Students in the College of Law are governed by the Honor Code. An elected student committee acts as a fact finding committee for Honor Code purposes. The committee reviews complaints and conducts hearings. If a complaint is found to be substantial and if it is sustained after hearing, the student may appeal to the dean.
Students are responsible for compliance with the regulations of the university and should familiarize themselves with the provisions of this bulletin, the Registration Schedules posted on the Office of Student Records website, the Student Handbook posted on the Office of Student Affairs website, posted official notices, and instructions given to students.
The university reserves the right to clarify and change its regulations in the course of the student’s enrollment. Faculty advisers, deans, and associate deans are available to assist students regarding compliance with current regulations. However, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to comply with the regulations and completion of requirements for his or her chosen program of study.
Upon enrollment, it is understood that both the student and the parents or guardians of a dependent student agree that the student will be governed by the university regulations and will abide by decisions made by proper authorities of the university regarding the individual student.
The faculty committee receives petitions from students seeking variances from the rules and policies of the College of Law. Requests must be made in a timely manner. For more information, please contact the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.
Loyola offers five curricula. In the full-time day program, Loyola offers three curricula leading to the juris doctor degree: in the tradition of the civil law for students who expect to practice in Louisiana; in the common law for those students who will practice in other states. As part of the full-time day program, Loyola also offers a LL.M. in United States Law. In addition, Loyola offers a part-time day program in either Civil Law or Common Law. The part-time evening program offers only the civil law curriculum leading to the juris doctor degree.
The curriculum for full-time students covers a period of six semesters of resident study. Full-time students will not be permitted to schedule more than 16 hours of law work in any semester without special permission from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs of the College of Law. ABA Accreditation Standard 311(c) prohibits students from enrolling in more than 20 percent of the credits needed for graduation in one semester. For Loyola, that maximum is 18 hours. Full-time first-year students must schedule 15 hours in the first semester and 14 hours in the second semester. The normal time frame for completion of the juris doctor degree is three academic years. Students are forewarned that this is a minimum time frame and the program may not be completed by acceleration in two and one-half years. Part-time students are not permitted to complete their degree in fewer than 4 years of part-time study; a part-time student may complete the degree in fewer than 4 years if the student transfers to the full-time program.
Part-time students may register for more than 12 hours only with the permission of the Petitions Committee or the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. All first-year part-time students are required to schedule 12 hours in the first semester and 11 in the second semester. Lawyering III must be completed and scheduled during the second year. Anyone who begins in the part-time program must stay with that program through the first year.
See Tuition and Fees for applicable residency requirement.
In accordance with ABA Standard 310, students are expected to attend and adequately prepare for classes and other activities for which they receive academic credit. To that end, one credit hour shall reasonably approximate:
(1) at least one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and at least two hours of out-of-class student work per week for fifteen weeks, including the exam week, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time, for at least 42.5 total hours; or
(2) at least an equivalent amount of work for other academic activities such as law review activities, moot court activities, independent studies, simulations, field placements, clinical work, and any other work leading to the awarding of credit hours. For the work covered by this subsection, students must comply with the supervising faculty member’s rules for successfully completing the other academic activity, including rules governing keeping track of student’s time on the task, giving interim reports, meeting with the supervising faculty member, and providing drafts.
To ensure compliance with ABA Standard 310, the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs shall ensure that the policy is posted on the College of Law website in the section on Academics maintained by the Law Records office and in the Law Bulletin. Moreover, all courses taught in the College of Law will be reviewed on a regular basis by the faculty teaching the courses and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs to ensure that the amount of credit hours awarded is consistent with the amount of work required of students. Faculty teaching courses will review their courses for coverage and student work every time they teach them to ensure that credit hours earned by students is commensurate with the work assigned to and completed by the students. Faculty must complete a “310 form” for each of their courses and submit that form, along with a syllabus if applicable, to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs by the second week of the semester. (See attached form.) Faculty should survey students near the end of the semester to determine the amount of time spent on coursework during the semester to ensure the accuracy of information provided on the 310 form and update the form when necessary.
