Any help anyone could give would be much appreciated. I have been struggling severe health issues that lead to depression, mood swings and general apathy during my time at UC Berkeley. As a result I have been on academic probation twice. The first time I returned to good academic standing the second time I did not.
Some additional details I am in the College of Engineering as an undergraduate and I was dismissed after my 7th semester. I have to fulfill one breadth and one ethics requirement for my degree and I still meet the other requirements for graduation, GPA etc. Also I have already submitted a personal statement describing my circumstances and the college has returned and still dismissed me.
To be honest I am not too sure why I got dismissed. I know that my GPA was not great between semester but I had only two courses left to graduate and I hoped they would allow me to graduate. Is there an appeal or should I be talking to the Dean? If I apply for readmission after a semester or twkwhat is my likelyhood to get accepted I can only take two courses and those won’t improve my GPA that much?
So sorry to hear about your situation. I have linked the following information and yes you should be contacting the Dean along with your Academic advisor whom you should have made a plan with when you were on probation both times. Did you seek medical care for your health issues along with counseling for your depression?
Did you meet the following GPA requirements: ** You need to maintain an overall UC grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher, a technical GPA of 2.0 or higher, an upper division technical GPA of 2.0 or higher and earn a GPA each semester of 2.0 or higher. Students are subject to dismissal if at the end of any fall or spring semester they do not meet any of the above minimum GPA requirements.**
Here is what is required for readmission: ** In limited situations, if you have been dismissed from the College of Engineering you may be considered for readmission for a future semester. You will be required to take at least a year break from UC Berkeley and at least a semester break from your academics. After a year or more, the Dean’s Committee may consider readmission applications from students who can demonstrate that they used their break from academics to identify, and take tangible steps to address, the challenges that led to their academic difficulty. After one semester away from your academics, if you believe that you have successfully addressed these challenges and you wish to enroll in courses at another institution, or at Berkeley through concurrent enrollment, contact your Engineering Student Services (ESS) Adviser to discuss whether or not this would be an appropriate option. Readmission after dismissal is never guaranteed. **
Personally, contact a academic lawyer that deals with colleges. Most will give you “free” advice with a consult. Maybe it’s worth discussing and having them write a letter for you. To me this is too important and we are also most likely not getting the full picture of your situation either. They have to have a strong reason to do this.
I did not mantain the GPA of 2.0 from each semester hence why I was out on academic probation but everything else is met including the terms of the overall and technical and upper division technical requirement
To the best of my knowledge, they are pretty strict about dismissing people after two consecutive semesters of being on academic probation. When should I get the academic lawyer involved? I am meeting with my advisor soon.
I would get the lawyer now since you have to wait a year to apply for readmission according to the guidelines. Maybe they will be able to speed up the process.
Yes, now. At least for a consult. They tend to know more loop holes then we would. Because you have a medical issue maybe that can be a point of interest. With 2 classes to go I would fight like hell to graduate and do whatever it takes to accomplish that!
A lawyer? To do what- argue that the C’s and D’s are not really C’s and D’s or are somehow discriminatory? That there was no due process (the citations above seem pretty clear cut and transparent) or that the student did not know or understand that by not maintaining the required GPA he/she was at risk of flunking out?
OP- get your mental health in order. Job 1. College will be there next year, two years from now. I don’t know whether you were unable to get to class most of the time, had issues sleeping, didn’t hand in assignments, or flunked your finals. But it really doesn’t matter. You were not ready to tackle the demands of a place like Berkeley, and you’re being given a gift- a year to get yourself help and get healthy before tackling it again.
What are you gaining from a successful appeal to return for your last two semesters when you aren’t ready?
And to the folks who think a lawyer can do the trick- do you want to drive over a bridge designed by a Berkeley engineer with a D average? Who fought his/her way back to college via a lawyerly loophole, despite not being able to perform at his/her potential academically due to depression?
If the OP isn’t a civil engineer, you can substitute fly in a plane, drive in a car, or get a pacemaker where the QA engineer in charge of that batch got his/her degree via a loophole.
OP- big hug. But untangling your mental health issues is FAR more important right now than finishing college. You can spend your adulthood struggling and just getting by- or you can tackle your issues and go back to college in a year or two.
Thanks for the kinds words of encouragement. I guess the real crux of the issues is that I was so close to graduating. I have only two courses left, ones that are arguably not relevant to my degree to take. I do believe my mental health is important and I am taking steps to address the issues. However I do only have two courses left to take and I rather not wait a year or two to spend half a semester on those courses later.
Also point of clarification I don’t have two semesters left. I met the credit requirements and the GPA requirements for the degree itself. I am missing two of the required courses needed to graduate, the ethics and a breadth course. I got dismissed as I failed to meet the semester requirements needed to continue being enrolled at the University.
If there is an appeals process, you should take advantage of it. Other students here have appealed a suspension and typically you just need to write three or four paragraphs at most. But since you were already on academic probation, I would be prepared to take the year off. You should meet with the relevant office so they have a record that you showed some interest in returning and just didn’t disappear. I also wouldn’t lawyer up- not likely to be any hidden loopholes here unless you are arguing that they didn’t accommodate your mental health issues.
I know someone who was at an Ivy and had mental health issues/depression and as a result was asked to leave. He was given specific conditions that he had to meet in order to return. Were you given conditions to meet that you have not yet completed? Eg: Counseling, evaluation, medication, Dr. note to return, compliance with medication etc. This person used the 6 month leave to complete his thesis, go to counseling, etc. He went back and did indeed graduate but as their policy states, he could not just complete the remaining 6 months but all Seniors need to be enrolled for the entire academic year. Good luck and take care of yourself.
The reason I suggested an academic lawyer is because he only has 2 classes to go.
The avg to pass engineering is a C avg. Not sure where @blossom saw a “D” avg. No school would graduate someone less then a “C” avg and maybe that’s what she means.
Also we just don’t know all the facts. Maybe they didn’t give appropriate accommodations. Yes, engineering is very tough especially at Berkeley. Going away for a year and coming back isn’t going to change the GPA. Two non essential classes left to graduate. That is just very sad to me. Many kids graduate with “C” avg at many engineering schools around the country and end up being fine engineers. Not everyone is capable to maintain B avg etc. Sure it seems that something should of happened during his sophomore year till now but we just don’t have that information.
For lots of engineers after graduating it’s learning on the job the way the company wants something done. That might be more favorable for the OP.
Again, with just 2 classes left I would fight for that. Then maybe take some time off to focus on your mental health issues.
Have a meeting with your Dean, show a plan for what you are going to do during your time away to get yourself healthy (and it’s ok to have additional things like working out, walking your dog… mental health is more than therapy) and get psyched for the gift of time to work on yourself. Once you don’t have classes and academic pressure- you’ll have time to tackle your depression in a comprehensive way.
I see this as a gift… hugs to you, you are brave.