Academic Standards

The degree of Juris Doctor (J.D.) is granted to students who, having met the entrance requirements before beginning law school, have completed three academic years of full-time study (including two years of full-time resident study) within six years of the date of matriculation; have received a passing grade in courses totaling 88 semester hours; have satisfactorily completed such other work as may be prescribed from time to time; and have complied with the scholarship requirements set forth below.
It is the responsibility of the student to ascertain that the 88-credit-hour requirement has been met. Each student will receive an academic history printout at the end of each academic year. These printouts should be carefully checked to see that they list the correct number of credits, the correct courses and grades. Any errors should be reported immediately to the Law School Registrar.
The scale of grading is as follows: A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D, F.
Any student whose record in grades, attendance or classroom performance at the end of any semester in residence, including the first, indicates lack of capacity, interest or diligence may be excluded or placed on academic probation at the discretion of the faculty.
A student must attain an average of at least C for all the work in the first year in order to be advanced to the second year. Failure to attain this independent yearly average for the first year will result in an automatic exclusion from the school.
A student must attain a cumulative average of at least C at the end of the second year in order to advance to the third year. Failure to attain the cumulative average will result in an automatic exclusion from the school. A student who attains a cumulative average of C or better at the end of the second year, but less than a C average for the work of the second year, is automatically placed upon academic probation during the third year.

A student must attain a cumulative average of at least C at the end of the third year in order to be graduated from the school. Failure to attain the cumulative average will result in an automatic exclusion from the school. A student who attains a cumulative average of C or better at the end of the third year, but less than a C average for the work of the third year, is automatically placed upon academic probation. In order to be eligible to graduate, the student on probation must satisfy all conditions imposed by the Faculty Committee on Petitions & Academic Standards.
An LL.M student must attain a cumulative average of at least C to be graduated from the school. Failure to attain the cumulative average will result in an automatic exclusion from school.
A student who at any time accumulates 12 semester hours of D or F grades is automatically placed on academic probation for the semester following this accumulation.
A student on academic probation is required to meet the conditions of probation which are established by the Faculty Committee on Petitions & Academic Standards. Failure to meet the condition of academic probation will result in an automatic exclusion from the school. A student who is placed on probation at the end of the third year must meet the conditions imposed by the Faculty Committee on Petitions & Academic Standards in order to be eligible to graduate.
A student on academic probation is not eligible to hold office in law student organizations, Student Bar Association, nor to participate in any activity for credit, any clinical program, or the Client Counseling Competition.
A student who at any time accumulates ten semester hours of F grades is automatically excluded from the school immediately upon such accumulation.
Upon exclusion from the school for any of the reasons set forth herein, readmission to the school may be sought only by the submission of a written petition to the Faculty Committee on Petitions & Academic Standards. If the decision of the Committee is unanimous, there is no further review. If the decision of the Committee is split, review may be sought from the faculty Steering Committee.

In computing grade averages, the following numerical equivalents will be used: A+ = 4.00; A = 4.00, A- = 3.75; B+ = 3.25; B = 3.00; B- = 2.75; C+ = 2.25; C = 2.00; C- = 1.75; D = 1.00; F = 0. For purposes of any average (yearly or cumulative), the required average must be fully attained rather than approximated. For example, to attain a C average, a student must have a numerical grade average of at least 2.000 (the full, integral value of C on the numerical equivalent scale). A numerical grade average of 1.999, then, would no constitute a C average.
It is the policy of the faculty not to permit a student who has received a grade in a course to take a reexamination or to repeat the course for the purpose of receiving credit in the course or raising the course grade. This policy will not always apply to courses that are designated by the faculty as courses that must be successfully completed as a condition of graduation, and the faculty may relax the policy in other exceptional cases. The policy may be waived in other exceptional cases by the Faculty Committee on Petitions and Academic Standards.
When permission has been granted to retake a course or examination, both grades will appear on the transcript. The first grade will receive no credit. The second grade will receive credit. The Petitions Committee will decide on a case b case basis whether the second grade should be reported on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory or on a letter grade basis.
A cumulative grade average will be the only criterion used for the purpose of determining class rank and honors. A student's cumulative grade average will include all previous semesters of graded course work completed by the student at the school. Students who have spent a year at another law school will be eligible for honors and awards, based on the cumulative grade average for work completed at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
In addition to the standard grading scale, certain courses are offered on Satisfactory/Fail basis, or an Honors/Satisfactory/Fail basis.
If a student is certified out of a course or seminar by the faculty member for failure to meet attendance requirements or to properly prepare or to satisfy any other course requirements, the faculty member may assign a grade of "U (Unsatisfactory) or "F" (Failure). No credit will be given for the course or seminar. A student certified out will not be permitted to enroll in the course or seminar at a future time at this school or at another law school for credit at this law school.