Additionally, the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will review courses taught in the College of Law every five years as follows: 2017-18,Year 1, all general law required courses; Year 2, all civil law required and pool courses; Year 3, all common law required and pool courses; Year 4, all courses required or in the pool for certificates that have not been reviewed in Years 1-3; and Year 5, all courses identified as experiential courses, including law clinic courses and externship courses and all general law courses that have not yet been reviewed. Newly proposed courses will be reviewed by the curriculum committee and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs for the number of credit hours and how those hours will be awarded before course approval. This schedule will be repeated every 5-year cycle, and courses may be reviewed more often when determined to be necessary by the Dean, the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, or the Faculty Curriculum Committee.
Reviews will include a consideration of the following: the course syllabus and all 310 forms submitted regarding the course. Reviews of courses that involve substantial work to be completed outside of the classroom, including law clinic, externships, independent studies, advocacy competitions, and service on journal boards and advocacy boards, will include a review of the number of hours logged by students for this work, a consideration of the number of pages assigned or necessary to be read to complete the projects required for the course, a review of the types of projects and activities completed for the course, and consideration of the number of pages of written work created by the student (when applicable). Professors of these courses should require students to log hours in which they are involved in course work, either using an electronic system or in print, and professors must review students’ hours to ensure that students are involved in a minimum of 42.5 hours per credit hour over the course of the semester.
Loyola requires, "A student may not be employed more than 20 hours per week in any week in which the student is enrolled in more than twelve class hours." In addition, ABA Accreditation Standard 304(d) requires “regular and punctual class attendance.”
Students must complete their requirements in five calendar years. For example, if you begin your program in the fall of 2015, you must complete your program before the start of the fall of 2021. ABA Standard 311(c) has a limit of 84 months.
Students registered in the College of Law will not be permitted to register for courses in any other college of the University without special permission from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs of the College of Law. Permission will be granted only to upperclass students in special instances. Except for those students enrolled in the joint degree programs, no one will be permitted to take more than three hours of work in another school while enrolled in the College of Law.
All Juris Doctor students must complete the following requirements to graduate:
As part of the 90 academic hours needed to graduate, JD students must complete the following:
As a requirement of graduation, each student must submit a piece of legal writing in which the student exhibits the ability to perform legal analysis, in addition to the writing done in the Lawyering I and Lawyering II classes. No paper will fulfill the upper-level writing requirement unless it has been preceded by a bibliography, outline, and at least one rough draft. Any faculty member supervising the paper must give the student feedback on at least one draft.
Guidelines for preparing a paper that satisfies the writing requirement are available from the Law Records Office or online at http://law.loyno.edu/law-records. The writing requirement is satisfied when a paper receives a grade of C or higher and the professor who grades the paper indicates on LORA or to Law Records the paper met the writing requirement standard. Students must tell the professor at the beginning of the project the paper will be used to satisfy the writing requirement. Students must attach the writing requirement form to the paper when the paper is submitted for grading. The form instructs professors to indicate on LORA or report to Law Records the writing requirement was satisfied by the student's paper.
Papers written in the following courses, when taught for at least 2 hours, may be used to satisfy the writing requirement:
LAW L782 - Law and Poverty Seminar
LAW L802 - Law and Education Seminar
LAW L809 - American Legal History Seminar
LAW L813 - Evidence/Procedure Seminar
LAW L816 - Comparative Law Seminar (2- or 3-hour credit assignment)
LAW L819 - Construction Industry Law Seminar
LAW L826 - Advanced Torts Seminar
LAW L827 - Contracts/Commercial Law Seminar
LAW L831 - European Union Law Seminar
LAW L834 - Environmental Justice
LAW L846 - Seminar in Scholarly Writing
LAW L853 - Family Law Seminar
LAW L855 - Child Advocacy Seminar
LAW L859 - Regulation of Sports Industry Seminar
LAW L862 - Criminal Law Seminar
LAW L865 - Juvenile Law Seminar
LAW L877 - Constitutional Law Seminar
LAW L883 - Dialogues in Law and Ethics
LAW L884 - International Law Seminar
LAW L885 - Gender Law in Practice
LAW L886 - Environmental Law Seminar
LAW L887 - Federal Taxation Seminar
LAW L890 - Regulation of Entertainment Industries Seminar
LAW L892 - Law Review Seminar
LAW L893 - Public Interest Law Journal Honors Tutorial (only for comment)
LAW L894 - Public Interest Law Journal Seminar
LAW L898 - Legal Research (2-hour credit assignment)
LAW L905 - Advanced Legal Writing
LAW L910 - Law and Religion Seminar
Any new seminar, course, or existing course, which is at least 2 credit hours and in which a paper of suitable length and quality is either required or offered by the instructor is an option.
