TOWN HALL MEETING TO DISCUSS FINALIZING CLASS RANKINGS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14 – LAW STUDENT LOUNGE

Noon to 1:00     AND     5:30 to 6:30

We want to hear from you!    

As you know, the Law Faculty approved a temporary two option ranking system for Spring 2009: 

  1. Option “A” —  separate full-time and part-time rankings, essentially as has been done in the past
  2. Option “B” — consolidated rankings based upon the class with which the student is expected to graduate.   

See options http://www.uakron.edu/law/studentservices/class_rankings.php

(Spring 2009 Class Rankings) 

We now need to finalize class rankings and create a system whereby students would be ranked only with those students expected to be in their same graduation year. 

The Law Faculty are considering the following proposal:

  1. Eliminate separate rankings
  2. Eliminate rankings after the fall semester
  3. Publish consolidated rankings based upon the class in which the student is expected to graduate.

 We would not rank first-year part-time students because they form such a small part of the class with which they would eventually graduate.  We would provide the correlation between LGPA and rank of the various classes, which would allow those students to approximate their likely rankings once their entire graduation cohort is at the law school.

 We expect the rankings to look like this: 

Full- & Part-Time Students, Ranked Together (those most likely to graduate together), Based on TOTAL Credits Completed* & Classification on ZipLine

Total Credits Completed, End of Spring Semester, (subject to slight variation to assure that all students are ranked with the appropriate cohort)

 

First Year Students**

up to 30 = Full-Time, 1st Year Students

 up to 45 = Part-Time, 2nd Year Students

 Middle Year Students

 

31 to 60 = Full- Time, 2nd Year Students

46 to 68 = Part-Time 2nd & 3rd Year Students

 Final Year Students

 

(88 credits required to graduate)

61 = Full-Time, 3rd Year Students

             69 = Part-Time, 4th Year Students

It is important to recognize that the “credits completed” are approximate. They are appropriate for the vast majority of students, but when we implemented the interim approach last spring, we found it necessary to make adjustments for some students who were more likely to graduate with a class other than the one indicated by their actual credits completed.

 Please share your thoughts at one or both of the following Town Hall Meetings:

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14 – LAW STUDENT LOUNGE

Noon to 1:00     AND     5:30 to 6:30 

We look forward to seeing you there! 

In the meantime, your comments and ideas are most encouraged on this proposal.   Please feel free to e-mail your feedback to classrankings@uakron.edu. 

Thank you!

Bill Jordan, Associate Dean and C. Blake McDowell Professor of Law

and

Lauri Thorpe, Assistant Dean of Admission, Financial Aid, & Student Services

 

Author: Liz Sauders

Manager of Compliance and Technology for The University of Akron School of Law