Grading system

To be eligible for graduation, the final grade-point average must be at least 2.00 (a) in all Augustana coursework applicable to the degree and (b) in all Augustana coursework applicable to the major or minor inclusive of required supporting courses, but exclusive of recommended supporting courses. To ascertain a grade-point average, the number of quality points earned is divided by the sum of credits attempted in which quality points may be earned.

Faculty will assign their own grading scale/rubric for assignments and exams in their courses. Faculty may assign final grades on the following scale. With the exception of an emergency situation (I grades) all courses require that coursework is completed and submitted by the end of the term and a final grade assigned and entered by the faculty member by the published grading deadline (see Academic Calendar). 

Quality points are given for each credit as follows:

A+, A 4.00
A- 3.67
B+ 3.33
B 3.00
B- 2.67
C+ 2.33
C 2.00
C- 1.67
D 1.00
F, FA 0.00

Calculating Grade Point Average

Students who wish to calculate a grade point average other than what is printed on the transcript or My Progress report should use the above figures to calculate this for themselves.

1. Multiply the point value of the letter grade (see scale above) by the number of credit hours. The result is the quality points earned.
2. Total the credit hours for the term (or the list of courses for consideration). These are total credits. 
3. Total the quality points.
4. Divide the total quality points by the total credit hours. The result is the G.P.A.

See also the Augustana Grade Point Calculator

Grades used by Augustana are:

A+, A, A- Excellent
B+, B, B- Good
C+, C, C- Fair
D Poor
F Below passing; failure without privilege of re-examination. Course may be repeated for credit, see course repeat policy below. Students may not retake failed Augustana courses at another college or university without prior approval of the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees. Courses retaken to fulfill general education requirements or requirements within a major or minor should be repeated at Augustana. Petitions to the committee must be supported by the student’s academic advisor, the chair of the student’s major or minor department, and, when necessary, those responsible for the degree requirement fulfilled by the course to be taken. All "F" grades count in the maximum credits allowed with full time tuition. An "F" grade may impact your ability to take further courses within these limits or may create an overload where additional fees apply. Registration to repeat a failed course at Augustana does not require prior approval, but does require an online add form.  
X Audit (no credit)
FA Failure to Attend; given to a student who never attended any class meetings. Same policies for "F" grade apply.
P Passing; Awarded for a Pass-No Credit course or Passing a non-credit bearing internship, lab or other registered educational experience. Also may appear as CR grade for some passing coursework for internal degree audit sorting purposes. 

NC No credit where Pass-No Credit option was requested or if a student has taken a course as an auditor and not credit is earned as a part of that arrangement. See Pass-No Credit option, below. Course may be repeated for credit at Augustana, no prior permission required. Add form required to register. 
I Incomplete; passing, but with certain required work still unfinished, about which prior arrangement has been made. These grades factor in as a failing grade until resolved. Unresolved I grades turn into F grades in 40 days. See Incomplete Grades policy and requirements, below.
W Authorized withdrawal after the add/drop deadline. A "W" grade might count in the maximum credits allowed with full time tuition depending on the date of a drop. A "W" grade may impact your ability to take further courses within these limits or may create an overload where additional fees apply. The grade may be noted as AW on the transcript if specific withdrawal criteria and documentation is provided to the Dean of Students Office within a maximum two-week timeline.  
NR Not Recommended; for Education students only. A student receiving an NR grade in Student Teaching will not be recommended for certification but will receive college credit for the experience. 

M Missing Grades are recorded when a faculty member does not meet the grading deadline. Faculty are expected to resolve the missing grades immediately through Arches. Students should contact their instructor with questions. These grades factor in as a failing grade until resolved. Unresolved M grades turn into F grades in 10 business days. 

Pass-No Credit is available to students with permission of the advisor within the following guidelines:

• Students are reminded that only students who carry 12 or more credits with letter grades are eligible for Dean's List. 
• Once a P/NC form is submitted they are final and irreversible. Students may not change back to letter grades once a course grading status has changed to P/NC status.
• The Pass-No Credit (P/NC) option is available during the first 5 days of the semester for 7-week courses and through day 8 for 14-week courses. After the deadline has passed, students may no longer elect to take a course P/NC nor reverse a status of a course for which a form was previously submitted. See the Academic Calendar for exact dates. 
• Students registering for a J-term course must make this change by the add deadline.
• A student may use the Pass-No Credit option to the point where it does not exceed 10 percent of the total credit hours completed or in progress. Courses which are mandatory Pass-No Credit (internships, field experiences, etc.) will not be counted in the 10-percent figure. 
• A student may elect to register for more than one Pass-No Credit course in a given term. Students may not move all courses for a semester to P/NC status.
• General Education Core Requirements may not be taken Pass-No credit, with the exception of one HEPE activity course. If taken Pass-No Credit the coursework will not be applied for General Education requirements. Students will not be able to petition to reverse this action after the deadline.
• Courses required for a major or minor may be taken Pass-No Credit only by permission of the appropriate department chair.
• Music doesn't allow P/NC for their music courses in MULS, MUEN, MUCH, or course MUSC-110, MUSC-111, MUSC-112, MUSC-211 and MUSC-212.
• Instructors will turn in letter grades for all students. In cases where students have elected the Pass-No Credit option, the grade will be converted for A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+ and C grades into P; and C-, D and F grades into NC. This rule will not apply to courses which are mandatory Pass-No Credit which will be graded by instructors as P or NC. Grades that are converted to P will appear as a CR grade. The original grade reported by the faculty member will be replaced entirely with the P or NC grade and no record of the original reported grade will be available at a later time. 
• Neither P (or CR) nor NC grades will be used in computing Augustana grade-point averages, but these courses do impact the number of credits earned. Students should be aware that Augustana cannot control the use made by other colleges and graduate and professional schools of Pass (P) and No-Credit (NC) grades that appear on the transcripts of Augustana students.
• The college cannot produce a final letter grade to students for classes that are processes as P/NC.
• NOTE! Due to state licensure regulations, students in the teacher education program will be required to obtain permission for the EDUC department prior to requesting the P/NC option for any coursework.
• Students may exercise the Pass-No Credit option until the posted P/NC deadline. See the Academic Calendar for exact dates. 

