BRIEF ANSWERS TO THESE ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

Are there accommodations for my disability?

No one can ask if you need disability accommodations--you must fill out a special needs form in the Advising Center in the Student Services building. With proper documentation, you may qualify for a variety of accommodations, such as extended time testing and/or private testing.

How do I apply to graduate?

You must apply to graduate the semester before you intend to graduate by submitting a graduation application (available in Admissions, Technical Studies, the Library, or the Testing Department and SOON to be online) to Ridge Harper in the Testing Department inside the Library. Your graduation GPA must be at least 2.0, and your audit must show that you have successfully completed each of your program's required courses.

What degrees and certificates does Bainbridge College offer?

You will find a list of all programs of study in the Catalog, including certificates and degrees. In general, a certificate prepares you for quick entry into the workforce. An AA or AS degree is the degree that will transfer so that you can continue with a four-year or bachelor's degree. An AAS degree combines certificate and transfer courses and does not transfer to a university.

We also have several 2+2 programs--with these programs, you complete your AA at Bainbridge College, and then you can also take all of the courses needed for your bachelor's degree on our campus through another institution. Currently, the following bachelor degrees are available on our campus: Criminal Justice and Early Childhood Education (Albany State University--See Sarah Rogers); Business Administration in Marketing or Accounting (Georgia Southwestern University--see Connie Snyder), and Computer Information Technology (Georgia Southwestern University--see Barry Reynolds or Ben White).

How do I keep from losing my financial aid?

You must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), which means you must complete 2/3 of ALL attempted courses (Ws, WFs, Fs, and FNs count against SAP), you must maintain a 2.0 GPA minimum, and you cannot attempt  more than 150% of the hours required for your primary program of study.

You must also attend your classes in order to qualify for Financial Aid. If you miss the first week of class, you will not receive Financial Aid. If you quit attending a class during the semester, you will owe back Financial Aid.

If you are put on Financial Aid probation for a semester, the next semester will be Financial Aid suspension if you don't rectify the problems. You may appeal Financial Aid suspension, but if you are unsuccessful in your appeal, you must then pay for your courses without the benefit of financial aid.

How and when can I withdraw from a course?

You can withdraw from a course before midterm by going to the Admissions Office and completing a withdrawal form. You cannot withdraw from Learning Support or Regents' Skills classes and keep credit classes.

After midterm, you must talk with Dr. Mariam Dittmann (VPAA) in the Mobley Administration building and provide documentation for a non-academic reason for withdrawing. Your instructors then decide if you should receive W or WF in your classes. Withdrawing from a class is different from dropping a class, which can be done ONLY during the first week of class. A dropped course disappears from your schedule and does not qualify for Financial Aid.

Am I part-time or full-time?

You are part-time if you enroll in fewer than 12 hours a semester. Reasons to be full-time may include maintaining health insurance coverage on a parent's policy and qualifying for full financial aid. However, you may qualify for a student loan and some federal funds with at least 6 hours of classes. (If you have used up all 30 hours of attempted Learning Support for federal funds, you must have at least 6 hours of credit classes to qualify for a loan. Remember, however, that you are required to take your Learning Support classes each semester until you exit from them, so you may not be eligible to take credit classes with your Learning Support classes.) HOPE funds do not require a minimum number of hours.

Am I on the Dean's List or Academic Probation?

Learn to keep track of your current and expected Grade Point Average (GPA)  by using the GPA calculator. We keep track of your GPA--and remember, grades are NEVER removed from your transcript. They will follow you for your life. Even if you receive academic renewal, which begins a new GPA for you if you apply for it within 12 months of readmission and have been out of school for 5 years or more, the courses and grades remain on your transcript. With academic renewal, you lose credit for all previous coursework, and financial aid given for any of the previous courses still counts toward your total allowance of financial aid.

The GPA listed in Banner determines your Current Academic Standing. Your GPA must be at the following minimums in order to avoid Academic Probation and/or Suspension. (Suspension occurs when your cumulative grade point average falls below the minimum acceptable level two semesters in succession.) A student placed on suspension may not attend Bainbridge College during the subsequent semester unless an appeal is made and granted by the Admissions Committee.

1-12 hours 1.20
13-27 hours 1.50
28-42 hours 1.80
43 or more hours 2.00

GPA is also used to calculate Academic Honors: A student with a semester average of 3.5 or higher on 12 or more semester hours of course work earns placement on the Dean's List for the semester. A student with a semester average of 3.5 or higher on between 7 and 11 semester hours of course work earns placement on the Honors List. These hours exclude hours taken in the Learning Support.

Can I take a test and get course credit?

Credit by examination is available for a number of courses. Up to 17 hours of CLEP courses (College Level Examination program) can count toward a BC degree, and the grade shows as K. The cost is currently $85/test. See Ridge Harper in the Testing Department for more information. The list of courses available for CLEP credit is on pp. 57-59 of the Catalog.

How are students placed in Learning Support?

Unless you have SAT scores of at least 480 verbal AND 440 math (or equivalent ACT scores), you will be placed in or exempted from Learning Support based on your COMPASS scores. Once you are placed in Learning Support, you must exit the area by passing the class(es) and then earning an exemption score on the COMPASS, which is given as a final exam in your exit-level (0099) class--you cannot simply retest on the COMPASS. Retesting is permitted only within 10 business days (or until the first day of class) of the original PLACEMENT test or after three or more years of your not attending college.

You can receive federal funds (like Pell or federal loans) for just 30 hours of ATTEMPTED Learning Support classes (7 1/2 classes) in Learning Support. Attempted classes are defined as all grades, including W.

See details on placement scores here.

Do I need to take the Regents' Test?

If you are an AA or AS degree student, you must register for and take the Regents’ Test each semester that you are eligible to test until you pass it or exempt it. After two failures (failure to test is treated as a failure), you will be required to take Regents’ skills classes in the areas failed until you pass the test. You are eligible to test when you are eligible to take English 1101--in other words, you must be exempt from Learning Support English AND reading or you have passed Learning Support English AND Learning Support reading.

Are there any prerequisites for the course I want to take?

A prerequisite course is one that must be completed successfully prior to enrollment in a more advanced level course. For example, Math 0097 is a prerequisite to Math 0099, which is a prerequisite to college algebra. English 1102 is a prerequisite to Humanities 2001. All of the A & S sciences except biology courses and Introduction to Chemistry (CHEM 1100) require college algebra as a prerequisite. You must plan your program of study in sequence so that you can complete the courses in the required order.  Check the 2010 Catalog for prerequisites in the list of course offerings at the back of the catalog.

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