Per-Course/Open Enrollment System Description

The CSU Per-Course Enrollment System allows students to begin a course at any time. There are no predetermined semester or session dates. Students may take one course after another or multiple courses simultaneously.

Courses are designed in an independent study model and are 10-weeks in length. This system is very flexible and is recommended for all students who are not required to use term enrollment.

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Temporary Status Enrollment

Students who wish to begin enrolling in courses immediately after submitting their Application for Admission may do so under "Temporary" Admissions Status and while "Temporary," may complete up to 13 undergraduate credit hours or 7 graduate credit hours. Once all transcripts are received and evaluated, an Application Evaluation Report will be issued and the student’s status changed. For more information about temporary status, view the admission status page.

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Academic Course Load Policy

At CSU, students are allowed to progress as quickly through their program of study as they are able, but within defined parameters. Because of personal and professional obligations, the majority of CSU students take seven to ten weeks to complete a course. However, there are some students who may wish to progress through their program of study at a faster, but unacceptable, pace.

Accelerating course completion beyond what is academically sound defeats the purpose of study, because little is comprehended and even less is retained. In addition, it is most likely that admissions counselors and prospective employers will unfavorably view transcripts that reflect "breakneck" speed of program completion.

To address this issue, CSU has an Academic Load policy. The policy that is outlined below restricts students from setting a pace that is viewed as academically unsound.

The CSU Per-Course Enrollment System allows students to begin a course at any time. Students may take one course after another or multiple courses simultaneously. The Dean of Students must approve all requests to take more than nine credit hours (3 courses) in any 10-week period. Students who request to take more than nine credit hours (3 courses) in any 10-week period must have a minimum GPA of 3.0. The maximum course load allowed is twelve credit hours within a 10-week period. Course load limits remain in place even if a student completes their course load before the end of the 10-week period. No single course may be completed in less than a three-week period. (Note: Students who take seven credit hours or more in any 10-week period are deemed to be full time students.)

Examples
Example 1: A student desires to take twelve credit hours (4 courses simultaneously) and obtains permission to do so from the Dean of Students. The student begins all four courses on December 1st. The 10-week period ends February 9th. The student completes all four courses by the 8th week. The student has taken the maximum course load and therefore must wait two weeks until the 10-week period ends on February 9th before beginning any additional courses.

Example 2: A student does not seek approval for the maximum load of 12 hours and therefore may take up to 9 hours (3 courses) within a ten-week period. The student decides he/she does not wish to take more than two courses simultaneously and registers for six hours (two courses). The courses begin on December 1st. The 10-week period ends February 9th. The student completes the two courses by the 8th week. The student has two weeks remaining in the 10-week period in which 9 hours may not be exceeded. The student has two choices. (1) He/she may wait until the 10th week ends on February 9th and begin two or three courses simultaneously; (2) He/she may begin one course immediately on the 8th week and begin one or two additional courses after February 9th.

Example 3: The student desires to focus on one course at a time and complete each course quickly. Per the policy, the student does not seek approval to take twelve hours in a 10-week period and is therefore limited to a course load of nine credit hours. The policy also states that the minimum time a student may complete a single course is three weeks.

Therefore, at a minimum the student should spread his/her assignment submissions over a three-week period. A final grade for the course will not be issued before the 3rd course week ends. The student may begin the 2nd and 3rd course at any time because the student has not reached the 9-hour limit for a 10-week period. If the student begins a new course on the 3rd week of the first course and again on the 6th week, the student has reached the nine-hour limit on the 6th week. If each course is completed in three weeks, the 3rd course would be completed approximately on the 9th week. The student must wait until after the 10th week of the first course before beginning an additional course.

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Course Completion Policy

When a student’s course end date or course extension date ends all course assignments not completed will be assigned a grade of zero. The student’s grade will then be calculated on the weighted scores earned on all course assignments. For example, if a student completes an assignment with a score of 100 on all but one course assignment worth 25 points, a grade of zero would be posted for the 25 point assignment and the student would earn a course grade of 75. The student is encouraged to complete all the assignments in the course. The student is also encouraged not to allow a course grade to post without all assignments being completed. CSU strongly recommends that the student request a course extension before the course end date and complete all remaining assignments during the extension period. The student is reminded that if a student’s GPA falls below a 2.00 for undergraduates or 3.00 for graduates the student will be placed on probation and possible suspension if the GPA is not raised.

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Course Extension

Any student not completing his/her course in the ten week time frame allotted will have the option to request an extension from the university. The university must receive this request within one week of the end of the original ten week period. The extension will provide an additional 30 days in which the student will be allowed to complete the course. For each course that a thirty day extension is requested there will be $50 fee. A maximum of two thirty day extensions are allowed for each course. Students who do not complete the course on which the extension was granted within the extension period requested will receive an "I/F" (Incomplete/F) for this course. In such instances, the course must be taken over again in its entirety and the student is required to pay full tuition of the course.