In accordance with ABA standard 303, a student may not use one course to satisfy both the Writing Requirement and the Experiential Requirement, although the Law Bulletin may identify some courses as eligible to satisfy both because of the nature of the courses. If the Law Bulletin classifies a course as satisfying both of these requirements, a student must choose the requirement the student plans to satisfy by enrolling in and completing the course and must notify the professor at the beginning of the semester or as soon thereafter as is required by the professor. If no designation is made the course will be treated as satisfying the Experiential Requirement.
Students may satisfy the Law and Poverty requirement by fulfilling any one of the following options: take the Law and Poverty course (LAW L781); take the Law and Poverty Seminar (LAW L782); take Street Law (LAW L833); take Environmental Justice (LAW L834); represent low income people in the Clinical Seminar (LAW L897); participate in the Human Rights Advocacy Project (LAW L924); or perform 50 hours of volunteer pro bono legal services for the poor in one academic year in a setting approved in advance by the coordinator of the pro bono program. Students do not receive academic hours of credit for performing the pro bono services.
As a requirement of graduation, each student must earn at least nine hours of credit from any combination of the following courses:
LAW L765 Lawyering II 3 hrs. (required)
LAW L817 Mediation and Arbitration 3 hrs.
LAW L833 Street Law 3 hrs.
LAW L851 Litigation and Law Practice Management 2 hrs.
LAW L861 Pretrial Litigation 3 hrs.
LAW L867 Business Planning 2 hrs.
LAW L879 Admiralty Law Seminar (when taught as Practice and Procedure) 2 or 3 hrs.
LAW L880 Entrepreneurship 2 or 3 hrs.
LAW L885 Gender Law in Practice 3 hrs.
LAW L895 Divorce and Family Mediation 1 hr.
LAW L897 Clinical Seminar- Live Client Clinic 5 or 10 hrs.
LAW L900 Academic Externship 1, 2, or 3 hrs.
LAW L905 Advanced Legal Writing 3 hrs.
LAW L906 Advanced Legal Research 3 hrs.
LAW L924 Human Rights Advocacy Project 3 hrs.
LAW L928 International Dispute Resolution 2 or 3 hrs.
LAW L933 Asylum and Refugee Law 3 hrs.
LAW L961 Trial Advocacy 3 hrs.
LAW L976 Environmental Law and Policy Lab 3 hrs.
LAW L977 Environmental Litigation: Theory and Practice 3 hrs.
In accordance with ABA standard 303, a student may not use one course to satisfy both the Writing Requirement and the Experiential Requirement, although the Law Bulletin may identify some courses as eligible to satisfy both because of the nature of the courses. If the Law Bulletin classifies a course as satisfying both of these requirements, a student must choose the requirement the student plans to satisfy by enrolling in and completing the course and must notify the professor at the beginning of the semester or as soon thereafter as is required by the professor. If no designation is made the course will be treated as satisfying the experiential requirement.
Any elective LAW course approved for experiential credit currently or in the future shall also be approved for skills credit and included in the inventory of LAW courses conferring skills credit.
Students graduating in spring 2019 or beyond shall be limited to earning a maximum of four (4) total skills credits from any combination of LAW courses other than the LAW L897 Clinical Seminar. Students will continue to earn three (3) skills credits per semester for their participation in any section of the LAW L897 Clinical Seminar.
Each student is required to earn eight skills credits to be certified for graduation by the skills curriculum office. Students are responsible for consulting the skills website for specific requirements and rules.
Any elective LAW course approved for experiential credit currently of in the duture shall also be approved for skills credit and included in the inventory of LAW courses conferring skills credit.
Students graduating in spring 2019 or beyond shall be limited to earning a maximum of four (4) total skills credits from any combination of LAW courses other than the LAW L897 Clinical Seminar. Students will continue to earn three (3) skills credits per semester for their participation in any section of the LAW L897 Clinical Seminar.
The College of Law offers nine certificate programs:
Below, in numerical order, are the courses suggested to prepare for the Louisiana Bar Exam. Those courses in bold face are the suggested elective courses.
