Enrollment Advising & Records Policies

Course Overload

Students may not normally enroll for more than 18 semester credit hours. Students who have a 3.0 GPA may enroll in more than 18 semester credit hours only with permission from the department chair and academic dean. During the summer, students may not enroll in more than 15 total semester credit hours unless specifically required in their academic program. This total includes all classes taken during all summer terms in a single year. Students who have a 3.0 GPA may enroll in more than 15 semester credit hours during the summer only with permission from the department chair and academic dean.

Credit for Prior Learning (CPL)

Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) is a process whereby skills and knowledge earned outside a traditional classroom are evaluated for the purpose of awarding college credit. Types of learning included under CPL include exemption credit, articulated credit, and experiential learning. CPL does not include transfer of college level credits earned at other postsecondary institutions- information on transfer credit can be found in Procedure V-40.12.

In order to receive a certificate/ diploma/degree from Spartanburg Community College (SCC) students must complete a minimum of twenty-five percent (25%) of the total hours of the certificate/diploma/degree through graded (A, B, C, D) instruction offered by the College. Students may earn CPL credit for up to but no more than 75% of their program. The amount of CPL credit that may be applied to a specific certificate/diploma/degree may be more restrictive depending on the program of study. The College grants CPL credit for program requirements as described below.

Corporate and Community Education - Students may receive CPL credit for certain courses successfully completed in the SCC Corporate and Community Education Division.Validation of student competencies may include written examinations, industry certifications, or other assessment methods.

Articulation Credit:

Professional Certifications - Students may receive articulated credit for professional, industry-approved certifications. For each professional certification, the appropriate department chair will determine the SCC course equivalencies and corresponding certifications required for credit. The student must submit his/her original professional certification to the appropriate department chair. The department chair will complete the authorization form, attach a photocopy of the certification or credential, and submit it to the Records Office.

Exemption Credit:

American Council on Education (ACE) College Credit Recommendation Service - The College recognizes the American Council on Education College Credit Recommendation Service. The College will evaluate course work for exemption credit if the course content is comparable to the content of a program course or courses offered by the College. The student must present documentation of course completion through an American Council on Education approved agency before the College will evaluate the course work.

SERVICE MEMBERS OPPORTUNITY COLLEGES (SOC) - Spartanburg Community College is a member of the Service Members Opportunity Colleges (SOC). Students having academic credit earned at other institutions while on active duty will have their credit evaluated and transferred on a case-by-case basis.

Advanced Placement (AP) - Students may receive exemption credit for AP courses completed at the secondary level. The College awards exemption credit for AP Examination scores of 3 or higher. The College must have on file an official copy of the AP Examination score report in order to award credit.

Technical Advanced Placement (TAP) - Students may receive exemption credit for program requirements through the validation of competencies gained at secondary schools. Students seeking exemption credit through TAP should contact the secondary school department head or counselor, or the College program department head. Validation of student competencies may include written examinations or other assessment methods.

College Level Examination Program (CLEP) - Credit for subjects in which students are knowledgeable, can be gained through successful completion of the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests. Spartanburg Community College does not administer CLEP exams but will accept CLEP exams scores administered by other institutions if scores meet minimum standards. SCC does not give credit for CLEP general examinations.

Credit by Examination - Students may receive exemption credit for previous academic work or relevant work experience through formal written or practical examinations. Students may not attempt credit by examination for courses in which they have been previously enrolled (either for credit or audit) or in which they have previously attempted credit by examination. Students seeking exemption credit by examination should contact the program department chair of the area in which the student seeks credit who will determine eligibility, provide the authorization form, and schedule an exam date. After an exam date has been scheduled, the student should pay the appropriate fee at the Business Office. The student must present the authorization form and the receipt to the subject-area department chair in order to take the exam.

International Baccalaureate Credit - Students (first time freshmen) may receive SCC credit for scores of 4 or higher on selected International Baccalaureate Examinations. The amount of college credit awarded for an IB course will be equivalent to the credit hour value of the college course for which the IB credit is being accepted. The College must have on file an official copy of the IB Examination score report in order to award credit.

Mixed Enrollment Courses - Spartanburg Community College may choose to enroll both credit and Corporate and Community Education (CCE) students in the same course. Please contact the CCE office for additional information if you are enrolling in a credit course as a CCE student.

Experiental Learning:

Credit by Portfolio- Students may receive experiential learning credit for knowledge acquired through work or other experiences external to academics through development of a portfolio documenting those experiences. Credit by portfolio is limited to learning experiences in which no other CPL methods exist to validate the learning.

