What Is Academic Probation?

Sometimes students are put on academic probation, in case their GPA and credit load do not meet the minimum criteria offered by the college or university. What is academic probation? This period is not a failure, but some students perceive it as something not pleasant. Academic probation is a period that may lead to further problems if students do not take action. Overall, academic probation is a period in students’ education when they have to improve their academic performance. If students make proper actions and improve their grades, they remain in the university or college. However, if their actions are not enough, they may be expelled from the college/university for not meeting the minimum standards.

If you have appeared in the situation discussed above, do not panic. What is academic probation? What shall I do? Who can save me? These are frequent questions students ask when they appear in the situation. We want to help you understand the seriousness of the situation, and at the same time to show you that this is not what you need to worry about if you take correct actions.

Reasons for being on Academic Probation

The major reason for being on academic probation is a low GPA. Even if your grades have always been high enough, and there are some low grades in one semester only, you may be put on academic probation.

Another frequent reason for being on academic probation is a failure to meet the standards of the financial aid one has become involved in. This is a violation of the school rules, and if you fail to resolve an issue, you may also appear on probation.

Being unaware of the academic standards and minimum requirements in any field of education is a major reason for appearing on probation. If you have never checked the standards, you may appear in a trouble.

Why Academic Probation Happens

First of all, you need to understand that academic probation is a frequent issue among students. About 20% of all students face the issue. Second, you may study hard, but still, appear on probation because your attempts were not high enough. Finally, you need to critically assess the situation and develop a plan of what to do. Academic probation is a sign that what you do is not enough, and you need to work harder to remain in the university.

What to Do

If you have received a note that you are put on academic probation, you need to check the reasons. What subject or discipline has put you on probation? Can you improve the grades? What actions do you need to take? These questions should help you understand what particularly you need to do. In most cases, you have to improve your GPA by means of working harder on the subjects where you have a better potential. You need to prepare better homework, hand in essays and research papers of higher quality, and try to respond better. Overall, you need to increase your knowledge and proficiency in a particular subject.

Clearing Academic Probation

As it has already been mentioned above, the main point you need to consider is what you have to do to stay at school. Only a properly developed plan with a clear understanding of what grades you have to reach can help you resolve the issue and not worry about your degree.

Your Future Isn’t Over!

If you have appeared on academic probation, no need to think that this is the end of your education. Academic probation is just a sign that you do not reach some standards. If you want to get a degree from a particular university, you need to work hard to meet those requirements.

Academic Probation Example

Getting academic probation is not something students want to experience. It symbolizes the lack of organization skills, perseverance, and determination to receive good results. Unfortunately, I ended up being a student on academic probation, and I am very sorry that it happened. I did not imagine that my social activities would interfere with my academic life so much. I also did not realize that while postponing my tasks until the end and taking the education I get for granted, I was pushing myself away from good results. Now, I understand that my future life, career, choices, and self-perception depend on the education I am getting, so I am trying to fix the mistakes I have done during my freshman year and get a new and better start.

I got on academic probation because I could not prioritize well. I thought that being social was the most important part of studying in college, and academic performance was on the second place. Therefore, I decided to join basketball team and participated in various social activities. Now, when I look at what I did, I realize that being social is extremely important, but college life is all about balance. I should have balanced my social activities and learning. However, instead of balancing these things, I completely ignored the latter which led to very negative consequences for me.

I was also very disorganized because I could not perform all of the assigned tasks and considered such behavior normal. I can say that I justified myself more than I deserved. Thinking back, I understand that I was rather lazy because I did not want to push harder and do something to fix the problem while I could do that. The initial laziness combined with the other negative qualities led me to the academic probation. I think I gave up studying after some time because I ended up playing video games, spending too much time with friends, and doing unnecessary things while I was supposed to be studying.

I think I deserve the punishment, but I also changed very much because of it. I realized my mistakes and feel very upset because of my previous behavior. I guess academic probation is a very effective way to make a student rethink one’s ways and approaches toward education; it worked very well with me. I realized how valued and important education was for me, and I remembered the initial reasons why I decided to study. Education can be tough, and there are many temptations which may distract the students on their ways. However, we must never forget why we chose the particular majors and decided to study in the first place. It was because we believed that the education is a core to a better future, and it is something that will help us to become better individuals. Therefore, it is essential to remember that and remain focused on the goals.

I view academic probation as a test for my personal skills as a student. It will help me to see whether I am capable of achieving my goals and getting back on the right track. I want to use this time to finally organize myself in the best way possible to study well become a good student as I wanted to be. I think I will be able to do that because now I am able to compare my previous behavior with my initial goals. Therefore, although I am very ashamed of the punishment I have now, I view it as a challenge for me to become a better student and person.