Academic Concerns
USCIS Regulations
To maintain your status as a student (F-1 or J-1 visas) with United States Citizenship and Immigraton Services (USCIS) you must carry a full course of study in both semesters (fall and spring) of the academic year. The following are the minimum required hours in the various programs:
| Undergraduate | 12 semester hours |
| MBA | 6 semester hours |
| MEd | 6 semester hours |
| ACCESS (ESL) | 18 hours per term for 9 consecutive terms (regardless of time of year). |
You need not enroll in the summer semester if you have been studying in an academic program in the U.S. for at least one semester. If you fall below the minimum number of hours, you will be considered "out-of-status" by the INS, and will have to file for reinstatement. At present, the fee for this application is $100.00 and may take 3-4 months for approval.
Grade Point Average
The U.S. educational system converts the grades received during the course of studies to a Grade Point Average, or GPA. If you are submitting transcripts or grade reports from another country, the ISS office will convert the grades received to the equivalent GPA on a 4.0 system. International students require a GPA of 2.75 for entrance to Ashland University. The system of letter grades and points for Ashland University is:
| A = 4.00 | B+= 3.33 | C+= 2.33 | D+= 1.33 | F = 0.00 |
| A-= 3.67 | B = 3.00 | C = 2.00 | D = 1.00 | |
| B-= 2.67 | C- = 1.67 | D- = 0.67 |