*LAW L705 Torts I
*LAW L710 Torts II
*LAW L725 Civil Procedure I
*LAW L730 Civil Procedure II
*LAW L735 Criminal Law
*LAW L740 Constitutional Criminal Procedure
*LAW L746 Business Organizations I
LAW L747 Business Organizations II
*LAW L750 Constitutional Law
*LAW L760 Evidence
*LAW L770 Lawyering III
LAW L823 First Amendment
LAW L842 Courts in a Federal System
LAW L876 Conflict of Laws
LAW L955 Advanced Constitutional Law--14th Amendment
*LCIVL706 Civil Law Property I
*LCIVL707 Civil Law Property II
*LCIVL710 Conventional Obligations
*LCIVL715 Successions
*LCIVL725 Sales and Leases
p*LCIVL900 Civil Law of Persons
LCIVL920 Louisiana Donations and Trusts
p*LCIVL930 Community Property
LCIVL935 Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure
p*LCIVL940 Security Rights
* = required, p* = pool required
Below, in numerical order, are the courses suggested to prepare for the Multi-State Bar Exam (MBE). Those courses in bold face are suggested elective courses.
*LAW L705 Torts I
*LAW L710 Torts II
*LAW L725 Civil Procedure I
*LAW L730 Civil Procedure II
*LAW L735 Criminal Law
*LAW L740 Constitutional Criminal Procedure
*LAW L746 Business Organizations I
LAW L747 Business Organizations II
*LAW L750 Constitutional Law
*LAW L760 Evidence
*LAW L770 Lawyering III
LAW L810 Negotiable Instruments
LAW L823 First Amendment
LAW L836 Real Estate Transactions
LAW L842 Courts in a Federal System
LAW L876 Conflict of Laws
LAW L955 Advanced Constitutional Law--14th Amendment
*LCOML700 Contracts I
*LCOML701 Contracts II
*LCOML705 Common Law Property
*LCOML715 Trusts and Estates
LCOML920 Commercial Transactions
LCOML921 Secured Transactions
* = required
Check with your individual state about any requirements unique to your state.
The College of Law has developed a statement of educational goals, objectives, student competencies and student learning outcomes central to a comprehensive legal education for students at Loyola College of Law.
Institutional Learning Outcomes for College of Law
The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs may give written permission for a student to take courses at other law schools, thus assuring the student that the courses will be applied toward the student’s current program. An official copy of the transcript from the other school must be submitted to the Office of Law Records in the College of Law prior to the completion of Loyola’s next term. No credit will be awarded for a course taken at another law school unless the grade in that course is at least equal to the minimum grade point average required for graduation at that school. If a student fails to earn such a grade in a course required for graduation from Loyola, the course must be repeated. (See Academic Standards.) Credit earned at other schools will count toward total earned hours but will not affect the student’s cumulative grade point average.
Students are cautioned that the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will only grant permission to take courses elsewhere when compelling reasons are demonstrated. Rarely will permission be granted to take a required course at another law school. At a minimum, two year’s residence (60 credit hours at any time or, if they are the last remaining hours, 45 credit hours) in the Loyola University New Orleans College of Law is required of students in order that they may be eligible for a Loyola degree.
Loyola students desiring to attend summer sessions must adhere to the summer classes tuition policy:
a. Students will ordinarily be allowed to enroll in a maximum of 6 hours total in summer classes. Permission of the Associate Dean for Academic affairs is required to exceed this number, to ensure compliance with ABA Standard 310.
b. Summer externships may be taken at no cost to the student and will be included in the price of a semester tuition.
c. Summer classes in the domestic summer school will be billed at the current hourly tuition rate.
d. Summer classes in the international programs will be billed on the per credit rate as established for each program.
Loyola students desiring to attend summer sessions elsewhere must have prior written permission from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs if they want such credits to apply toward a Loyola degree.
Students are cautioned that the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will only grant permission to take courses elsewhere when compelling reasons are demonstrated. Rarely will permission be granted to take a required course at another law school.
