It is important to determine your academic standing so that if you are not continuing on to 1B, you can consider your options and make plans prior to the start of the winter term. If you have any questions, contact the First Year Engineering Office. Please note that the First Year Engineering Office is closed for the Christmas break and you are unlikely to get a response during this time. For University closures please see the Daily Bulletin or the Important dates.
Promotion Rules
Information on the Engineering promotion rules can be found on the First Year Website and in the Academic Calendar. The following applies if you are in 1A for the first time and will help to quickly determine your academic standing at the end of 1A.
Academic standing
- Unofficial grades will start appearing in December after the exam period, see the Important dates. Since these grades are unofficial, they may change, so please check grades repeatedly. If not all your grades are shown on Quest, check back in a few days. You will need all your course grades before proceeding to the next step.
- Look up your 1A term average on Quest and make note of the following two numbers:
- Your 1A term average.
- The number of failed courses (grade less than 50%).
-
Determine your academic standing.
- Full Load Students: Determine your academic standing by looking up your term average and the number of failed courses in the following table:
| 1A term average | Number of failed courses | Academic decision | Discussion |
|---|---|---|---|
| >= 60% | 0 | Promoted to 1B | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have no failed courses, you are promoted to 1B |
| 1 or 2 | Conditionally promoted to 1B | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have failed one or two courses, you are conditionally promoted to 1B. See the section of this website on clearing failed courses. | |
| 3 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is above 60% and you have failed three or more courses, you have failed 1A and you may repeat 1A in the following fall term. You may not continue on to 1B. | |
| >=50% but < 60% | 0 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is between 50% and 60%, you have failed 1A and may repeat 1A in the following fall term. You may not continue on to 1B. |
| < 50% | 0 or more | Failed-required to withdraw | If your 1A term average is below 50%, you have failed 1A and are required to withdraw from Engineering. You may consider a petition. You may not continue on to 1B. |
- Reduced Load Students (dropped CSE): Determine your academic standing by looking up your term average and the number of failed courses in the following table:
| 1A term average | Number of failed courses | Academic decision | Discussion |
|---|---|---|---|
| >=60% | 0 | Promoted to 1B | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have no failed courses, you are promoted to 1B. |
| 1 | Conditionally promoted to 1B | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have failed one course, you are conditionally promoted to 1B. See the section of this website on clearing failed courses. | |
| 2 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is above 60% and you have failed two or more courses, you have failed 1A and you may repeat 1A the following fall term. You may not continue on to 1B. | |
| >=50% but < 60% | 0 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is between 50% and 60%, you have failed 1A and may repeat 1A the following fall term. You may not continue on to 1B. |
| < 50% | 0 or more | Failed-required to withdraw | If your 1A term average is below 50%, you have failed 1A and are required to withdraw from Engineering. You may consider a petition. You may not continue on to 1B. |
- Reduced Load Program Students (dropped two courses): Determine your academic standing by looking up your term average and the number of failed courses in the following table:
| 1A term average | Number of failed courses | Academic decision | Discussion |
|---|---|---|---|
| >=60% | 0 | May continue in 1A | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have no failed courses, you may continue to the second half of 1A. |
| 1 | May continue in 1A conditional | If your 1A term average is equal to or above 60% and you have failed one course, you may continue to the second half of 1A conditionally. See the section of this website on clearing failed courses. | |
| 2 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is above 60% and you have failed two or more courses, you have failed 1A and you may repeat 1A the following fall term. You may not continue on to the second half of 1A. | |
| >=50% but < 60% | 0 or more | Failed-repeat term | If your 1A term average is between 50% and 60%, you have failed 1A and may repeat 1A the following fall term. You may not continue on to the second half of 1A. |
| < 50% | 0 or more | Failed-required to withdraw | If your 1A term average is below 50%, you have failed 1A and are required to withdraw from Engineering. You may consider a petition. You may not continue on to the second half of 1A. |
Options after failing 1A
If you failed 1A, please see your options after failing 1A.
After considering these options, you need to decide by February if you will pursue an engineering non-degree term in the spring term to facilitate a transfer to another faculty or to strengthen your background prior to repeating 1A in the fall. Often, students in your situation want to take courses in the winter term immediately after failing 1A, but in most cases the underlying problems remain. As stated in the options after failing 1A, we recommend taking a four-eight month break from UWaterloo to assess and address the problems before returning to take courses towards your degree.
Please feel free to email us at firstyear.engineering@uwaterloo.ca with your questions when the office reopens in January.