Appeals and Petitions

General Information About Appeals

Binghamton University students must successfully complete all General Education requirements as a condition of graduation. Generally speaking, General Education requirements are not waived for any students. However, we are aware that some students with special circumstances feel their situation warrants a waiver of one of the General Education requirements. Appeals of General Education requirements are considered by the University Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (UUCC), the committee which oversees Binghamton's General Education program. Questions regarding waivers of General Education requirements should be directed to Liz Abate, Coordinator of General Education, at x72146 or labate@binghamton.edu.

Issues Handled by Your Advisor

IMPORTANT: The following issues are handled by your school's academic advising office.

Demonstrated foreign language proficiency for non-native English speakers:

Non-native English speakers may fulfill the General Education foreign language requirement by alternate means. For more information, read the downloadable form Students Who Qualify for Waivers of the General Education Foreign Language Requirement (in Microsoft Word format). If you have any additional questions, contact your advisor for more information.

Using transfer courses to fulfill Gen Ed requirements:

Transfer students from other SUNY schools who have been certified as meeting a SUNY-wide General Education requirement prior to matriculation at Binghamton will be certified as having met the corresponding Binghamton requirement. Courses from other SUNY schools taken after matriculation at Binghamton or not certified as meeting a SUNY-wide requirement, as well as courses transferred from schools outside the SUNY system, will be evaluated solely in terms of Binghamton University's General Education requirements. Contact your advisor for more information.

Issues That Cannot Be Appealed

IMPORTANT: Petitions submitted for the following reasons will not be granted.

Physical Activity (Y) or Wellness (S) activities outside of college courses:

Any Physical Activity or Wellness experiences taken outside of a credit-bearing college course cannot be used to fulfill General Education requirements. Examples of experiences that cannot be used to fulfill these requirements include classes taken at health clubs or fitness facilities, as well as self-directed fitness activities such as running, swimming, dance, or weightlifting. Basic training in one of the armed forces also cannot be used to fulfill Physical Activity or Wellness requirements.

Requests to designate courses retroactively:

Courses may be submitted by departments or instructors for General Education designation until the Add Deadline. Any course submitted after the Add Deadline will not be considered for designation; courses which have already been completed will not be considered for designation. Requests for designation cannot be submitted by students; they must come from departments or instructors.

Any petitions concerning Composition (C) courses after the first C is completed:

The General Education program requires that all students complete one Composition course. Once you have completed one C course, your General Education Composition requirement is completed. However, Harpur College and SOM have additional writing requirements. Any petitions concerning the additional writing courses required by Harpur College or SOM should be directed to that school's advising office.

Issues That Can Be Appealed

IMPORTANT: Please note that submitting a petition for one of the following reasons does not guarantee that the petition will be approved or that the requirement will be waived. Petitions submitted without the necessary supporting documentation will not be considered.

Waivers on the basis of documented misadvising:

If you appeal on the grounds that you were misadvised about your General Education requirements, you must provide documentation of the advising error in order for your petition to be considered. Specifically:

Requests for substitutions or waivers for requirements other than Physical Activity (Y) on the basis of a documented disability:

If you wish to request a substitution or waiver for a General Education requirement on the basis of a documented permanent disability, you must be registered with the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) office. Petitions for substitutions or waivers on the basis of a documented disability must be accompanied by a letter from the SSD office, documenting that you have a disability that would significantly impede your ability to meet the requirement. Students with documented disabilities who feel their disabilities will impact their ability to learn a foreign language should also contact the SSD office. Please note: The SSD office has very strict requirements concerning documentation of disabilities, particularly those that cannot be visibly recognized and quantified. Prior to visiting the SSD Office, please refer to their documentation requirements on their website (http://ssd.binghamton.edu/).

Waivers of the Physical Activity (Y) requirement due to documented temporary or permanent physical disability:

If you wish to request a waiver on the basis of a documented temporary or permanent physical disability, you should first contact the University Health Service. Students with temporary or permanent disabilities may be assigned to the ACR (adaptive, corrective, rehabilitative) program or have the requirement waived. Petitions for waivers on the basis of physical disability must be accompanied by a letter from the Medical Director of the University Health Service stating that, in the doctor's medical opinion, the Activity requirement should be waived. Please be aware, however, that the doctor's decision may be to assign you to the ACR program rather than waiving the requirement.

Submit Your Appeal Online







IMPORTANT: Please send documentation in support of your petition (see above for details) via email or campus mail to: Liz Abate, Coordinator of General Education, Provost's Office, labate@binghamton.edu

Please click the button below to submit your petition. After submitting your petition, you will receive a confirmation email. You will be informed via email after the UUCC reaches a decision on your petition.

Gen Ed Links

Requirements

(Links to University Bulletin)

2008-09 Bulletin

2007-08 Bulletin

2006-07 Bulletin

2005-06 Bulletin

2004-05 Bulletin

2003-04 Bulletin

2002-03 Bulletin

2001-02 Bulletin - Freshmen

2001-02 Bulletin - Transfers

2000-01 Bulletin

1999-00 Bulletin

1998-99 Bulletin

1997-98 Bulletin

Checklists

(Links to PDFs)

2008 Checklist

2007 Checklist

2006 Checklist

2005 Checklist

2004 Checklist

2003 Freshman Checklist

2003 Transfer Checklist

2002 Freshman Checklist

2002 Transfer Checklist

Download Acrobat Reader

Binghamton University

Designed & maintained by Liz Abate. Last updated July 1, 2008