Degree-seeking students are admitted to a degree program and classified, only after spring semester, as follows:
| Freshmen | Total Hours | Juniors | Total Hours |
| Full-time Program | 0 – 18 | Full-time Program | 19 – 54 |
| Part-time Program | 0 – 14 | Part-time Program | 42 – 66 |
| Sophomores | Seniors | ||
| Part-time Program | 15 – 41 | Full-time Program | 55 – 90 |
| Part-time Program | 67 – 90 |
Regular and punctual attendance is required. No student will be given credit for work done in any course in which he or she has failed to attend at least 80 percent of the scheduled classes. Each professor determines the effect of canceled classes on the total number of classes for the course. Excessive absences will result in a grade of UW. The student has the primary responsibility to keep a record of absences.
This attendance requirement is a “no fault rule”—that is, the professor shall not take account of any medical or other excuses in computing the number of absences that any student may have accumulated in the course. Upon a showing of compelling hardship and in exceptional circumstances, however, the petitions committee may relieve a student of the attendance requirement. Petitions for this purpose must be submitted in a timely manner—ordinarily within three days of notification of excessive absences. The committee may permit the student to take the examination or give no relief, in its discretion.
Final examinations are given at the end of each semester. The alphabetical system of grading is used. The quality of work indicated by these grades is as follows:
| A | Excellent | This grade is assigned 4 quality points per semester hour. |
| A- | Excellent | This grade is assigned 3.7 quality points per semester hour. |
| B+ | Good | This grade is assigned 3.3 quality points per semester hour. |
| B | Good | This grade is assigned 3 quality points per semester hour. |
| B- | Good | This grade is assigned 2.7 quality points per semester hour. |
| C+ | Average | This grade is assigned 2.3 quality points per semester hour. |
| C | Average | This grade is assigned 2 quality points per semester hour. |
| C- | Minimally Passing | This grade is assigned 1.7 quality points per semester hour. |
| D+ | Minimally Passing | This grade is assigned 1.3 quality points per semester hour. |
| D | Minimally Passing | This grade is assigned 1 quality point per semester hour. |
| F | Failure or failure to withdraw | No quality points are assigned. |
| I | Incomplete | This grade is to be assigned only by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, in consultation with the Instructor, if there are serious and compelling reasons why the student should be allowed to complete the course at a later date. These reasons are customarily medical. The I grade is not an automatic extension. If the I grade is not made up by the end of the term subsequent to the term in which it was incurred, it can only be made up by special permission of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. |
|
|
|
|
| P | Pass | Pass/fail grades are available only in courses designated as pass/fail. Grades of P are not counted toward quality point averages. |
| X | No Grade Submitted | |
| W | Withdrawal | Indicates that the student withdrew by the tenth week of class in the Office of Student Records. No credit is awarded. |
| UW | Unauthorized Withdrawal | Indicates that the student withdrew through excessive absences. |
| AF | Absent from Examination | |
| AU | Audit Complete | |
| AI | Audit Incomplete | |
| IP | In Progress | An IP grade may be granted for certain courses that typically are longer than a normal semester. |
An incomplete grade may only be given for Legal Research (LAW L898) upon presentation of written evidence of a medical or other handicap or compelling reason preventing the timely completion of the project. Incomplete grades must be approved by the faculty member supervising the project, and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs must be notified that the incomplete grade is being given.
In the case of a student who fails to appear for an examination without officially withdrawing, the following action will be taken:
Rank in class, probationary status, exclusions, and eligibility for courses and programs are based on course work completed at the time the Law Records office officially determines class rank. Completion of I’s after this time will not retroactively change this status.
The faculty of the College of Law has adopted suggested grading guidelines for all first-year courses except for Lawyering I, Lawyering II, and Principles of Legal Analysis. These guidelines became effective in the fall of 2008. Faculty who deviate from these guidelines must provide justification to the dean’s office. The grading guidelines are:
| Grade | At Least | But Not More Than |
|
A
|
3?% | 10% |
| A- | 3?% | 10% |
|
B+
|
3?% | 10% |
|
B
|
7½% | 22½% |
| B- | 7½% | 22½% |
|
C+
|
7½% | 22½% |
|
C
|
7½% | 22½% |
|
below C
|
5% | 20% |
Students are ranked within their class at the end of each fall and spring semester. Grade point average and rank-in-class vary slightly from year to year. The range for the class of Spring 2019 graduating class was:
| RANK | GPA |
| Top 10% | 3.586 |
| Top 20% | 3.459 |
| Top 25% | 3.403 |
| Top 33% | 3.292 |
| Top 50% | 3.109 |
The College of Law suggests that prospective employers look primarily at the class rank of student/graduate applicants and not only at grade point averages.
