Award of General Credit

The award of general credit should be regarded as an exception to the normal requirement that students gain the full points required to graduate. It should normally be restricted to cases where the student has been affected by circumstances largely beyond his or her control.

Students seeking general credit must apply in writing before the start of the standard teaching period in which they wish to graduate. Program Chairs may consider late requests, but it is in the interest of students to apply by the deadline: otherwise, if the application is rejected, it may be too late to enrol in an additional unit in order to still graduate following that standard teaching period.

A Program Chair may recommend that a student be graduated with general credit even if the student has not made that request.

Where a student is 0.5 point short of completion of a qualification of 24 points or greater general credit to that value should be awarded automatically.

Where general credit is approved, it should normally be limited to 1 point.

General credit of 1.5 or 2 points should be awarded only in highly exceptional cases. It shall not be awarded where:

1. The shortage of points is a consequence of unit choices made by the student (students who because of the combination of units of different points values are 1.5/2 points short, should take an additional unit);

2. The student has failed a unit in the final standard teaching period prior to graduation;

3. The student has been awarded credit of 24 or more points for previous studies;

4. The student has four or more failures and/or withdrawn late results on the academic record; or

5. The student is enrolled for any qualification of 24 points or less.

General credit shall not be awarded where:

1. The student has completed less than the minimum 42 points of Part II points required by the regulations (in the case of a postgraduate diploma or coursework masters degree, this refers to the required number of 400/500 unit level points instead);

2. As a consequence of credit, a student will obtain less than 24 points of Murdoch units to complete an undergraduate degree; or

3. A student is taking an Independent Study Contract of less than 4 points in the their final semester standard teaching period prior to graduation.

4. The course has a value of 12 points or less.

5. As a consequence of credit, a student will obtain less than 50% of the required points of Murdoch units to complete an postgraduate degree.

Schools may adopt additional guidelines indicating the circumstances under which they will exercise discretion to award general credit for students enrolled in courses offered by their School.