Students seeking credit for experiential learning should contact their program department chair, who will determine the students’eligibility and provide the authorization form. The department chair, in consultation with subject area faculty, determines the courses that are eligible for credit by portfolio and the requirements of the portfolio, which will vary according to each student’s individual experiences. The student must submit a proposal outlining the courses he/she wishes to earn credit for and the types of documentation he/ she will present in the portfolio. Once the proposal has been accepted by the department chair, the student should pay the appropriate experiential learning fee at the Business Office.

A teaching faculty member in the subject area in which credit is sought will evaluate the portfolio to determine whether the outcomes of the course(s) for which credit is sought have been documented. The authorization form and the receipt should be presented to the faculty providing the evaluation.

Students may receive credit for a maximum of twenty-five percent (25%) of required program semester hours for experiential learning.

Fees - No fee is charged to post credits to the transcript for exemption and articulated credits except credit by exam or portfolio. Students attempting to earn exemption credit through credit by exam must be formally accepted by Spartanburg Community College and a pay $50 non-refundable fee for each exam. Students who wish to earn portfolio credit (experiential learning) must pay $50 per course portfolioreviewed.This is a non-refundable fee, even if the reviewer determines after reviewing the portfolio that the student is not eligible for credit.

Dean’s List

To qualify for the dean’s list, students must:

• have declared a major
• be enrolled in at least 12 semester program credit hours for fall or spring semester or nine semester program credit hours in the summer (excluding audited courses)
• have earned a grade point average of 3.5 with no course grade lower than a “C”. A grade of “I” automatically excludes students from the dean’s list.

(Non-degree, Early College and transient students are not eligible for the dean’s list.)

Grade Point Average

1. Multiply credit hours attempted by grade points* or quality points for course points.
2. Add credit hours attempted for the total credit hours attempted.
3. Add course points for total course points.
4. Divide total course points by total credit hours attempted for GPA.

Example:

Repeated Grade Policy

If a student repeats a course, both grades will remain on the transcript. Only the highest grade obtained for the course will be used to calculate the grade point average. In determining satisfactory academic progress, the financial aid office must count all course work completed. A student may repeat a course but the repetitions will count toward the length of eligibility.

Graduation

To be eligible for graduation from Spartanburg Community College, a student must fulfill the following:

• Apply for and be accepted into the program in which he or she is applying for graduation.
• Complete all program course requirements in the applicable catalog. A student must complete a minimum of 25 percent of the total hours required in the program through instruction by the College.
• Earn a grade point average of at least 2.0 in the courses applicable toward graduation.
• Resolve all financial obligations to the College and return all materials.
• Make formal application for graduation in the registrar’s office or online by the publicized graduation deadline date. (The deadline to apply for graduation is posted in various locations on campus and is printed in the Student Planner & Handbook).
• Obtain graduation approval from the Registrar.

The graduation ceremony is held once a year in May.   Awards (degrees, diplomas, certificates) will be mailed during the advertised dates set by the Registrar’s Office.

Graduation Ceremony

Graduation exercises are held after the end of spring semester. Students may apply for graduation during the term they intend to graduate. Students expecting to complete graduation requirements during the summer term should apply for summer graduation during the spring term in order to participate in graduation ceremonies.

Students who complete graduation requirements in the fall semester may participate in graduation exercises the following spring. Awards (degrees, diplomas, certificates) will be mailed to students during the advertised dates set by the Registrar’s Office.

Honor Graduates

Prospective graduates with a program GPA of 3.5 at the end of the term prior to graduation will be considered honor graduates.

Program Change Process

SCC students who want to change their program of study must complete the process outlined below.

• Take note, all program changes will be effective for the next semester of enrollment.
• Obtain and complete an SCC Request for Program Change form from Enrollment Services at any SCC Campus.
• Meet with assigned advisor to discuss the change and obtain their signature.
• Submit the form to the Financial Aid Office (DLT 147). The financial aid staff/counselor will review the proposed program change for possible impact on financial aid eligibility and discuss any issues with you.
• Submit the completed form to Enrollment Services at any SCC campus location.

Readmission Requirements

Students who are not enrolled at SCC for three consecutive semesters (including summer) and who wish to re-enroll must reapply for admission. Students who want to reapply to the same program must re-enter under the current catalog for their program. These guidelines may affect the applicability of previously completed credit hours for the program and the total credit hours needed for program completion.

Students who have attended another institution during the interim must have an official transcript sent to Enrollment Services. Individuals with financial obligations to the College must resolve these obligations before they will be allowed to register for classes. Under certain conditions a returning student may qualify for Fiscal Forgiveness if s/he meets all eligibility requirements. Students interested in pursuing Fiscal Forgiveness should contact the Business Office for more information.

