Deans' Advising Hub

Please see Academic Eligibility

The Deans can talk with you about your study habits and provide resources to help you develop more effective ways to approach your work. They proactively reach out at midterms to students with midterm warnings, and collaborate with faculty and advisors to support student progress. Below you will find links to a number of existing resources. If you aren't sure where to start, please come talk to your dean!

• First-Year Faculty Advisors
• First-Year Staff Mentors
• Occupational Therapy
• Counseling
• Center for Student Success
• Peer Academic Coaches
• Hixon Writing Center
• Registrar
• Option Representatives
• Student-Faculty Programs (includes SURF)
• Career Achievement, Leadership, and Exploration (CALE)

Plus, you always have access to:

• Teaching Assistants
• Office Hours (what are they?)
• ARC Reps in your house
• Option Peer Advisors (currently available for Physics)

Students experiencing illness or other health conditions should seek treatment at Student Wellness Services, where the condition can be assessed and treated. The deans do not provide notes to excuse illness.

However, the deans are prepared to recommend academic adjustments when a student has experienced a significant family or personal emergency--such as a death in the immediate family--or a severe illness or medical condition such as pneumonia or a hospitalization, that makes it difficult to keep up with coursework for an extended period of time. In such circumstances, a student should contact a dean as soon as possible in order to discuss the situation.

For long-term illnesses, a medical provider's recommendations for extensions can be communicated to the Deans' Office with a student's written permission. The deans will only recommend extensions or other academic adjustments for medical reasons with supporting documentation from Student Wellness Services, CASS, or other qualified health professionals.

As a matter of policy, the deans will not support extensions or excuses from class absences that result from participation in athletics or other campus clubs or activities. Nor will the deans support extensions or excuses for class absences that result from travel for interviews or conferences. These commitments can be anticipated in advance. Student athletes and seniors who expect to travel for interviews should communicate directly with course instructors early in the term, to ensure that they understand relevant course policies around missed classes or late work. Student athletes who are having difficulty balancing academics and athletics, or who feel that course instructors are reluctant to accommodate their athletic commitments, should consult with the deans and with their coaches. As in all cases, academic adjustment is at the discretion of the course instructor.

E Grades

The grade of "E" is available to students who need a little extra time to complete a course beyond the end of the term, provided the instructor approves. E grades carry potential consequences, however. Students are only allowed a total of 6 E grades over their time at Caltech. In addition, Es can have implications for your academic eligibility.

• If you feel you need to request an E, first speak with the instructor and agree on a plan for completing the work.
• When you and the instructor have agreed upon the due date for completion of work, fill out the E Grade Request Form here: https://registrar.caltech.edu/EGradeRequest This form is designed to walk you through your own eligibility status and the possible impacts of an E grade.
• Once you fill out the form, an email will be sent to your course instructor, who can then approve or reject your proposal.
• If the E grade is approved, the Registrar will record the E grade on your transcript, with the agreed-upon grade due date. Please note that you will still need to communicate directly with your instructor regarding when and how you will submit any late assignments in order to receive a grade by the due date you have proposed in the form.

Keep in mind that extensions of Es count as additional E grades. If you have already utilized 6 E grades, please contact your dean instead of using this form.

I Grades

Students who have experienced significant adversity over the course of a term, have been working with the Undergraduate Deans' office and/or CASS, or can provide documentation of their situation, can request that a Dean recommend an "I" grade.

Per the Caltech catalog: The grade I is given only in case of unexpected sickness or other emergency, occurring near the end of the term, that impedes the completion of the work in the class. An I grade is not intended to allow students to make up missed work from the majority of the term. If a student has not completed the majority of the work, they are not eligible for an incomplete and they will be advised to late drop the class or take a leave. It is given at the discretion of the instructor, after approval by the dean or associate dean of students or the dean of graduate studies. If a student is seeking an I grade due to a severe exacerbation or onset of a disability that occurred near the end of the term, they should contact Caltech Accessibility Services for Students (CASS) at [email protected].

If a student is ill for a significant period of time towards the end of a term, or has another reason that might justify the use of an I, the student is responsible for contacting the Deans before the faculty member turns in grades. Incompletes cannot be retroactive.

It is important to keep in mind that Incompletes can often trigger an ineligibility, if the work is not completed and graded by the first day of the following term, and the student has therefore not posted 27 passing units. This is an issue that should be discussed with a Dean before any final decisions are made.

Please visit: First-Year Advising

Overloads

Undergraduate students are limited to 48 units in a term (45 academic units in the first two terms of first year). After the first two terms, you can overload with up to 51 units with your advisor's approval. If you would like to take more than 51 units, you need to request it via an overload petition to the deans. Typically overloads are approved for things such as research units, PE, or PVA units - not for a sixth 9-unit course.

Prior to submitting an Overload Petition, please review the Full Guidelines for Overloads

Underloads

An underload is registration for fewer than 36 units, and should be approved before Add Day of the term. Underloads for first, second and third year students must be approved by a dean. Underloads for seniors must be submitted to the registrar, along with a course plan for graduation the following June that does not require an overload in any term.

Underloads will not receive a tuition reduction unless the CASS office recommends it. Students receiving financial aid should note that underloads will often result in a reduction of financial aid. International students and NCAA athletes should also consult with ISP or the athletic department about implications of underloads.

Prior to submitting a petition, please review Guidelines for Underloads

Students who need to go under 27 units after Add Day may do so with the approval of a dean one time, and only under exceptional circumstances during their Caltech career, without triggering an ineligibility for the term. Any further post add-day underloads may make you ineligible - please come talk to your dean!

Please visit: Time Away

ISP enables students to craft custom-tailored curricula—comprising Caltech courses, academic-year research, courses at other schools, or independent study courses—in collaboration with faculty advisors. An important change from the older Independent Studies Program is that the degree recipient can now propose a designated academic specialty on the transcript, for example, "B.S., Interdisciplinary Studies Program in X", where X could be "Biophysics", "Decision Neuroscience", "Environmental Science and Policy", or "Quantum Information Science", to borrow examples from previous Independent Studies Program majors.

The Curriculum Committee, a standing committee of the faculty, has overall responsibility for the program. In addition, each student has his or her own committee of at least two advisors, two of whom must be professorial faculty. Learning outcomes are determined on an individual basis with each student. Application materials may be obtained at the Dean of Undergraduate Students office or website, however the Deans do not approve the program.

Criteria for ISP Curricula:

1. The program must enable educational goals that cannot be achieved in any of the other available Options.
2. In scope and depth, the program must be comparable to a normal undergraduate program.

How to Set Up an ISP Curriculum:

1. Construct a curriculum that satisfies the Core Institute Requirements (see Caltech Catalog for details) and that includes a total of at least 486 units of academic credit. These units can be in the form of other Caltech courses, academic-year research, courses at other schools, or independent study courses.
2. Recruit at least two Professorial Faculty from at least two different degree-granting Options to serve as the ISP faculty committee. Refine the curriculum in collaboration with the faculty committee.
3. Complete ISP Proposal Form

Each member of the faculty committee must provide a letter that includes:
Sample 1
Sample 2

Please see Four-Year Residential Experience Waiver Guideliness