Student Athlete Information

At Assumption, academics come first. But the value of being a member of one of our many intercollegiate teams is considerable, provided you can balance the demands of intercollegiate play with the rigors of your studies.

Student-athletes face special challenges. How will you find courses that work with your practice schedule? Will your absences be excused if you have to miss class because of a game? What grades do you need to maintain eligibility, and what happens if you lose eligibility? Here is some information to help you know the ropes.

Course Selection and Scheduling

Be sure your academic advisor knows that you are a student-athlete, and when you are in-season. Know when your team practices, so you can make informed decisions about course selection. See your advisor often, and register on time, meaning when the window for your class opens, so you will have the greatest chance of getting a seat in the classes that work for you.

Time management is crucial for student athletes. The Assumption College Student Handbook is also a Planner. Use it. Time management workshops and materials are available (free!) in the Academic Support Center on the second floor of the D’Alzon Library. Student athletes who stay organized and on top of their studies, thrive. Those who don’t, don’t.

Missing Class Because of a Game

Student athletes are expected to attend all classes and labs, and to abide by the attendance policies set by their professors. Each professor remains in charge of his or her own class attendance policy. College attendance policies for student-athletes do not supersede each individual professor’s attendance policy.

No one gets excused for practice, so don’t even ask. On the first day of class, tell your professors that you are on a team, and that you are in-season. It is up to you to work out any excused absences with your professors well in advance of any absences due to intercollegiate competition (again, not practices.) You should inform yourself of your game schedule ASAP, so you can work things out with your professors.

If your professor asks for it, the Dean of Undergraduate Studies will confirm that you are on the roster, and have a competition, but again, it is up to you to request such confirmation from the Dean well in advance of the absence.

The maximum total number of excused absences a student can receive in a semester is five (5) classes, and for any one course, the absences cannot exceed one week’s attendance: once for a course that meets only once a week, three for a course that meets three times a week, etc.

Of course, any time you miss a class, even if it is excused, it is up to you to find out what you missed, and make up any missed work. Professors do have the right to refuse to give you permission to miss a class should a test or quiz be scheduled at that time. So, speak with your professor early to avoid this issue coming up at the last minute.

NCAA Eligibility

If you want to play intercollegiate sports, you must register with the National Collegiate Athletics Association Initial Eligibility and Amateurism Clearinghouse no later than the summer prior to your freshman enrollment. Team members must abide by all NCAA and Assumption College rules on eligibility. In fact, the NCAA’s policy is that a rule established by a member institution becomes an NCAA rule as well, for student athletes attending that college. Thus a College rule violation is also an NCAA violation.

At Assumption College you must maintain a 2.0 or a C average every semester to maintain NCAA eligibility for the following semester, and you cannot fall more than six credits (usually two courses) behind your graduating class. If you fall below a 2.0 in a semester, or fall more than six credits behind, you are ineligible and cannot practice or play a sport the following semester.

Any student-athlete who falls below at 2.0 for the semester is put on academic status, either probation or conditional enrollment, depending on the severity of the academic problem, and is given some kind of academic support.

Student-athletes on probation are ineligible to practice or play a sport. In some circumstance, with the successful completion of pre-approved intercession or summer coursework, a student-athlete might regain their athletic eligibility. Such a student would, however, remain on probation, and would be expected to participate in any academic support put in place by the Dean’s office.

Students on conditional enrollment are in danger of being required to withdraw from the college. Under no circumstances are they allowed to practice or play a sport. Students on conditional enrollment might well benefit from intercession or summer coursework to rectify poor grades, but cannot regain eligibility regardless of what effect such coursework might have on their grade point average.

Finally, if a student is required to withdraw from the college, he or she must leave for at least one full semester. Should the Dean of Undergraduate Studies readmit that student to Assumption College, he or she would return on Conditional Enrollment and would be ineligible to practice or play a sport during the first semester in which they return.

Questions regarding athletic eligibility should be directed to Prof. Kevin Hickey, x 7296, khickey@assumption.edu. You can find the NCAA website at http://www.ncaa.org/wps/portal.

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