Supplemental Instruction Sheet—Petition for Part-Time Senior Status 1. Run an unofficial transcript off of TCOnline and verify that you will have enough credits to graduate. Note that there are two columns of numbers showing total credits. Sometimes the two numbers will be the same, but for many students the number on the left is higher than the number on the right. The column on the left is credits attempted (which includes F’s, W’s, IP’s, etc.) and the number on the right is credits earned. 2. Verify that the credits you are taking this semester plus your credits earned will add up to at least 36 credits. If it doesn’t, you need to outline what additional credits are in progress, such as past transfer credit that hasn’t been processed.
3. Make certain that you have not exceeded the limits on certain courses. For example, you may only use one credit of Physical Education, four credits of applied music, two credits of TA, etc. towards the degree. If you have exceeded these numbers, your total credits earned will need to be greater than 36. The Academic Affairs Committee will not be checking these numbers for you, but you will want to make certain that you aren’t caught by surprise when the graduation audits are conducted.
4. In your statement, provide detail about what you will be doing with the additional time you have available because you are taking fewer courses. Please note that part-time status is not something that is granted automatically—the additional time you have must be used to pursue academically relevant activities. Most petitions that are denied are a result of not having sufficient information about appropriate activities.
5. Attach the unofficial transcript along with your statement and the petition form and submit it to the Registrar’s Office. It is advisable to submit the form late in the semester preceding your final semester, or at the first meeting of your final semester so that you still have time to add additional credits if your petition is not approved. If you are an athlete and you need to have your part-time status approved for athletic eligibility, make certain that you allow enough time prior to the start of your season! 6. Please check with the Student Accounts Office if you believe that your reduced credit load will have an impact on your tuition.