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Special Needs Extension

A Special Needs Extension may be approved for up to 120-days from the original end date. It is reserved for those students who encounter unusual circumstances that prevent them from completing a course within a standard 60-Day Course Extension. The following are required for Special Needs Extension approval:

The student must be able to complete the course within a maximum of 120 days from the course end date. No additional time may be given past this timeframe.
The student must be making progress in the course. If no progress has been made, the student must justify the lack of progress.
The student's circumstance must involve an unusual or critical circumstance such as Military deployment, TDY/TAD, PCS, major surgery, natural disaster, family emergency, death of an immediate family member, or job relocation.
The student must submit official documentation that substantiates the circumstance and dates that the student will be affected, as well as a written plan for completion of the course. Requests that are received without support documentation and specific goal dates will not be considered.
The online Special Needs Extension form must be completed and submitted prior to the course end date or the end of a standard extension. Also, the form should be submitted prior to or at the outset of the unusual or critical circumstance.

To request a Special Needs Extension, the student must complete and submit the Special Needs Extension Request Form found at the bottom of this page. This form includes the reason for the extension and the student’s plan for completion. Please note that approval is not automatic. The Special Needs Extension Committee will review and decide on the approval of each request. Students will be notified normally within five (5) business days of receipt of request and supporting documentation.

If approved, the maximum length of the Special Needs Extension will be 120 days from the original course end date. If the unusual circumstance does not allow the completion of the course within 120 days, the student should submit a request to the Special Needs Committee requesting permission to withdraw. The approval or denial to withdraw will be made by the committee. The textbook must be returned before a grade of "W" will be posted to the student's record. Please remember that the withdrawal request must be made before the original end date of a course. Only one Special Needs Extension may be granted for each course.

Students who do not complete the course within the extension period requested will receive a course grade calculated on the weighted scores of all completed course assignments. All assignments left undone will be assigned a grade of zero. If the calculated grade is an "F", the course must be taken over in its entirety and the student will be required to pay the current tuition rates for the course.

If you have additional questions before submitting your request, please contact Carmen Daniel in Student Services at 800.977.8449, ext. 184, or by email at carmen.daniel@columbiasouthern.edu.

To Request a Special Needs Extension, click on the link below and complete the form. The form and supporting documentation may be faxed to Student Services at 251-224-0550 or mailed to Columbia Southern University, Attn: Special Needs Extension Committee, PO Box 3110, Orange Beach, AL 36561. The student may also scan and email the form and documentation to carmen.daniel@columbiasouthern.edu.

Please remember, request forms that are received without supporting documentation, including submission goal dates, will not be considered.
Download the Special Needs Extension Request (MS Word format)

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Extra Credit Policy - Undergraduate Courses Only

Undergraduate students must earn a cumulative GPA of 2.00 or higher on a 4.0 scale. Students earning a grade of "D" or below may wish to request an extra credit assignment. However, the student must have completed all assignments in the course to be eligible to request an extra credit assignment. A maximum of 10 points may be earned though extra credit. This option is available only to those students who have completed all of the assignments and that no academic dishonesty has occurred. Students must contact Student Services to request an extra credit assignment. An extra credit assignment fee of $50 is required.

Students earning a "D" or below in a course also have the option of repeating the course. If a course is repeated, the hours attempted are counted once and the lowest grade is deleted as credit cannot be given twice for the same course.

Extra credit assignments are only available at the undergraduate level. Extra credit assignments must be requested no later than 45 days after the course completion date. The extra credit assignment must be completed no later than 60 days after the course completion date.

Once they have received the Extra Credit Application Form, Student Services will notify the course professor and request that they approve an extra credit assignment. The course professor can decide to or not to allow the student to complete an extra credit assignment. If the professor agrees to allow a student to complete an extra credit assignment, the professor is responsible for determining the nature of the extra credit assignment and the number of points (maximum of 10) to be awarded.
The following procedures must be followed when an extra credit assignment is approved by the professor.

The student must contact student services and request an Extra Credit Application Form.
The Extra Credit Application Form must be completed and submitted along with the $50 fee to the Academics Department. The form may be faxed to 251-968-2493 or emailed to shawn@columbiasouthern.edu. The form can be downloaded here.
The professor is contacted and informed that an Extra Credit Application Form has been received, and that the fee has been paid.
The professor is to then contact the student and copy student services about the requirements and deadline for completion of work to receive the extra credit.
Generally, the assignment will be short writing assignments.
The student’s due date is three weeks from the date the approval is given by the professor and received by student services.
The student then submits the work to student services, and the work is forwarded to the professor.
The professor then evaluates the work and submits the evaluation with the amount of extra credit earned to student services.
Student services then informs the student as to the outcome of the extra credit assignment.
If the work is not submitted to student services within the deadline period, no extra credit will be awarded.

The student must contact Student Services to request an Extra Credit Application Form.

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Refund Policy

If CSU is notified of cancellation within 5 calendar days of the day on which the Enrollment Agreement is signed/submitted, all money paid to CSU will be refunded. All students withdrawing after five calendar days will be charged a 20 percent Registration Fee (maximum of $200). The remaining tuition will be refunded based on the course start date and the tuition percentage amounts listed below.

1st Week, 80 %
2nd Week, 60 %
3rd Week, 40 %
4th Week, 20 %
5th Week, 0 %

Enrollment Period

The enrollment period for the Per Course Enrollment Agreement is 27 weeks (189) days. After the 27-week period expires, no refund of the tuition will be issued.

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Per-Course Open Enrollment System Policies (10 Week Courses)