I. No grade is appealable unless it is at least 1.5 points lower than the student’s overall grade point average or semester grade point average—whichever is lower, exclusive of the challenged grade. Any appeal is waived unless the appeal form is submitted within three weeks of the posting of a student’s last grade, except that the period is interrupted after the spring semester until the first day of fall classes.
II. To effect an appeal of a grade, a student must:
As a practical matter it may be several weeks before students can meet with professors to discuss an exam and grade. Therefore, we recommend students file the appeal form very early in the waiver period to preserve the right to appeal, even if a student has not yet met with the professor.
III. To appeal, the student should obtain an appeal form available in the Office of Law Records and complete the applicable portions. The completed form should be returned to the Office of Law Records.
IV. If the student committee determines that the appeal is not frivolous, the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs shall appoint a committee composed of two faculty members who, if feasible, either teach the same course or have recognized expertise in the same field. The faculty committee will read the examination in question and shall have the option to read other papers from the same course for purposes of comparison. The faculty committee may allow both the student and the professor of the course in question to meet with them to present any relevant information.
V. If both faculty members agree that there is no reasonable basis for the grade assigned, it shall be changed to the nearest grade that is reasonable.
A student’s grade point average is based on the credit hours, grading method, grade awarded, and quality points. The following definitions apply:
QUALITY HOURS are the units upon which a student’s grade point average is calculated. They differ from earned hours because quality hours do not include the pass grade and do include failed courses.
A report of the grades made by a student in his or her scheduled courses is available through LORA. Students requiring a “paper copy” may also request this through LORA. Grades may be released to parents or guardians if the student authorizes the university to do so. This authorization must be made each term at the time of registration in either the Office of Law Records or the Office of Student Records.
Loyola’s grade reports list the courses, grades, Loyola grade point average (both cumulative and term), and the total earned hours. Discrepancies must be appealed according to the grade appeal system.
An instructor may change a grade previously assigned by submitting a completed change of grade form to Office of Student Records. The instructor must request the grade change form, cite the reason for changing the grade, and obtain the signed approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.
A student is expected to do satisfactory work and, therefore, to maintain a minimum average of 2.0 at all times.
A student who has failed a required course must repeat that course. A student who fails an elective course may repeat that course, but in any event must make up the credit hours for the failed course. A student who has earned a grade of less than C may repeat the course for credit. In such cases, both grades will be posted on the student’s transcript. A student may not repeat a course in which the grade received was a C or above.
In the case of repeated courses, both grades are used to compute the cumulative grade point average but only the earned hours from the original course are used in the calculation of Loyola cumulative earned hours, except where the original grade was an F.
A student will be on academic probation at any time the overall average is less than 2.0. Students on academic probation may not hold office or otherwise participate in formal extracurricular activities of the College of Law.
The Academic Success Program is a tutorial/practical program open to all Loyola College of Law students who wish to participate, and it is geared toward those whose grade point averages have fallen below the required 2.0, or whose grade point average put them in the bottom 25% of their classes. The program’s aim is to increase students’ understanding of the material, enhance classroom comprehension, and improve law exam performance. Individual and group tutoring is available, and both essay and multiple choice practice exams are given weekly with answer reviews. Contact the Academic Success Program at (504) 861-5981.
A student will be academically suspended from the College of Law if:
Rank in class, probationary status, exclusions, and eligibility for courses and programs are based on course work completed at the time the Law Records office officially determines class rank. Completion of I’s after this time will not retroactively change this status.
Students may have an undergraduate, graduate, and/or professional course of study at Loyola University. Each course of study results in a separate grade point average which will not reflect courses taken in other programs. Therefore, for students who receive bachelor’s degrees and return to take undergraduate courses as a law or graduate student, their grade point averages at the time of the awarding of the undergraduate degree will not be affected by this later coursework. In addition, the graduate or law grade point average will not include quality points for undergraduate courses. Students in joint J.D./M.B.A. programs have their law and graduate grade point averages computed separately.
