Academics

II. Registration rules

A. Registration:

Registration, on the assigned dates, is required of all students, in accordance with the posted procedures and regulations. Late registration is subject to a Late Registration Fee. Intensive English students, transferring students, cross registering students, and students on double probation, as well as students returning after one or more semesters of absence, are exempted from the Late Registration Fee.
Students are not allowed to register after the Late Registration Period.
In order to register for a course, students must complete all the prerequisite(s) for that course.
No student may enroll in a course if he/she has an Incomplete grade in their prerequisite(s).
In exceptional cases, the Chairperson may give special permission for registration if points 3 and 4, listed above, are not met.

B. Student Course Load:

A minimum full-time load, in a regular term, is 12 credits. A maximum load of 18 credits is allowed, or as specified by the Professional Schools.
Students with a cumulative GPA of 3.00, and above, are allowed to carry up to a maximum of 21 credits.
Students, in their last semester of graduation, may register for a maximum of 21 credits, provided they are in good academic standing.
Students who are on probation are not allowed to carry more than 13 credits in regular semesters.
The maximum course load per Summer module is 7 credits. Students registering in some courses that span both summer modules (1 & 2) may register for more than 7 credits per module but not to exceed 14 credits total for both modules.
Students in the Professional Schools, who are registered in the Internship courses during the Summer modules, may be allowed to exceed the total allowed credits for the Summer, provided the requirements for the internship are fulfilled beyond the Summer modules.
In regular semesters, and in special cases, the Academic School Council may allow students to exceed the allowed maximum load, within the constraints of the University Charter.

C. Registration for Pass/Not Pass Courses:

Students may choose to take free elective courses (Sophomore level and above) over and above the University requirements, and the major requirements, on a Pass or No Pass basis.
Courses taken on a Pass or No Pass basis will not count in the GPA, but the credit hours successfully completed will be counted towards graduation. The Pass grade is given when the grade in the course is C, or above.
Students are not allowed to take more than one course per semester on a Pass or No Pass basis.

D. Registration for Tutorial Courses:

In exceptional cases, students are allowed to take courses on a Tutorial basis, subject to the following:

Students may apply for a Tutorial in their junior and senior years in the School of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Business, or during their last two years in the Professional Schools, provided they have completed, at least, 30 semester credits at LAU, with a GPA of 2.50 and above, or they are students who are graduating with a BA/BS Degree, and whose courses, in their last semester at LAU, are not offered.
Permission may be granted to a student to enroll in a Tutorial by the School Council, if all of the following conditions apply:
1. A substitute is not offered at LAU.
2. The approval of the Advisor and the Division Chairperson is secured.
3. The School Council approves a petition of the student to be allowed a Tutorial before the beginning of the semester.
The Division Chairperson and/or the Academic Dean shall select the appropriate instructor for the Tutorials.
No student may take more than two courses as Tutorials in their Undergraduate Program. These credits shall not be taken in one semester. Non-graduating students should take, at least, nine other credits in regularly scheduled courses, or, at least, one other regularly scheduled course during the Summer.
Applied courses (labs and studios), and those being repeated, shall not be taken as Tutorials.
Tutorials involve close and regular monitoring of the student’s progress, therefore, course requirements, and the grading standards, set in a regularly scheduled course should apply to a Tutorial.

E. Course Changes After Registration:

Changes in registration are permitted, subject to the following provisions:

No course may be added or a change of section be made or the type of registration for a course (P/NP, audit…) be changed after the end of the Drop/Add period.
If a student drops a course within the Drop/ Add period, no grade is recorded for that course and its fees will not be included in the Statement of Fees. Students who officially withdraw after the late registration period will receive a W. Withdrawing from courses is allowed only by the end of the 10th week after the beginning of classes for a regular semester and by the end of the 18th day for summer semesters.

F. Course Substitution

Course substitutions in the major courses may be made, under special circumstances, before final registration for the course, and upon the recommendation of the Department/Division concerned, and the approval of the Academic School Council. Substitution of the University requirements needs the approval of the Curriculum Council.

G. Cross-Registration:

1. Cross-Registering Between LAU Campuses:

Students may be allowed to Cross-Register by following the Cross-Registration Procedures stated below:

Fill in an intercampus Cross-Registration Form.
Secure the authorized signatures of the Advisor, and the Chairperson of the Division offering the course.
Have the courses registered in the Registrar’s Office.

Students cross-registering from one LAU campus to another are subject to the following condition:

At least 50 percent of the semester credits must be taken at the campus of origin of the student.This condition applies for regular semesters only, hence Fall and Spring semesters. During the Summer modules, students can Cross-Register for as many credits as they wish, within the limit allowed by the student’s course load regulation.

2. Cross-Registering to Other Universities in Lebanon:

Cross-Registration to another university in Lebanon may be allowed, only if a course in the last term of study is needed for graduation, and the course is not offered on any LAU campus.

Furthermore:

A cross-registered course will not be allowed for a repeat.
The course will be treated as a transfer course.
An agreement should exist between LAU and the university where the course is to be taken, before allowing for Cross-Registration. Students should pay at LAU.

The students must follow the following procedure:

The student must fill out the Cross-Registration Form and a Regular Registration Form, and have them approved by the Advisor, and the Division/Department Chairperson.
The student must secure the signatures of the Business Office, and the Registrar’s Office at LAU, and forward this to the registrar at the other institution.
After completing the registration, and securing the authorized signature, in the space provided, at the other institution, the student must return the proper copy to the LAU Registrar’s Office.

No credit will be given for a course taken at another institution unless the above stated procedures are followed.

3. Registration in Universities Outside of Lebanon:

Students who, during their study at LAU, decide to take courses at universities outside of Lebanon should follow the following steps.

Prior approval of the Academic School Council is needed in order for the course to be transferred.
It is the duty of the student to provide the Academic School Council with the catalog, course description, and syllabus of the course(s).
The course(s) should not be a repeat.
The course(s) should not be within the last 30 credits needed for graduation.
The course is to be considered a transfer course.

A course may be transferred only if the student’s grade in the course is equivalent to C, or above. Transferred courses are not included in the GPA computation.

H. Refund Policy:

Courses dropped after the Drop and Add period will not be refunded, and a grade of W will be recorded.

I. Auditing Courses

LAU students may audit courses; however, they should secure the consent of the instructor, and the Division/Department Chairperson, prior to registration. Students auditing a course will not receive credit for it.