policies
All school policies may be found online.
Grades
The MA in Film and Media Studies program grading system is as follows, with GPA
equivalents. The traditional letter grading system (A through F) with GPA equivalents is:
A = 4.0
B = 3.0
C = 2.0
D = 1.0
F = 0.0
Plus and minus letter grades are also used. Unless program regulations specifically state
otherwise, all courses to be credited toward the degree must be taken for a letter grade.
A letter grade is given to a student who has completed the required work in a course, including the final exam or paper, and it is expressed on a student's transcript by the letter grades A, B, C, D, or F. Students should seek advice from the Director of Graduate Studies or Program Director if they wish to take a course Pass/Fail or register to Audit a course (“R” credit). Audited (“R”) courses count towards billing but do not count towards the 24 academic credits for the degree. Audited courses will appear on the transcript with the grade of “R”.
With permission of the instructor, MA students may elect to take courses in other School of the Arts programs (MFA Film, Writing, Theatre, Visual Arts) for a letter grade.
Grade Appeals
As a matter of course, the School of the Arts recognizes that faculty members have both the right to determine grading policies for their classes, and the expertise to evaluate their students' work. A grade appeal requires objective evidence of a substantive breach in grading policy. A student wishing to appeal a final grade should first contact the professor to attempt to discuss the grade. If the student is not satisfied with the explanation for the grade, the student should next consult his or her advisor, director of graduate studies, or chair. If the dispute is still not settled, a student should submit a detailed written statement describing the disagreement to the Dean for Student Affairs, Laila Maher no later than thirty working days after the end of the term in which the class was taken or, if the grade is posted on SSOL after the end of the term, no later than thirty working days after receiving notice of the grade. Please note: Grade changes are not allowed after a student has graduated and the degree has been conferred.
Transcripts and Certification
The amended Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 prohibits release of educational records without the written consent of the student (consult Columbia's essential policies for certain exceptions and further restrictions). Students may obtain an official transcript of their academic records at Columbia University by logging onto SSOL. There is no charge for issuing transcripts; however, all students pay a one-time transcript fee of $105 upon their first registration at the University.
Withdrawals and Leaves
Students who wish to take a leave of absence for medical reasons or who wish to withdraw from the MA Film and Media Studies Program should contact the School of the Arts Office of Student Affairs for assistance. For additional information, see the School of the Arts policy regarding Leaves of Absences and Withdrawals here.