Students may request a change of division (Civil Law Full-time, Civil Law Day Part-time, Civil Law Evening Part-time, Common Law Full-time or Common Law Part-time) by completing the appropriate form (which must first be approved by the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs) and submitting it to the College of Law Records Office. Submission of this form should be done prior to registration for the term in which the change is to take effect.
Students must meet the specific requirements of their degree programs as set forth in this bulletin. The university, through the deans, may authorize changes and exceptions where it finds them desirable and consistent with the continuous and orderly review of its policies.
To be eligible for graduation, students must have fulfilled their specific degree program requirements and college requirements, have a 2.0 Loyola cumulative grade point average, and have been certified to graduate by their dean. Students who are short fifteen or fewer hours of fulfilling their degree program requirements will be allowed to participate in the May Commencement.
To be certified for graduation and to be certified to the appropriate bar admission authorities for eligibility to take a bar exam, the student must satisfy all financial obligations to the university. Graduating students are expected to complete an exit survey before graduation.
In the fall semester prior to the calendar year in which a student expects to graduate, he or she must apply for graduation with the Office of Law Records. If unable to graduate in that calendar year, the student must reapply for graduation.
To be certified to graduate at the end of the term for which the student applied, all degree requirements must be completed no later than May 25 for spring candidates, October 1 for summer candidates, and February 1 for fall candidates.
Loyola confers degrees in December, May, and August. However, a commencement ceremony is only held in May. After grades are received, the university determines graduation grade point averages and distinctions. Subsequently, the Office of Student Records posts the degrees and distinctions to transcripts. Diplomas and transcripts are not released until the student has discharged all financial and contractual obligations to the university and has completed the required senior exit survey. After a student has graduated, no change may be made in his or her record, except to correct a discrepancy.
Graduation distinctions are determined on the basis of the student’s Loyola cumulative grade point average.
A student who has made a cumulative average of 3.4 graduates cum laude; one who has made an average of 3.6, magna cum laude; and one who has made an average of 3.8, summa cum laude. These distinctions are inscribed on the diplomas, noted in the list of graduates published for the commencement exercises, and listed on the transcripts.
In 2000, the faculty of the College of Law established an honor, in memory of their late colleague, for students graduating in the top 10 percent of their class. These students are designated the William L. Crowe, Sr. Scholars. This determination is based on cumulative grade point averages after the previous fall semester is updated by changes in grades received by March 1.
Loyola will hold commencement only at the end of each spring term. Students who are candidates for May, August, or December of the current year will participate in that ceremony. The commencement program is not a certification document of the university.
Loyola is authorized to distribute only Loyola’s own transcripts, not transcripts from other universities. Only the Office of Student Records may issue transcripts. Students may have four records at Loyola which comprise the official transcript: undergraduate, graduate, law, and continuing education. Upon a student’s signed request, all official transcripts are sent by the Office of Student Records to others. Transcripts marked, “Issued to the Student,” are given by the Office of Student Records to students. In accordance with recommendations of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, official transcripts issued to students should not be treated as an official academic credential. Transcripts carry notations identifying major, degree program, Loyola term and cumulative statistics, degrees earned at Loyola and other institutions, date of birth, and prior academic level. Academic exclusion and dismissal are indicated on the transcript for students placed in this status. Loyola will withhold transcripts, diplomas, and statements of honorable dismissal until indebtedness to the university has been discharged.
Students are strongly advised to consult the state bar in which they plan to sit for a bar exam for student registration requirements. Students are urged to do this during the first semester of their first year.
Loyola makes every endeavor to keep the students’ educational records confidential and out of the hands of those who would use them for other than legitimate purposes. All members of the faculty, administration, and clerical staff respect confidential information about students that they acquire in the course of their work. At the same time, Loyola tries to be flexible enough in its policies not to hinder the student, the institution, or the community in their legitimate pursuits.
Documents submitted by or for the student in support of an application for admission or for transfer credit are not returned to the student nor sent elsewhere by request. In exceptional cases, however, when another transcript is unobtainable, copies may be prepared and released to prevent hardship to the student. The student should present a signed request. Usually, the copy, marked as a certified copy of what is in the student’s file, is released.
The complete policy on release of student information follows.
