Student Handbook

First Year Evaluation

In early June the BMCB Field faculty meet to discuss the progress of all first year graduate students. Anyone who is judged not to have made satisfactory progress is asked to leave the program. Overall GPA, grades in individual courses, and rotation evaluations all are considered in this decision. Acceptable performance means a GPA of 3.0 (B) or higher in the core courses, no individual grades in the core courses lower than a B- (i.e. no C grades), and no “failed” rotation evaluations. A “failed” rotation evaluation means that the mentor wrote that he/she would not take this student into the lab even if money and space were available (See Appendix II for exact wording). However, since special circumstances sometimes apply, these are guidelines and not strict rules. For example, if a student receives a C+ in a core course but has a GPA over 3.0 and has three good rotation evaluations, most likely the Field will allow the student to continue. On the other hand, two or more “C” grades are usually not tolerated.

All first year students are expected to have been accepted into a lab by August 15, i.e. by one year after they have enrolled. They may not continue rotations beyond that time.