The Office of Academic Affairs is committed to ensuring that all students are provided with the appropriate advising and resources to successfully progress towards graduation. Students can schedule an academic advising appointment by e-mailing ublawacadaff@ubalt.edu.
The Office of Academic Affairs can also refer you to professors who can provide specific information and guidance about areas of practice and guidance on career path options.
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J.D. Graduation Requirement
To earn the J.D., students must do the following:
1. Complete a minimum of 87 credits with a cumulative GPA of 2.00
2. Complete a combination of required and elective coursework.
In addition to academic advising, students should regularly monitor their progress towards degree completion by logging into the MyUB portal and viewing the Academic Requirements feature. This is a degree audit feature that tracks completed and in -progress courses, grades, transcript, GPA and academic requirements. Comprehensive information about the J.D. program can be found here.
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Course Planning and Sequencing Guides
Day and evening students can use the following guides to map out the required courses during their time with the School of Law. If you have specific questions, please contact us to further discuss.
+ Day Program Recommended Course Sequencing Guide
+ Evening Program Recommended Course Sequencing Guide
+ Evening Student Sample 4 Year Plan
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Academic Grading Policies and Academic Incentives
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Repeat and Replace Policy
Students must earn a grade of C- or higher in any required course, with the exception of Law in Context, Scholarly Writing Requirement, and Experiential Learning courses. In Law in Context and for any electives, a student must earn a D-; in Scholarly Writing and Experiential Learning, a student must earn a C.
Students must retake a required course until they earn the minimum required grade. The grades for multiple attempts of the same course shall be averaged for GPA purposes, and the student shall only receive credit for taking the course once. The credits for the first attempt will appear on the transcript until the second attempt is completed and graded. A repeated course must be taken the next semester as it is offered in a student’s division. A student may take the course in another division if seats are available after cross-division registration begins. A student may not repeat courses except as provided in this rule.
Required courses that are repeated will be recorded as follows:
+ The original course and the original grade will remain on the student transcript.
+ The grade for the second attempt of the course is the average of both the first and second grade. A transcript note indicates what the actual second grade is and that the first and second grades are averaged.
+ Credit hours for the course may only be earned on one attempt.
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Royal Shannonhouse Scholarships
Students achieving high academic performance after the first year may be eligible for induction into the Royal Shannonhouse Honor Society. The minimum GPA for eligibility is 3.15 cum GPA at the time of review. Inductees are eligible to receive scholarships up to $30,000. Full time day students are reviewed after two semesters. Part time day and evening students are reviewed after three semesters. Induction is contingent on continuing the second year at University of Baltimore.
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Honors and Awards
Awards given at the annual awards ceremony include a clinical excellence award and Dean's Citations. The J.D. degree is granted cum laude to those who complete the requirements with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25, magna cum laude to those whose average is at least 3.50, and summa cum laude to those whose average is at least 3.75. GPA’s are not rounded. Students in the top 10 percent of the graduating class are inducted into the Heuisler Honor Society. Transfer students who have earned a cumulative average of at least 3.25 or higher (considering grades earned at both the transferring school and the University of Baltimore School of Law) are eligible to graduate with honors.
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Academic Dismissal, Probation, and Success Counseling
GPA Requirements
Full-time first students who have a GPA of 1.50 or below after the end of the first semester will be academically dismissed.
Part-time students who have a GPA below 1.50 after the completion of their second semester will be academically dismissed.
All students (both full and part-time) will be dismissed if the GPA falls to 1.0 or below at any time.
Academic Probation
Any student who has a GPA below 2.00 and is not subject to immediate academic dismissal as described above, will be placed on academic probation. Students on academic probation must regularly meet with the Director of Academic Success. Students on academic probation must successfully complete a series of assignments and or workshops addressing legal study skills and exam taking skills. Students who fail to comply with counseling and workshop requirements or other conditions established by the Director of Academic Success will have a registration hold placed on their account.