Public Law 93-380 (also known as the Buckley Amendment and as the Privacy Rights of Parents and Students—Section 438 of the General Education Provisions Act) permits only the release of "directory information” about students without the student’s written consent. Directory information includes:
Student’s name, address, telephone number, place of birth, college, major, awards, photo, classification, dates of enrollment, degrees conferred, dates of conferral, any graduation distinctions, and the institution attended immediately prior to admission.
The law further provides that any student may, upon written request, restrict the release of or the printing of such directory information in the student address directory. The student may so indicate at each registration.
The law requires written consent of the student for the release to anyone (including parents) of other than directory information with the following exceptions: (a) other school officials within the educational institution who have legitimate educational interests; (b) officials of schools to which the student seeks to transfer; (c) the comptroller general of the United States, the HEW secretary, the administrative head of an education agency, or state educational authorities; (d) in connection with a student’s application for, or receipt of financial aid; (e) state and local officials or authorities to which such information is specifically required to be reported under state statute adopted prior to November 19, 1974; (f) organizations or educational agencies conducting legitimate research, provided no personal identifiable information about the student is made public; (g) accrediting organizations; (h) in connection with an emergency when such information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other persons; and (i) the Veterans Administration.
Loyola University administrators and faculty may have access to information contained in students’ records on a need to know basis.
Personal information shall only be transferred to a third party, however, on the condition that such party will not permit any other party to have access to the information without the written consent of the student and that the information be utilized only for the specific purpose for which it was released.
Under the law, any student has the right to inspect and challenge his or her own educational file, with the exception of letters of recommendation or other material when the author was guaranteed confidentiality prior to January 1, 1975. Positive identification of the student shall be required for such examination and a university official shall remain in the immediate vicinity during the examination process.
Loyola University New Orleans maintains all student records in electronic format. Such records are maintained on an administrative system housed in a secured environment. Access to all electronically stored information is controlled through the use of user IDs and passwords. Additionally, all records are copied to magnetic tape on a daily basis and stored offsite.
Read more about the university's policy on Intellectual Property Rights.
Loyola University New Orleans is committed to ensuring equal access and reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and to providing support services which assist qualified students with disabilities. The policy of Loyola prohibits and discourages discrimination against students with disabilities in all areas of the university. The Office for Accessible Education was created to ensure the careful implementation of this policy by faculty and staff and to assist students with disabilities in meeting the demands of university life. This office is housed in Monroe Library, Room 229, (504) 865-2990.
Any student with a disability wishing to receive accommodations must identify him/herself as soon as possible to the student life coordinator or to the director of disability services in order to comply with the requisite time limits and other procedures related to receiving accommodations. It is incumbent on the student to meet the deadlines and to inform him/herself of procedures to ensure reasonable accommodations.
Any student with a physical disability who may have difficulty evacuating the law building in an emergency is required to make an appointment with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at his/her earliest convenience to review the Loyola University emergency evacuation procedure.
Immediately following registration held in the beginning of each semester, students who are taking courses leading towards degree requirements are eligible for benefits through the Veterans Administration and can be certified by the Office of Student Records. In accordance with Title 38, United States Code, Veterans Benefits, Loyola certifies only those students who are admitted to a degree program and who are making satisfactory progress as determined by the probationary and exclusion policies of the university’s colleges.
Reimbursement is certified for courses only and excludes noncredit courses. All inquiries concerning the certification should be directed to the Office of Student Records.
Credit Hour Certification Rules for Veterans
| Classification | Full Time | 3/4 Time | 1/2 Time | 1/4 Time |
| Law | ||||
| Day or Evening | 9 | 6 | 3 | 2 |
| Summer School | 6 | 3 | - | - |
Beginning fall 2004, syllabi for courses are published at the web-based schedule of classes (https://lorasec.loyno.edu/) by term and subject and are available for review and downloading. Students requiring a copy of their syllabus prior to fall 2004 should request that information from the Office of Student Records (http://academicaffairs.loyno.edu/records/ask-student-records).
All students are assigned a Loyola University e-mail address. This is the only address that will be recognized and used by Loyola University. All official information from faculty, staff, and administrators will be sent to students at this address. Students are responsible for regularly checking their e-mail accounts.
The Office of Institutional Research & Effectiveness evaluates student learning and student perceptions through surveys of graduating seniors and alumni. Colleges and departments may also assess student learning outcomes and their perceptions of their Loyola experience.