Records and Transcripts

All inquiries about grades, transcripts and records should be directed to the Registrar’s Office located in room156 of the Dan L. Terhune Student Services Building, via email at records@sccsc.edu, or by calling (864) 592-4681.

Directory Information

The following directory information may be made available to the public by the College unless students notify the Registrar’s Office in writing by the third week of the term that such information is not to be made available.

• Student’s name
• County of Residence
• Major field of study or program
• Dates of attendance (enrollment status - full-time, part-time)
• Degrees earned
• Awards earned
• Photos

Transcripts and information not specified under”directory information”is released only with written permission of the student. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, FERPA, protects the re-disclosure of personal information from a student’s education records.

Record Changes

To ensure proper record-keeping and mailing procedures, each student is required to report any changes in name or address to the SCC Registar’s Office.

Release of Student Information

General

Spartanburg Community College maintains accurate and confidential student records and recognizes the right of students to gain access to their academic records in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 (Buckley Amendment) and College policy. Amendments to FERPA under section 507 of the U. S. Patriot Act of 2001 also apply to the release of student records. Further information about access to student records is available in this book or online at https://www.sccsc.edu/services/records/index.php.

Release of Student Records

Transcripts are released only with written permission of the student. Students may request that copies of their transcripts be sent to individuals or institutions, or they may secure copies for their own use. SCC has authorized Parchment exchange to provide students and alumni with transcript ordering services via the internet. It is a secure and convenient way for students and alumni to submit requests 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from any location. The College does not forward transcripts received from high schools and other colleges, or provide copies of transcripts to the student.

A student has the right to review his or her own official record and may question any inaccurate or misleading information and request correction or deletion of that data from the files. If an error cannot be readily substantiated, the student may refer to the Student Grievance Procedure for due process procedures. If the grievance committee denies the student’s request, he or she will be permitted to append a statement to the permanent record in question, showing the basis for their disagreement with the denials.

Parents of a dependent student have right of access to that student’s record, provided they can show proof of dependency (according to Internal Revenue Code of 1954) and sign the appropriate affidavit, available in the Registrar’s Office. Acceptance proof is the parents’ most recent federal tax return.

Student Recruiting Information

The Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act 1997, which includes the Soloman Amendment, requires institutions receiving Title IV Campus-Based Funds to report the following directory information on students 17 years of age or older, upon request, to the military: 

• Name
• Academic major
• Address
• Degrees received
• Telephone listing
• The educational institution in which the student most recently was enrolled
• Date and place of birth
• Level of education

If a student desires that the above information not be released, he or she should request a non-disclosure form in the Registrar’s Office within the first five days of the term.

Senior Citizens

South Carolina residents who are 60 years of age or older may enroll tuition free on a space available basis. The student must comply with all admission criteria to include enrollment restrictions in certain classes and all other standards set forth by the College. Senior citizen tuition waivers do not waive all fees. The student is responsible for the payment of all other fees assessed by the College at the time of registration as well as for the purchase of course materials, textbooks and supplies. Other fees include, but are not limited to, the application fee, enrollment fee, online course fee and lab fee. Fee waivers will only be considered for courses listed on the Senior Citizen Tuition Waiver form and only if processed during the senior citizen registration period which begins after the last payment purge each academic term. Senior citizens who register prior to the senior citizen registration period assume all financial liability for any course registration. Students using the tuition waiver may not be forced into a closed course section. Information about senior citizen waivers can be found in Registrar’s and the Business Office.

Suspension for Non-Academic Reasons

A student suspended from Spartanburg Community College for non-academic reasons will be notified in writing of the length of the suspension. For non-academic violations of conduct see the “Student Code” section within this publication.

Transferring Credit Hours to SCC

Students who have earned credit hours from another postsecondary institution may have their transcripts evaluated for transfer credit. The following guidelines apply to awarding of transfer credit:

• An official transcript reflecting credit hours from the granting institution must be on file at SCC
• Acceptance of transfer credit is determined by the registrar in cooperation with the appropriate department chair. SCC normally accepts transfer credit only from accreditedcolleges (for example, those colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools or by any of the other parallel regional accrediting agencies). Exceptions are considered on a case-by-case basis

Students may receive transfer credit equivalent for no more than 75 percent of required credits in their program

Students must have earned a grade of “C” or higher in courses presented for transfer credit evaluation

Withdrawal from a Term

A student who wishes to withdraw from a term (all courses) should meet with his or her advisor. If the advisor is not available, the student should meet with the program department chair or academic dean. Students receiving financial aid should refer to Student Refund/Term Withdrawal/Federal Return of Funds in the College Costs section of this catalog. A student who drops all classes for a term will be marked term withdrawn by the database.