Academic Dismissal

Once grades are in for the spring semester, student records are automatically reviewed using functionality in the HUB. Students are assigned an academic standing status based on their performance for the spring semester, their cumulative GPA, and their cumulative Quality Point Deficit.

The criteria for dismissal from the university can be found in the Academic Standards Review (Academic Dismissal) section of the Undergraduate Catalog.

Once Academic Review is complete, dismissed students are notified via UB email. Students are notified of the appeal deadline and process for filing an appeal, should they wish to do so. The deadline is based on the first billing cycle, which is in mid-July. All appeals must be processed before that date so that students can be deregistered from their classes before bills are sent.

Advising administrators are provided with a list of dismissed students. They will also receive generic copies of the emails sent to students who were dismissed, placed on probation or on warning.

The Dismissal Committee notifies the following offices of this preliminary list of dismissed students so that they can take appropriate action or prepare to take appropriate action once dismissals are final:

• Office of the Registrar
• International Education
• Advising administrators
• Residential Life
• Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Coordinator
• NCAA Eligibility Coordinator

If a student wishes to appeal, they need to work with an advisor to complete and submit the Undergraduate Dismissal Appeal Form.

• Students must submit their appeal via the online Dismissal Appeal System.
  • Students will be provided a link to the Dismissal Appeal System in their official dismissal notification.
• Once a student submits an appeal, their designated Academic Advisor will receive an email notification.
  • Advisors have the option to submit a statement on behalf of their students, but a statement is not required.
  • If an advisor wants to submit a statement, they must do it through the Dismissal Appeal System.

If there are any questions about the Student Appeal process, contact studentsuccess@buffalo.edu or 716-645-9084.

The Dismissal Committee will review dismissal appeals on a rolling basis. When reviewing appeals, the committee will consider the following:

• A clear possibility of the student recovering from their academic difficulties.
• Indication that the student recognizes the causes and accepts responsibility—as appropriate—for their past academic difficulties.
• Indication that the causes of the student’s difficulties have been overcome and are in the past. For example, if a family member’s illness caused the student’s difficulty and that family member is now healthy, or if the student has a learning disability, they are now receiving appropriate support.
• Indication that the student has a clearly thought-out, realistic plan for academic success, and that they have made any and all appropriate changes to their academics, such as changing their major.
• Support from an academic advisor who has worked with the student. The committee greatly appreciates any additional information the advisor can provide to aid in the appeal decision or, if necessary, in setting appropriate conditions for the student’s deferral.

Please note that submitting an appeal does not guarantee the student's return to UB.

The Office of Undergraduate Education will notify students—via their UB email address—of their appeal status. The notification will contain the final decision as well as any conditions the student must meet in the fall semester in order to register for the spring.

Once the deadline for dismissal appeals has passed and review of the submitted appeals is complete, all students for whom dismissal is final are deregistered from their fall classes and a dismissal hold is placed on their record.

The Dismissal Committee notifies the following offices of the final list of dismissed and dismissal-deferral students so that they can take appropriate action:

• Office of the Registrar
• International Education
• Advising administrators
• Residential Life
• 1Capen
• Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Coordinator
• NCAA Eligibility Coordinator

At the end of the fall semester (when undergraduate grading is 99.5% complete, typically the Monday after grades are due), dismissal deferral students and students readmitted on probation are reviewed to determine whether they have met the conditions for returning to UB in the spring semester.

• Students who have met their conditions receive the appropriate academic standing and may continue their enrollment in the spring semester.
• Students who have not met their conditions are dismissed, and their spring semester registration is cancelled.
• Students are permitted to complete winter session, if registered. These students must wait a full year before reapplying to UB.

At the end of the spring semester (when undergraduate grading is 99.5% complete, typically the Monday after grades are due), dismissal deferral students and students readmitted on probation are reviewed by a committee member to determine whether they have met the conditions for returning to UB the following academic year.

• Students who have met their conditions are fully reinstated (although they may be on probation if their cumulative GPA remains below 2.0).
• Students who have not met their conditions are dismissed, and their registration for the fall semester is cancelled.
• Students are permitted to complete summer session, if registered. These students must wait a full year before reapplying to UB.