The South Carolina Governor's School for Science & Mathematics

The course load and schedules for Governor's School students more closely mirror that of a college than a typical high school.

The minimum course load is six classes for seniors and seven classes for juniors each semester. The maximum number of laboratory courses each semester is three.

Students are strongly discouraged from taking eight courses. Students who request an eighth course must be seniors with a 3.3 GPA for all prior GSSM work and must have the approval of their parents, advisor, instructor in the course and the Vice President of Academic Affairs.

Add/Drop
The last day for adding a course is seven school days after classes have begun. The last day to drop a course without it appearing on the transcript is 14 days. Courses may be dropped until the end of the sixth week with a notation of "withdrew passing" or "withdrew failing" on the transcript.

Course Placement
Every effort is made to place juniors in courses that are at the correct level based on their previous academic experience. Occasionally, a student may be misplaced. In such cases, the vce president of academic affairs, in consultation with the subject teacher and faculty advisor, may shift a student to a different level course. The deadlines and recording rules noted above are waived in these unusual circumstances.
  
Auditing a Class
Students will be allowed to audit a class, with approval of instructor and consent of vice president of academic affairs, without receiving a grade or credit, provided there is space available. Specific requirements about completion of homework, projects, tests, etc., are at the discretion of the instructor.
   
Coker College Courses
Students may register for Coker College courses at their own expense. The vice president of academic affairs must grant prior approval. Enrollment will be permitted only for free electives. These opportunities are very limited due to scheduling difficulties.
   
Transfer Credit
GSSM grants credit for all course units earned by students at their former schools. After entering GSSM, students may not take summer courses in lieu of GSSM requirements or for credit on the GSSM transcript.
   
Semester Exams
Exams are given in all courses in December and May. A few courses do not lend themselves to final exams and a project may be assigned in lieu of an exam. For seniors with As in a course, a teacher may elect to exempt them from the May exam only.