Academic Policies

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Brandeis School of Law students can find the complete Law School academic polices in the Student Handbook.

Attendance

In accordance with ABA Standard 308(a), the right to take examinations, as well as the privilege of continuing as a student in the School of Law, is conditioned on regular attendance and satisfactory participation in class work.

With respect to any course, a student is allowed to miss up to 15% of the total minutes of instruction required for the credit amount of the course.

Definition of a Credit Hour

A “credit hour” is an amount of work that reasonably approximates:

  1. not less than
    1. one 50-minute hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction, and
    2. two (60-minute) hours of out-of-class student work per week for fifteen weeks, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time for a total of 42.5 true hours (In a class with a final exam, the exam week can be counted as one of the fifteen weeks.); or
  2. an equivalent amount of work as required in subparagraph (1) of this definition for other academic activities as established by the institution, including
    1. simulation activities,
    2. field placements,
    3. clinical activities,
    4. co-curricular activities, and
    5. other academic work leading to the award of credit hours.
    6. ​some classes/credits will require time keeping by the student.

Credit Load

Unless explicitly authorized by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, no full-time student will be permitted to register for more than 16 credit hours per Fall or Spring semester. With permission of the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, a student may register for a maximum of 18 credit hours. No student may enroll in more than 9 credit hours in the summer without permission from the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. Under extraordinary circumstances, a student may be permitted to enroll in up to 12 credit hours in the summer.

​Procedures for Withdrawal

A student wishing to withdraw from a class must do so during the period published by the University Registrar to avoid financial ramifications.

A student wishing to withdraw from all courses for a semester or take a temporary leave of absence must notify the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs before withdrawing from classes. Students who have taken a semester or more of leave must submit a request to re-enroll with the University Registrar before they will be permitted to return or register for classes.