Procedures for Changing Your Major

Students may initiate a Change of Major Petition in the Undergraduate Office of the Department of Psychology. Once processed, verifications can be picked up at this office at the beginning of the following quarter. This verification can be used as proof of major status to "crash" courses. If you would like a confirmation mailed to you, a stamped, self-addressed must be provided.

Students must also submit a copy of an unofficial transcript. You can print an unofficial transcript directly from GOLD. If you are not a declared pre-major, and have taken some pre-major courses at another institution, please bring your New Student Profile with you so that we can make a copy for our files and give you credit for courses taken elsewhere. New Student Profiles are available on the Office of the Registrar's website. Remember that your pre-major gpa will be based only on courses taken at UCSB, or at another UC campus during a regular or summer session. You will receive subject credit only for pre-major courses taken at community colleges or non-UC universities.

Students wishing to declare the Psychology or Biopsychology major are encouraged to complete the Change of Major Petition during the quarter they are enrolled in the final course requirement for the pre-major. The petition will be processed by the undergraduate advisor upon receipt of grades for that quarter (grades are made available approximately two weeks after finals are given).

Because your major status will not be changed in "the system" until after grades are processed, sign up for courses so you will not be charged a late registration fee. Add your name to the waiting list for the course(s) you want to crash. Do not wait to register until you are a full major.

If you are declaring a double major, you must complete a Memo of Understanding. This is required by the College of Letters & Science.

If you are changing your major from the College of Engineering or the College of Creative Studies, you must complete a petition to change college/major prior to declaring psychology as a major.

Procedures for Obtaining a Grade Change

If a student believes an incorrect grade has been reported, the instructor should be consulted.

All grades except I (Incomplete) and IP (In-Progress) are final when submitted to the Office of the Registrar by the instructor in the official Course Report subject to the provisions given in the current UCSB General Catalog. Thereafter, an instructor may report a correction of a grade only in the case of clerical or procedural error. An instructor also may change a grade in the quarter following that in which the original grade was received if the basis for the change is found in work previously accomplished in the course as a part of the student’s regular participation in class activity. However, such changes must not create inequities to others whose grades remain unaltered. No final grade (except I) may be revised by re-examination, and no letter grade may be changed to or from P/NP or S/U.

Incomplete Petitions

The grade Incomplete (I) may be assigned when a student’s work is of passing quality but is incomplete. A completed Petition for an Incomplete Grade MUSTbe returned to the Office of the Registrar by the last day of the quarter for an I grade to be placed on a student's record. Petitions must be signed by the instructor, and are available in the Office of the Registrar. A $5.00 processing fee will be billed to the student’s BARC account.

Notification of the receipt of the approved Petition for an Incomplete Grade will be sent to the dean of the student’s college and the instructor. In the absence of the petition or another specific grade, the Office of the Registrar will record a grade of F, NP, or U.

One-quarter completion deadline

The grade of Incomplete may be replaced by a grade as determined by the instructor. You will receive unit credit and appropriate grade points if you earn a passing grade and the coursework is completed by the end of the term following the term in which the I grade was reported. You need not be enrolled for that quarter nor must the course be offered to receive the final grade.

Unless the work is completed and a grade is reported to the Office of the Registrar by the deadline, the I will be changed automatically to F, NP, or U, as appropriate. The deadline for completion of coursework for Incomplete grades is the end of the quarter following the quarter the I grade was received.

The instructor or the chair has authority to extend the deadline for completion in the event of unusual circumstances that would clearly impose an unfair hardship on the student if the original deadline were maintained.

An I grade on the student’s record at the time of graduation necessary for the fulfillment of degree requirements will disqualify the student for graduation.

An I grade on the student’s record at the time of graduation in a course not necessary for the fulfillment of degree requirements may be removed only up to the end of the fifth week of the term following the date of graduation. If not removed, it will not be changed to an F or NP but will remain an I grade permanently. At the time of graduation, an I grade in a course taken for a letter grade must be utilized in the computation of the grade-point average. Its effect in that computation is identical to that of an F.

Grade Changes to Incomplete

A grade may be changed to an I grade only with the approval of the dean of the student’s college or the dean of the Graduate Division, as appropriate, and successful completion of the above petitioning process.

Petitioning for Credit for Courses Taken at Another University

If you take an upper division psychology course at another 4-year institution and want to receive major credit, you must fill out a petition for graduation matters and return it to the undergraduate office along with a self addressed stamped envelope and a syllabus from the course. Course descriptions are not sufficient for course review. Remember that if this course was taken at an institution other than a UC during Summer School, the grade does not count.

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