The appropriate form is available online or in the Office of the Registrar.

For the complete policy and deadlines, please see the current Academic Calendar and the Pass/No Credit registration agreement available in the Office of the Registrar.

An incomplete grade (I) may be given only for a valid reason and upon written stipulations entered by the faculty member in the electronic Incomplete Agreement form sent via email to the student's Augustana email account from the instructor and copied to the Registrar. Once a student accepts the incomplete on their record at the time the grade is posted, a request for a late withdrawal is not an option; a final grade will be recorded for the course. Students may not graduate with an I on their record.

The deadline for completion of all work is set by the instructor and can be no later than 30 calendar days following the date final grades are due. An extension beyond the 30-day period may be granted only by the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees with a written statement of support from the instructor. An extension request must be submitted with any supporting documentation, before the end of the 30-day incomplete period. This extension would normally be for at most an additional 30-day period, unless a longer period is granted by the committee because of some unusual circumstance such as serious illness. All supporting statements and documentation must be provided within this timeline. See the Academic Calendar for exact dates. 

Unless the student has petitioned the committee for such an extension, the instructor will assign a grade no later than one week following the 30-day period. If the Office of the Registrar does not receive a grade or a petition within 37 days from the date grades were due at the end of the semester, a grade of F will be recorded for the incomplete. Students who do not complete the work for a course may not withdraw from the course once a grade of "I" is assigned. A final grade must be posted. 

*Seniors who are candidates for graduation may not graduate with grades of "I" on the record when that coursework is needed to complete degree requirements. Senior students needing to arrange for a grade of "I" should plan to apply to graduate during a future semester. These students will be responsible for the fees associated with ordering a duplicate diploma.

Generally, students may not repeat courses for credit at Augustana. A student may repeat a course at Augustana under any of the following exceptions and within the following guidelines:

1)    Planned Repeat Course: The course listing in the Courses and Programs of Study section of the catalog is followed by the "+" symbol. [Example: 400 Independent Study (1+)]; or

2)    Course Failure or No-Credit: The final course grade was "F" (failure) or NC (no credit). Students may not retake failed or NC Augustana courses at another college or university. Exceptions are rarely made, but requests for an exception be made to the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees. Students who fail or receive a grade of NC for an Augustana course do not have to seek approval of the college to enroll in the course a second time. However, Arches will not permit registration, therefore an online add form will be required. Students who failed a course at Augustana may not replace that course with the same course or equivalent course through the Acadeum consortium. The parameters for course replacement also apply to failed and NC courses, as noted in #3 below; or

3)    Course Replacement: Students who repeat a course will have the most recent grade replace the prior grade in the gpa calculation. Where the earned passing grade is not sufficient to prove a required proficiency in order for the student to continue in the current undergraduate major. Under these circumstances, the student may petition the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees to repeat the course at Augustana. Students may not transfer coursework to repeat and replace Augustana coursework. See Repeat and Replacing coursework and Advanced Standing for those policies and procedures. All petitions must include

i.) a statement of support from the department chair or official department representative in the student's primary major and

ii.) the support of the academic advisor.

The following parameters also govern approval for any replaced courses, whether the original course earned a passing grade or not: 

• Students who repeat a course will have the grade and credits of the most recent course replace the course and credits of the first attempt; 
• All course attempts and grades will appear on the transcript, but only the most recent course will factor into the grade point average. Previous attempts will not count; 
• Only three attempts at a course are allowed (this means the original course, plus two repeated attempts). Strict financial aid restrictions apply toward full time status eligibility for the third attempt. Students are encouraged to see the financial aid office prior to registration for any replaced courses;

This policy is in effect for all course repeat requests that take place in Fall 2021 and beyond. Students who have graduated and earned a degree may not repeat and replace courses. See Finalizing the Academic Record.

