Grades Explanations
Any student transcript record sent from a unit of the University must include a grade for every course for which a student has been officially registered and not dropped during the program adjustment or refund period. The program adjustment period, formerly referred to as the add-and-drop period, coincides with the official refund and Census, Form-A due date.
Clerical, computer, or professional errors are not to be considered a part of the historical record and should be deleted.
Students who officially withdraw after the Financial Aid certification date during the program adjustment or refund period will have the administrative grade “WD” or “WN” recorded in the enrollment record of the dropped course.
All courses or credits for which the student is officially registered after the financial aid certification date or program adjustment period, whichever is earlier, shall be considered “attempted credits” for the purposes of financial aid.
A withdrawal after the financial aid certification date or program adjustment period will be assigned “WD” (Dropped) or “W” (Withdrew Officially) or “WU” (Withdrew Unofficial, participated at least once) or “WN” (Never Participated).
A grade of “WD” is assigned to students who officially drop a class after the financial aid certification date and prior to the census date.
A grade of “W” is assigned to students who officially drop a class after the refund period and prior to or on the last day to officially withdraw for the term/session. Students who have participated in an academically related activity and officially withdraw after the official refund period, but prior to the end of the designated withdrawal period will have a grade of “W” (Withdrew Officially) recorded. After that period, however, with special permission to withdraw by faculty and/or appropriate college committee, a grade of “W” may be recorded.
A grade of “WN” is to be assigned to students who never participated in an academically related activity and did not officially withdraw
A grade of “WU” is to be assigned (by instructor) to students who participated in an academically related activity at least once, completely stopped participating in any academically related activities, any time before the culminating academic experience of the course, i.e., final exam, final paper, etc.
The grade of “INC” lapses to an “FIN” grade no later than the last day of the following semester, or its equivalent in calendar time, exclusive of Summer Term/Session (see updated Grade Change Policy Effective Fall 2021). The grade of “INC” (Incomplete) should be given by the instructor in consultation with the student with the following guidelines:
only when there is a reasonable expectation that a student can successfully complete the requirements of the course no later than the last day of the following semester, or its equivalent in calendar time, exclusive of Summer Term/Session. It is a temporary grade awarded when the disposition of the final grade requires further evaluation for reasons other than the Procedures for Imposition of Sanctions related to the Board's Academic Integrity Policy
Transcript comments for INC grades should be added to the student record indicating the nature of the incomplete.
The “PEN” grade is a temporary grade awarded when the disposition of the final grade requires further evaluation and when the incomplete grades is inappropriate. 'PEN' is also used to facilitate the implementation of the Procedures for Imposition of Sanctions whereby colleges must hold a student’s grade in abeyance pending the outcome of the academic review process. Final determination of a grade will depend on final evaluation by the instructor or the outcome of the college’s academic review process.
The grade of “P” or “NC” may be given as part of a ‘Pass/No Pass/No Credit’ agreement between a student and instructor. o To receive this grade, a student needs to continue participating in academically related activities, complete all assignments, and take the final exam. If a passing grade is earned (A+ through D-), the student will receive a grade of ‘P’ and credit for the course with no impact on GPA.
If a failing grade is earned (F), the student will receive a grade of NC/NP which does not affect the GPA.
This option must be requested prior to the last day a student can withdraw and receive a grade of “W” via an agreement with the Office of the Registrar.
Students must remain in compliance with Federal and State Satisfactory Academic Progress guidelines.
Colleges may place additional restrictions on the use of this option which must be clearly stated in their bulletin and on their website
A college may choose to offer a First Year Freshman Forgiveness policy.
If the student passes the course, they will receive the grade earned which will carry the designated GPA.
If the student fails the course, the grade will be administratively converted to NC and have no impact on the GPA.
This policy is limited to first year freshman as defined by the college.
The grades of “NC” and “R” may represent non-punitive failures indicating unsatisfactory completion of the course.
The “R” grade is restricted to noncredit remedial courses
The “NC” grade is restricted to regular, developmental, and compensatory courses. This grade can also be used by colleges for other administrative actions such as disciplinary dismissals. Neither of these grades is to be counted in the quality point index nor may be
used in lieu of incomplete or withdrew grades.
The grade of “CR” can be used for the awarding of transfer credit.
