St. Olaf Policies

Academic Records

Category: Registrar/ FERPA
Last updated: 10/21/2025

Statement

Guidelines covering academic records, Catalog, FERPA, Degree Audits (DegreePath), Enrollments & Verifications, and Transcripts are included in the current academic catalog.  

Purpose

Guidelines covering academic records, Catalog, FERPA, Degree Audits (DegreePath), Enrollments & Verifications, and Transcripts are maintained by the Registrar’s Office in accordance with faculty and other governance.  

Audience

All members of the St. Olaf community.

Definitions

Permanent academic record – record of courses and grades prepared for each student who registers in the regular academic programs of St. Olaf College.

Catalog – The compilation of academic regulations and procedures as they apply to students.

FERPA – Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act governs how St. Olaf protects student academic records.  FERPA affords students certain rights with respect to their education records.

DegreePath – St. Olaf’s degree audit software that reviews and matches the student’s transcript against the college’s degree requirements and the requirements for each major, emphasis, and/or concentration the student has declared.

Enrollments and Degree Verifications – forms or letters certified by the Registrar’s Office regarding dates of attendance, graduation, major, GPA, rank, etc.  Students may request these by written request.

Transcripts – The transcript is a complete and unabridged course record that includes courses, grades, major, and GPA as well as any other honors, or other distinctions.

Policy

Academic Records

A permanent academic record of courses and grades is prepared for each student who registers in the regular academic programs of St. Olaf College. An unabridged transcript of this record is maintained in the Registrar’s Office.

Upon graduation or withdrawal from the college, a student’s academic record continues to be stored on a permanent basis at the college.

A copy of the permanent record may be released only upon the written consent of the individual student or in compliance with The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974.

Corrections of errors on the academic record must be reported to the registrar. If students believe a grade entry on the academic record is incorrect, they must bring the concern to the registrar’s attention within one year of the grade’s official posting.

Questions concerning transcripts and academic records should be directed to the Registrar’s Office.

Catalog

The St. Olaf College Academic Catalog is available only on the college’s website and is updated once each year by August 1. Academic regulations and procedures as they apply to students may change during a student’s time at St. Olaf. Students must meet the graduation requirements outlined in the catalog for the academic year in which they first enter St. Olaf as degree candidates. Students wishing to declare a major or concentration not available to them under the catalog year under which they entered the college may request to go up in catalog year in order to declare that major or concentration. Contact the Registrar’s Office for more information.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

St. Olaf protects student academic records in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. Permanent records may be released only upon the written consent of the student. While the college does not send grade reports to parents or guardians, such information can be made available to eligible individuals upon special request. St. Olaf discloses information from a student’s education records to parent(s)/guardian(s) if the student has authorized disclosure of education records to the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s) or if the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s) claim(s) the student as a dependent for federal tax purposes. A student is considered a dependent if they are legitimately claimed as such on the parent’s most recent IRS income tax form. Further information concerning St. Olaf College procedures in compliance with FERPA is available on the Registrar’s Office website.

Degree Audits (DegreePath)

DegreePath is St. Olaf’s degree audit software. It is a review of a student’s transcript matched against the college’s degree requirements and requirements for each major, emphasis, and/or concentration the student has declared.  DegreePath shows students where they stand relative to graduation at any given point in time.  Students should immediately report any discrepancy found on DegreePath to the registrar. In addition to the student and the student’s advisor, the only people with access to DegreePath are college officials with an educational need to know. The student alone is responsible for understanding and meeting degree requirements.

Enrollments and Degree Verifications

The Registrar’s Office certifies many forms, including insurance forms and student loan papers. Certifications requiring the release of a grade point average or rank in class must be accompanied by a written request from the student. Facts of public record are confirmed without written request. These include dates of attendance, graduation, and major.

The National Student Clearinghouse, a repository for enrollment information for most colleges and universities in the United States, is authorized as the college’s agent for providing enrollment and degree verifications. Potential employers or background screening firms may request a verification on a student. Students may access enrollment verification or proof of full-time enrollment for health insurance, scholarship, or other purposes. Instructions may be found on the Registrar’s Office website.

Transcripts

The transcript is a complete and unabridged course record. In addition to courses and grades, the transcript reports the grade point average. The student’s major, honors, or other distinctions are recorded on the transcript once they are awarded.

Unofficial transcripts are available from the Student Information System (SIS), accessible via the Registrar’s Office website. Current students may print their own unofficial transcript.

Students may request an official transcript through the National Student Clearinghouse or may submit a written request to the Registrar’s Office. There is a fee for official transcripts. See the Registrar’s Office website for instructions and current transcript fees. Official transcripts may be received in person, electronically, by mail, or sent to third parties. Telephone requests for transcripts are not accepted under any condition. The release of an official transcript will be denied to students who have delinquent Federal Perkins Loans, Nursing Student Loans, or St. Olaf College Institutional Loans

Exceptions to This Policy

As noted in the academic catalog, if needed.

Policy Implementation

The Registrar’s Office is responsible for the maintenance of academic records, the academic catalog, DegreePath, enrollments and degree verifications, and transcripts.   Adherence to FERPA is monitored by the Registrar’s Office in cooperation with the school’s legal counsel.

Consequences of Violating this Policy

Related Information

Please see the FERPA information on the St. Olaf website for links to federal policy.  https://wp.stolaf.edu/registrar/ferpa-notification/

History

The policy in the current academic catalog supersedes previous policy as found in archived catalogs.