ACADEMICS

• GENERAL ACADEMIC INFORMATION
• DEGREE PROGRAMS
• COURSE CATALOG
• ACADEMIC CALENDAR AND COURSE SCHEDULES

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General Academic Information

• Academic Advising

• Auditing Classes

• Change of Courses

• Class Attendance

• Classification of Students:  Degree-seeking or Non-degree seeking

• Commencement

• Grade Appeals

• Grade Reports

• Grading System

• Incompletes

• Leave of Absence

• Library Resources

• Master Class Week

• Records and Directory Information

• Registration

• Special Lectures

• Special Awards

• Textbooks

• Transcripts and Diplomas

• Transfer of Credits

 

Academic Advising

The Program Advisors for each degree bear primary responsibility for advising students about their course work and other degree requirements. The Program Advisors are available prior to registration for consultation with M.T.S., S.T.L., and S.T.D. students who require guidance in the selection of courses. Ph.D. students in the second or third year should consult their personal advisors to discuss the selection of their courses, which must also be approved by the Program Advisor (regarding personal advisors, see the section entitled "Advising" in the description of the Ph.D. degree program below).

Other faculty members are available to offer academic and career advice to students according to their own experience and fields of interest.

Auditing Classes

A student enrolled at the Institute may register for additional classes without course or degree credit, within their own program, if desired. In order for the course to appear on the student's transcript as an audited course, the student must abide by the regular attendance policy of the Institute.

Full-time students may audit up to two courses per semester without additional charge (however, to enroll in more than five courses per semester requires the permission of the Provost/Dean). Part-time students must pay the fee of $350 per course to audit.

Change of Courses

Students may add or drop courses with the approval of the Program Advisor and in accord with the deadlines published in the academic calendar. Forms are available in the Reception Office (Room 313).

Class Attendance

Students' presence at and participation in every class session is expected. In each course, a student is allowed, for serious reason, an absence equal to the number of hours the course meets for one individual session. It is at the discretion of the professor to decide whether make-up work for absences is to be permitted and in what way it is to be graded. If the student exceeds the permitted number of hours of absence, the professor may require that he or she obtain permission from the Provost/Dean in order to remain in the course.

Classification of Students:  Degree-seeking or Non-degree seeking

Degree-seeking students

There are two classifications of degree-seeking students: full-time and part-time. Full-time students take at least three courses (nine credits) each semester. Part-time students take either one or two courses per semester. Only full-time students may apply for scholarships, in accord with the stipulations for each degree program.

Non-degree-seeking students

Persons who do not wish to pursue a degree but nevertheless desire to take courses at the Institute may apply to be special students, with "non-degree-seeking" status. A limited number of non-degree-seeking students are admitted based on their preparation for graduate study. A bachelor's degree is required for admission. Financial aid is not available to non-degree-seeking students. Non-degree-seeking students who later desire to be admitted to a degree program must apply as degree-seeking students and complete the admission requirements for the relevant program. Following admission to a degree program, the student may petition the Office of the Provost/Dean to have previously completed Institute courses applied toward the degree requirements.

Commencement

A graduation Mass is celebrated in the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. All candidates on whom degrees are to be conferred must be present at the commencement exercises of the Institute, unless excused for serious reasons by the Provost/Dean.

An annual Graduation Ball completes the academic year; it typically takes place between final examinations and the graduation exercises.

Grade Appeals

A student who wishes to appeal a course grade must do so within the first 30 days of the semester following the semester of the course in question. He or she should first take up the matter with the professor of the course. The professor must respond within 30 days. If a satisfactory resolution is not reached within this period, the student may appeal formally to the Provost/Dean, who will discuss the matter with the student and the professor and make a final decision within 30 days. The grade appeal form is available in the Reception Office (Room 313). A successful appeal of an "F" grade will result in a mandatory grade of "P."  

Grade Reports

Grade reports are issued by the Registrar after the end of each semester according to the system below. To remain in any of the degree programs at the Institute, students must maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.0.

Grading System

Grade	Meaning	Numerical Equivalent
A	Excellent	4.00
A-		3.66
B+		3.33
B	Satisfactory	3.00
B-		2.66
C	Passing but marginal	2.00
F	Failure	0.00
P	Pass
I	Incomplete	0.00
W	Withdrawal	0.00
AU	Audit	0.00

 

Incompletes

Coursework is to be completed by the end of the semester in which the course is taken. The provisional grade of "I" (Incomplete) may be given only to a student who has not completed the requirements of a course for serious reasons, for example, death in the immediate family or hospitalization, and who has made a formal application using the form available in the Office of Admissions.  The grade of "I" is not given to one who has simply failed to meet the academic requirements of the course on time.

Incomplete grades must be removed before mid-semester of the succeeding term, whether or not the student continues in residence. If the grade of "I" is not removed by mid-semester, it will be recorded as a grade of "F" (Failure).

Under extraordinary circumstances, a student may petition the instructor of the course and the Provost/Dean for an extension of the period normally allowed for removal of the "I." This petition must be made before the date of the mid-semester following the reported "I" grade.

Leave of Absence

Students may request a leave of absence, no longer than a year, for sufficient reason, such as prolonged illness, financial difficulty, or military service. Students must submit a written request, including a specific statement of the reason, to the Provost/Dean, using the form available in the Reception Office (Room 313). If permission is granted, the period of the leave of absence will not be counted against residency or other program requirements. Any grades of "Incomplete" must be completed in accord with the academic calendar and Institute policy, whether the student is enrolled in classes or on leave of absence in the following semester. The student may petition the Provost/Dean for exceptions to the leave of absence policy.