The grade “Y” denotes that the semester’s work has been completed; however, the course is still in progress and a final course evaluation cannot be determined until the entire activity has been concluded
To satisfying the program pursuit requirements for State financial assistance awards (Section 145-2.2 of the Regulations of the Commissioner), the grades of “W”, “WA”, “WD”, “WN”, and “WU” shall signify that the course has not been completed. All other grades, except for the “AUD” grade, shall signify that the course has been completed.
The grade point average is an index of a student’s scholastic performance at a particular college. All grades that carry a numerical quality point value shall be included in the calculation of the grade point average.
Any notation regarding a student’s probationary status appears only on the unofficial transcript.
Guidance on WU/F/INC Grades
Audit reviews by internal as well as both the State and the Federal government have required the need to emphasize the definition of following grades:
WU: A grade of “WU” is to be assigned to students who participated in an academically related activity at least once, completely stopped attending at any time before the culminating academic experience of the course, i.e., final exam, final paper, etc., and did not officially withdraw.
A WU grade should never be given in place of an ‘F’ grade.
The ‘F’ grade is an earned grade based on poor performance and the student not meeting the learning objectives/outcomes of the course throughout the entire academic term/session. If the student has participated in an academically related activity at least once or if there is documented evidence of the student’s participation in a course, and they have ceased participating in the course, at the end of the term, the unofficial withdrawal grade reported must be a “WU”. When a student does not officially withdraw from a course and fails to complete the course requirements, the instructor assigns the "WU" grade on the final grade roster.
F: A grade of "F" is a failure grade given to a student who completed the culminating academic experience of the course and failed. A student who completed a course unsuccessfully should be granted the grade of “F” with the culminating academic experience of the course, i.e., final exam, final paper, etc. This grade can also be assigned if the student has completed most of the course and documentation of failing course work is available. This documentation must be retained and available for review by auditors.
A WU grade should never be given in place of an ‘F’ grade.
The ‘F’ grade is an earned grade based on poor performance and the student not meeting the learning objectives/outcomes of the course throughout the entire academic term/session.
This grade can also be assigned if the student has completed most of the course and documentation of failing course work is available. This documentation must be retained and available for review by auditors. Moreover, such action should encompass the elimination of any possible “INC” grade being awarded, meaning that the “F” grade is awarded with full knowledge and effect that submission of any/all incomplete work by the student would not result in the student’s passing of the course.
INC: The grade of “INC” (Incomplete) should only be given by the instructor in consultation with the student with the following guidelines:
When there is a reasonable expectation that a student can successfully complete the requirements of the course no later than the last day of the following semester, or its equivalent in calendar time, exclusive of Summer Session/Term. Upon timely completion of said incomplete work, the student would earn passing grade.
▪ Temporary grade awarded when the disposition of the final grade requires further evaluation for reasons other than the Procedures for Imposition of Sanctions related to the Board's Academic Integrity Policy Transcript comments for INC grades should be added to the student record indicating the nature of the incomplete
The grade of “INC” lapses to an “FIN” grade no later than the last day of the following semester, or its equivalent in calendar time, exclusive of Summer Session/Term.
Students who have officially withdrawn from a college and have these grades may be exempted from the limitations.
Academically related activities include, but are not limited to:
physically attending a class where there is an opportunity for direct interaction between the instructor and students.
submitting an academic assignment.
taking an exam, an interactive tutorial or computer-assisted instruction.
attending a study group that is assigned by the school.
participating in an online discussion about academic matters and
initiating contact with a faculty member to ask a question about the academic subject studied in the course.
engaging in an online academically related activity or initiating contact with a faculty member to ask a course-related question.
Logging into an online class is not sufficient, by itself, to demonstrate academic participated by the student.
Academic Penalty Removal for WU grade
Effective Fall 2021
A withdrawal after the financial aid certification date or program adjustment period is assigned the grade of “WD” (Dropped) or “WN” (Never Participated), or “W” (Withdrew) or “WU” (Withdrew Unofficially). Currently WD, W, WN are not academically punitive grade i.e., these grades do not impact student GPA. For Title IV purpose University uses our Grading policy (this document) for compliance with R2T4 regulations. Effective Fall 2021, WU grade will not have punitive impact on student’s GPA. WU grade will continue to be used to denote Unofficial Withdrawal. This Policy shall supersede and override all undergraduate