NOTE! A special exception may be made for Augustana students pursuing a major in CSD seeking to enroll in the Augustana Speech Language Pathology Masters of Science Program. Under rare and unique circumstances, students who do not meet the minimum grade requirement for admission to that program may work with their CSD advisor to petition to repeat a course. Support of the department is required. CSD students seeking to enroll in a graduate program outside of Augustana are not eligible to petition to repeat a course. 

Approved by Faculty 3.17.21

Augustana courses that are sequenced require successful completion of the previous course to continue in the sequence. Successful completion is defined by a minimum of a passing grade or in some cases a higher grade may be required, when noted in the course description. In particular, this applies to the first year foreign language courses. In some cases, students may start at an advanced or intermediate level based on one of the following:

• Official placement test administered and recorded by the college
• Transfer coursework (or dual enrollment credit) equivalent
• Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB) and A-Level scores that meet with college policy standards.

Once these credits have been applied to the student record, they may not be waived or removed. In addition, once a student enrolls in a course, successful completion is required (as designated on the course) to continue in the next course in the sequence.

Students will not be awarded general education requirements or waiver of requirements for courses they skip due to the above circumstances. For example, if a student waives beyond a course with a Learning Perspective (LP) or suffix designation into a more advanced course that does not carry that LP/suffix, the student will be required to fulfill the "skipped" LP/suffix with a different course.

The first year FYI sequence is an exception to this policy. Students may continue in FYI-102 with a failing grade, but must repeat courses until they have successfully completed all courses in the sequence to meet the graduation requirement.

Students who do not meet the minimum grade required to continue in the sequence should see the policy on repeating courses above.

AS&D/EPC November 2013

During the term, faculty are asked to provide feedback to the advising office on each student whose classroom performance is less than satisfactory. Students and advisors are informed of reported difficulties routinely throughout the term. These reports are not part of the permanent record and are used only for advising, academic, social and medical counseling. Students who receive a Starfish flag will also be provided ways to connect with campus resources. Students should consult their Starfish record, Moodle account and work with their advisor to find appropriate campus resources for assistance.

Grade reports are made available to students and advisors in Arches after the conclusion of each term. Grades for seven-week courses will post to the record at the end of the term with all other grades for the term. Students who wish to have an official grade report should use Arches to make an official, legal transcript request. The college does not print or send grade reports. 

Students who suspect an error in reporting a grade should report the error immediately to their instructor. NOTE! Errors must be reported by the grading deadline of the term immediately following the grade in dispute (e.g. a fall semester and J-term grading error or appeal must be reported by the grading deadline for spring, a spring grading error or appeal must be reported by the grading deadline for fall). The exception to this timeline is for grades in the final semester of enrollment when the degree is posted. Students and faculty must report errors/complaints for the final semester within 30 days of posting the degree to the student record. Faculty who have a clerical error to report, will use the Grade Change Request system to login and request a change in grade and have the same timelines as noted above. Requests will be reviewed by the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees (AS&D) at their bi-weekly meetings and approved changes made within three business days of the meeting. Changes for reason other than a documented clerical/technical error are rarely approved. 

Students who have a complaint about a grade or wish to file a grade appeal, should complete the grade appeal form and submit it to the instructor immediately after the final grade is posted. While complaints and errors should be reported immediately, they must be reported by the grading deadline of the term immediately following the grade in dispute (e.g. a fall semester and J-term grading error or appeal must be reported by the grading deadline for spring, a spring grading error or appeal must be reported by the grading deadline for fall). Faculty who have a clerical error to report, will use the Grade Change Request system to login and request a change in grade and have the same timelines as noted above. Please be aware most faculty will not discuss grades with students over email. If it is necessary to carry the grade change inquiry beyond the faculty member, the student should then provide the appeal form to the department chair, and then the appropriate Division Dean  for an appeal of grade.

Faculty who wish to make a grade change request will do so through the online form in Arches and all requests will be reviewed, approved or denied by the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees. Above timelines apply. 

NOTE! All grade complaints appeals and reporting errors in grade must be made by the conclusion of the following semester's grading deadline. This includes reporting clerical errors or requests for withdrawals. Requests made after that deadline will not be considered.

For complaints regarding alleged discrimination or harassment, the College’s Policy Against Discrimination & Harassment and Policy Against Sex Discrimination, including Sexual Harassment and Sexual Misconduct, and Other Interpersonal Misconduct are followed. Students who have complaints of discrimination on the basis or sex or gender, should contact a Title IX Coordinator. For all other complaints of discrimination or harassment, students should talk to the Dean of Students, Director of Human Resources, or the appropriate Associate Dean. The Bias Response Team also receives complaints related to bias of all types. Academic freedom, as described in the Faculty Handbook, is protected in the complaint resolution process. 

Generally, students who have a complaint about a course or instructor outside of the policies described above should first contact the instructor of the course. If it is necessary to carry the inquiry fur­ther, the department chair, the division chair, and then the appropriate Associate Dean of the College should be consulted. Academic freedom, as described in the Faculty Handbook, is protected in the complaint resolution process.