Library Resources

Mullen Library

Institute faculty and students are entitled to user privileges in the John K. Mullen Library and the Kathryn J. DuFour Law Library of The Catholic University of America. At the beginning of each semester, registered Institute students receive a library bar code at the circulation desk of Mullen Library upon presenting an Institute student ID. The University library system contains more than 1,300,000 journals, books, dissertations, and other research materials. The Theology/Philosophy/Canon Law Library located on the third floor of Mullen Library houses specialized reference materials in the areas of religious studies and philosophy.

As a benefit of CUA's membership in the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC), students have access to ALADIN, a shared electronic library system serving several universities in the Washington, D.C. area. ALADIN includes the online library catalog as well as article databases, electronic journals, image collections, and Internet resources. Students may access ALADIN databases remotely, i.e., from home or office. Additional databases on CD-ROM are available in the libraries. In addition to the Consortium Loan Service, which allows students to borrow volumes from other universities in the WRLC via a courier service, interlibrary loan from non-WRLC-member schools is available, and requests for both loan services may be submitted to the Access Services desk via the Mullen Library website. All faculty and students are invited to take advantage of group and individual instruction in the use of electronic library resources at Mullen Library.

Mullen Library has a number of computer stations located throughout the building that are available for research and internet use.  In addition, Dell PC and Macintosh iBook laptops can be checked out from the Circulation Desk for use inside the library. The laptops have word-processing capability and are connected to Mullen's wireless network.  Students who own a laptop may check out a wireless network card from the Circulation Desk for access to the network. Further information about the wireless network is available at: http://libraries.cua.edu/access/wireless.html.

Students may purchase a photocopy card for use with the Mullen photocopying machines on the second floor.

The regular semester hours of Mullen Library are as follows:

Monday-Thursday:     8 a.m.-11:30 p.m.
Friday:                      8 a.m.-10 p.m.
Saturday:                  9 a.m.-10 p.m.
Sunday:                    11.a.m.-11:30 p.m.

Mullen Library has extended hours during the final exam periods. For vacation hours, students may call the schedule information number: 202-319-5077. For more information, visit the library's homepage at http://libraries.cua.edu.

Washington Theological Consortium

In the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, the libraries of institutions which participate in the Washington Theological Consortium are available to students of the Institute for research and study through the Institute's affiliation with Mullen Library. The institutions in the Consortium are The Catholic University of America School of Theology and Religious Studies, the Dominican House of Studies, Howard University School of Divinity, Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, the Richmond Consortium, Virginia Theological Seminary, Washington Theological Union, Wesley Theological Seminary, the College of Preachers (associate member), and St. Paul's College (associate member). Institute students should bring their Mullen Library cards when researching in Consortium libraries. Access to Consortium libraries is for research only; to check out books, Institute students may use the interlibrary loan services of Mullen Library.

Other Collections

Other significant collections open to the public in the Washington, D.C. area include the Kennedy Institute of Ethics library, the Library of Congress, the National Library of Medicine, and other university libraries.

Master Class Week

Each January, professors of the central Roman session of the Institute offer a week of lectures on various theological-anthropological themes for the students of the Washington, D.C. session. Regular classes are not held during this week so that students are available to attend the morning and afternoon sessions of Master Class Week.

Graduates of the Institute and members of the wider community may attend the lectures of Master Class week; the fee is $250.

Records and Directory Information

The Pontifical John Paul II Institute complies fully with the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (also known as the Buckley Amendment), 20 U.S.C. 1232 et. seq. (1975), which guarantee the confidentiality of student records.

The following data are considered to be directory information and, at the discretion of the Institute, may be given to an inquirer, either in person, by mail, or by telephone, and may otherwise be made public: name of student; address (both local and permanent); email address; telephone (both local and permanent); date of registered attendance; school or division of enrollment; field of study; nature and dates of degrees and awards received. If an inquiry is made in person or by mail, a student's signature and date and place of birth may be confirmed.

An individual student may request that no such directory information be disclosed by completing the appropriate form, available in the Reception Office (Room 313).

A student who alleges that the Institute has failed to comply with the requirements of Section 438 of the Act has the right to file a complaint with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Office of the Department of Education.

Registration

Students registering for the first time:

Once students have notified the Institute of their decision to enroll, a registration package is sent, along with directions for registration for classes.

Continuing students:

Registration packets are available for the coming semester after midterm.

Fees:

An annual registration fee of $50 is assessed. Students who fail to comply with registration deadlines will be charged a late fee in addition to the registration fee.

 

Textbooks

Prior to each semester a book list for all courses is available at the Institute's administrative offices or on the Institute website.

 Spring 2010 Book List 

 Fall 2009 Booklist 

Books and compendia may be purchased at

Newman Bookstore, located at the Hecker Center,
3025 4^th Street NE, Suite 120,
Washington, D.C. 20017
telephone: (202) 526-1036.

Store hours are from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. 

 

Transcripts and Diplomas

Each student may request one transcript free of charge. Further transcripts may be obtained for a fee of $5 by check made payable to the K of C Family Life Bureau, Inc. Requests for transcripts may be obtained through use of our on-line form and submitted to the Office of the Registrar.

Diplomas for the M.T.S., S.T.L., and S.T.D. degrees are issued through the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome.

 Transcript Request Form 

 

Transfer of Credits

Students may apply to transfer credits from previous study using the form available in the Reception Office (Room 313). In the M.T.S. program, a student may transfer up to six credits from another graduate school with the written permission of the Provost/Dean. Transfer of credits in the S.T.L., S.T.D., and Ph.D. programs is considered on a case-by-case basis by the Provost/Dean. Only courses from an equivalent degree program may be considered transferable.