Grading
system
Courses
are graded as follows:
- A—excellent;
- B—good;
- C—acceptable;
- D—poor
but passing;
- F—failure;
- WF—withdrawn
failing;
- INC—incomplete;
- I—incomplete
calculated as F; and
- IP—in
progress.
A
notification of "NGR"—no grade
reported—is used until a final grade
is available.
Certain
courses (including student teaching, some
internships and remedial courses) are graded
"S/U" only and are so indicated
in the course descriptions. "S"
means satisfactory and indicates course credit
was earned. "U" means unsatisfactory
and indicates no credit. A student may also
elect the "S/U" grading option in
no more than 16 credit hours in a baccalaureate
degree program (beyond those hours graded
"S/U" only). Any "S/U"
hours beyond this limit will not count toward
graduation. The grading option must be declared
no later than fourteen calendar days after
the beginning of classes for a semester. Many
departments do not accept courses taken under
the "S/U" option for credit in major
or minor requirements; students should consult
departmental officials. More than 12 semester
hours of "S/U" grades may increase
the grade point average needed for graduation
with honors. Courses taken under advanced
placement, credit by exam, CLEP, etc. are
considered "S/U" and do not count
as letter-graded hours. See Graduation
with honors.
The
grade of "S" is interpreted as falling
within the range of "A" to "C"
and carries full credit. A grade of "U"
is interpreted as "D" to "F"
and carries no credit. "S" and "U"
grades do not affect the accumulative grade
point average.
A
student who wishes to attend a class without
receiving credit for it may register to audit
that course.
Instructors
assign a grade of "W" (withdrawn)
or "WF" (withdrawn failing) if a
student withdraws from a course after the
last day to drop (see Drop/add
policy) but before (1) the 10th week of
a course in the fall and spring semesters,
(2) the twenty-fifth calendar day of the eight-week
summer session, or (3) the nineteenth day
of a six-week summer session. For flexibly
scheduled courses, the instructor assigns
a "W" or "WF" if a student
withdraws after completing at least 13% but
not more than 60% of the course. During the
specified time intervals, "W" is
assigned if the student is passing at the
time of withdrawal or if the instructor determines
there is insufficient evidence to judge the
student's progress at the time of withdrawal.
"WF" may be assigned if the instructor
determines the student is failing at the time
of withdrawal.
A
grade of "WF" also is assigned if
the student withdraws after the intervals
described above, stops attending without processing
a withdrawal, or has never attended and fails
to process a withdrawal.
A
student who officially withdraws from the
University receives a "W" in all
courses for the semester, unless the student
has previously withdrawn from a course with
a "WF."
These
provisions apply to all grading options, including
"S/U." The grade of "WF"
is used with zero quality points in computing
the grade point average; "W" is
not used in computing the grade point average.
See
Incomplete marks,
below.
See
Withdrawal
from the University.
Grade
point average
For calculating the student's grade point
average, the following quality points are
assigned to each letter grade:
- For
each hour of A, 4 points
- For
each hour of B, 3 points
- For
each hour of C, 2 points
- For
each hour of D, 1 point
- For
each hour of F or WF, 0 points
- For
each hour of I, 0 points
A
student's grade point average is obtained
by dividing the total number of quality points
earned by the total number of hours taken,
excluding courses in which the marks "S",
"U", "IP", "INC",
"W" or "WP" are recorded.
The hours for which a mark of "INC"
is recorded are excluded from grade point
average computation until the deadline for
removal.
As
an example, suppose a student receives the
following grades for a semester:
Biology
(a 4-hour course) B
English (a 3-hour course) B
French (a 4-hour course) C
Health (a 3-hour course) A
First,
determine the number of quality points earned
for each course. For example, each hour of
B is worth 3 points and a 4-hour B is worth
12 points (3x4).
Therefore,
the above grades translate into quality points
as follows:
Now,
divide the number of quality points by the
number of hours taken for a letter grade.
The grade point average for this sample schedule
is (41/14=2.92). Grade point averages are
not rounded up to the nearest hundredth of
a point.
Incomplete
marks
The mark of "INC" (incomplete) is
given when, for some acceptable reason, a
student fails to meet a definite requirement
in a course as established by the instructor.
The mark of "INC" may be removed
and a grade (if taken for a grade) or the
letter "S" (if taken "S/U")
may be substituted for it by a student making
up the deficiencies to the satisfaction of
the instructor.
Unless
an extension of time is granted by the academic
dean, a mark of "INC" must be removed
by March 1, Aug. 1, and Nov. 1 for the fall
and spring semesters and summer session, respectively.
For courses taken "S/U", any mark
of "INC" not removed by these deadlines
will change to "U." For courses
taken for a letter grade, any mark of "INC"
not removed by these deadlines will change
to "I" and be calculated as "F"
in the cumulative grade point averages of
all undergraduate students, with or without
an extension of time. The student who has
been granted an extension, however, will have
the opportunity to have his or her grade point
average recalculated and the "I"
changed to the grade assigned.
Grade
appeals
Students have a right to appeal decisions
on grades. The student should first contact
the department from which the grade was received.
A member of each department, who is not a
major departmental administrator, is designated
to hear complaints, gather information, talk
with both students and faculty, and mediate
disputes or identify appropriate channels
for solving problems. If the dispute cannot
be resolved at this level, then the student
should state the full particulars of the appeal
in writing and submit them to the department
chair or policy committee. If the matter is
not resolved at the department level, the
student may request a hearing before the academic
arbitration board of the appropriate school
or college. However, the sole responsibility
and authority for determining grades rests
with the faculty member who assigned the grade.
This appeals procedure also may be used if
a student believes an opportunity should be
provided to make up work missed during absence
from classes.
The
grade appeals procedure must be started by
the end of the fifth week of the spring semester
for grades received during fall semester and
by the end of the fifth week of fall semester
for grades received during the spring semester
or during the summer session. All actions
for grade changes must be completed during
the semester in which the grade is appealed.
Grade and absence grievances may not be appealed
beyond the college level.