Mandatory Success Course and Counseling
Students who fall below 2.80 after their second semester will be required to take LAW 615, Rules & reasoning in their 3 rd semester. Evening students below 2.80 after the second semester must take LAW 615, Rules and Reasoning in the 4 th semester.
Students who have a GPA below 2.25 will be subject to success counseling with the Director of Academic Success.
Students should review the Student Handbook for further information about GPA requirements, academic dismissal and appeals of academic dismissals.
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Academic Support Program
While academic advising is available to guide students through the process of academic planning, the School of Law also offers a variety of resources for academic success, including workshops, one-on-one meetings, and peer support. Further information and points of contact can be found here.
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Classes at the University of Maryland School of Law
All required courses must be completed at University of Baltimore, School of Law. University of Baltimore School of Law students may enroll in elective classes at the University of Maryland School of Law if there is space in the class. Students must earn a C or higher in any course taken at any another school in order to receive academic credit for that course at the University of Baltimore School of Law.
Grades earned at the University of Maryland School of Law through inter-institutional registration will be computed in the grade point average, but grades from courses taken at any other law school or non-UBalt study abroad program will not be computed into the grade point average.
To take advantage of these opportunities at University of Maryland School of Law during Fall and Spring semesters, students register under a simplified registration process called Inter-Institutional Registration (IIR). IIR forms are available from the Office of Academic Affairs, from the Registrar’s office or on the student portal. IIR forms must be signed by an advisor in the Office of Academic Affairs, by a Records office staff member and by a designated official at the University of Maryland.
The IIR process described above does not apply to summer classes. During the summer term students must apply as a visiting student through the Office of Admissions at the University of Maryland School of Law. In addition to tuition, there may be additional fees associated with this process.
The form for IIR can be found here: Forms - University of Baltimore (ubalt.edu)
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Studying at Another Institution
The following policies govern potential transfer coursework that a current JD student wishes to take outside of University of Baltimore School of Law or University of Maryland School of Law.
All required courses must be completed at University of Baltimore, School of Law.
- Student must earn a grade of C or higher in any course taken at another school in order to receive academic credit for that course at UBalt Law. Transfer grades will not calculate into the UBalt Law GPA.
- A maximum of 9 credits will be accepted for transfer for any non-UBalt law course or graduate non-law course from another law school or an accredited graduate school, subject to the exceptions noted below. Up to 6 of the 9 credits transferred may be graduate courses. This provision shall apply to students who are in residence at UBalt for all 87 credits needed for graduation.
+ Students should have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 to take graduate non-law courses outside of UBalt Law for use towards the J.D. degree program.
- If a student transfers into UBalt Law from another law school, they may not take non-UBalt Law courses, subject to the exceptions noted below, unless permission to take such non-UBalt Law courses is granted by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs upon a showing of extraordinary circumstances.
- If a student is in residence at UBalt Law but takes a transient status at another law school, then: o If the student is transient for approximately 32 credits (a whole year), such student may only have 4 non-UBalt Law credits count towards graduation, not counting the transient credits.
+ If the student is transient for approximately 16 credits (a semester), such student may only have 6 non-UBalt Law credits count towards graduation, not counting the transient credits.
- Advance permission must be granted to enroll in non-UBalt Law courses. The student must demonstrate that the non-UBalt Law course is not comparable to one regularly offered at UBalt Law and that the course will significantly contribute to the student’s legal education by providing an experience specific to the student’s program of study.
EXCEPTIONS: The regulations above do not apply to UBalt Law study abroad programs, UBalt dual-degree program students, or courses taken at the University of Maryland through inter-institutional registration rules. Credits earned through these articulations will not count against the 9-transfer credit maximum.
Maximum Credits per term when enrolled at two institutions
Students may not exceed the maximum credit loads for the term, which includes coursework taken at University of Baltimore School of Law and through another academic program at UBalt or other institution.
- Full Time Students: Maximum of 16 credits per semester. Summer course load maximum is 8 credits.
- Part Time Students: Maximum of 12 credits per semester. Summer course load maximum is 6 credits.