Procedures for dealing with student requests

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering maintains regulations/policies specific to the integrity and management of ECE degree programs (e.g., determining acceptable course substitutions, maximum allowable transfer credit units, student specific exemptions, etc.).

  1. The ECE academic advisor deals with requests from 2nd, 3rd and 4th year students in the electrical engineering program or the computer engineering program as well as requests related to courses with the ECE prefix, and SENG courses offered by the ECE department. Requests from 1st year students are usually submitted to the Engineering Undergraduate Office (EUO). If the request involves scheduling work terms after the last academic term, the request may require concurrence from the co-op office.
  2. The EUO administers deferred exams granted by the registrar, and supplemental exams granted by the associate dean or the Student Programs Committee (SPC). The ECE office provides the EUO with the exam papers. A deferred exam is sent to the EUO shortly after exams have been graded provided the student missed the exam with good cause. Supplemental exam is sent to the EUO usually at the beginning of the next academic term provided the student received an E grade in the course. Once completed, these exam papers are returned by the EUO, together with a grade change form, to the ECE office for distribution to instructors for grading. Each exam paper is clearly identified as deferred or supplemental, with instructions on how to calculate the final grade for each type of exam. The instructor then submits the grade change form to the ECE chair. Please contact the EUO to apply for a deferred or supplemental exam.
  3. Requests for credits for courses with the ECE prefix are submitted to the EUO. They are checked for compliance with the required documentation (cf. faculty policy for course or work credits in bachelor of engineering degree programs dated October 12, 1999), and passed to the ECE chair. Courses with SENG prefixes are handled by the home department of the instructor (ECE or CSC).

The ECE academic advisor ensures that all relevant documentation (i.e. student transcript, status, emails, course syllabus, etc.) is in place and passes the requests with her/his comment to the relevant program director for approval. The advisor assists the student with course registration and update of degree evaluation. Additional assistance may be provided by the department administrative officer as necessary.

  1. Prerequisites waiver requests.
    Prerequisite waiver must be accompanied by academic justification of the request. Prerequisites will normally be enforced unless a student has a GPA ≥ 6 (B+), and can document familiarity with the material. Student opinion about his or her knowledge is not considered documented familiarity. Scheduling convenience will not be considered a valid argument. Prerequisite waiver requests that are subject to the completion of a supplemental exam will not be accepted.
  2. Request for transfer credit for courses taken outside UVic.
    Transfer credit requests for courses with the ECE prefix, and SENG courses offered by the ECE department, are made to the EUO and evaluated by the department. Once evaluated, recommendations are made to the EUO. Credits are awarded on an individual basis in accordance with the faculty policy for course or work credits in bachelor of engineering degree programs dated October 12, 1999. Normally, credit requests for courses from accredited programs offering similar courses, completed within the last three years with grade B (or equivalent), or better, will be granted. Normally, credits for courses taken at non-accredited programs will not be granted.
  3. Requests to take courses from an outside institution.
    Transfer credit requests for courses with the ECE prefix, and SENG courses offered by the ECE department, are made to the department. Students must fill out the transfer credit referral form and submit it to the academic advisor. A detailed course outline and syllabus must accompany the form for credit evaluation. Only courses from an accredited canadian engineering program will be considered. If evaluation is successful, a recommendation is forwarded to the EUO who will issue a letter of permission. The letter of permission allows the student to take the course at the outside institution. Upon completion of the course, the student has to request the outside institution to forward the course transcript to UVic so the credit can be added to the student's program.

Under normal circumstances the review process in the ECE department takes approximately two weeks. If a request needs to be considered by the Student Programs Committee (SPC), please allow at least three weeks for the request to be tabled in the committee agenda. The SPC meets on the first week of each month. Requests made after the committee agenda had already been tabled are deferred to the next committee meeting the following month. The following requests are under the purview of the SPC:

  1. Leave of absence
  2. Taking complimentary studies courses not on the approved list
  3. Taking natural science courses not on the approved list
  4. Degree extension.