VIII. Grade Reporting & Records

College Policy on Grading
CLA policy on grading (approved by the All-College Council, June 30, 1971) is as follows: Responsibility for the evaluation of student performance is in the hands of individual instructors as constrained by the collective judgment of their departmental colleagues prior to the fact. . . . The College shall henceforth assume that the signature of the appropriate department representative on Grade Report forms certifies that the procedures used for assigning the grades appearing on that report are in accord with the policies of that department.

Submitting Grades
Beginning spring semester 2003, grades for all courses except Independent and Distance Learning (IDL) and Directed Studies are required to be submitted via the web. The Office of the Registrar provides more information on the web submission of grades on the web at http://onestop.umn.edu/registrar/Grades/gradereporting/. IDL and Directed Studies courses will submit final grades via paper using the Supplemental Grade Report. Supplemental grades or grade changes will still be submitted to the Office of the Registrar via the Supplemental Grade Report. Campus mail should not be used because this delays receipt of grades and may compromise confidentiality.

Instructors are required to submit grades through the departmental office to the Office of the Registrar within 72 hours--including weekends and holidays--after the final examination (not 72 hours after the close of the examination period). Grades must be submitted when due in order to be included on students' transcripts. Serious inconvenience to students and to CLA student communities (e.g., inability to clear students for graduation in a timely manner) results when these deadlines are not met.

Use of Grade Report List
Grades must be reported for every name on a course list. If information on a student is not available, the appropriate grade to report is F or N (depending on the student's registration) rather than X, I, or no entry.

Grade Reports for Cancelled Courses
The departmental office should return grade reports to the Office of the Registrar even for cancelled courses.

Students With Names Not Appearing on Course List
While instructors should not accept work from or report grades for students who are not registered for the course, a grade can be submitted for a registered student who has been attending class but whose name does not appear on the course list. The student's name and, when possible, ID number should be added at the bottom of the Grade Report list.

When the Office of the Registrar receives a final course grade for an unregistered student whose name is not on the course list, that student is billed for the course, receives a transcript notation of an unauthorized registration, and receives a V grade without credit for the course. Changes in registration from a V to a letter grade (for credit) are rarely approved. Students may petition to change the V to the reported grade and credit through their CLA student community. The student community will evaluate the request based on the student's situation. This procedure prevents degree credit from being awarded to students who have been suspended or expelled, who owe the University unpaid fees, or who are otherwise ineligible to register officially for courses but who nevertheless may attempt to sit in on classes.

Keeping Grade Records
Departments are expected to maintain a file of grade records submitted by instructors for at least five years. Departments are urged to keep these records centrally, especially for faculty members who are on leave or have left the University, in the event that a student would need grade clarification after the end of the term. Departments are expected to develop a method of recording the grades assigned by their faculty that will ensure that accurate verification can be produced even after the end of the academic term.

Student Review of Examinations and Papers
Students are entitled to request a review of their grades from instructors. Therefore, materials submitted by students, if not returned to them, must be retained by instructors for a "reasonable period of time." (At least one semester is suggested as a minimum or two semesters when Is or Xs are assigned; longer periods may be necessary to permit determination of final grades.) Instructors should notify students of the opportunity for reviewing examinations and papers and the period of time such review will be provided.

Discrepancies Between Grade Base and Grade
The instructor may not enter an A-F grade for a student registered S-N or vice versa. No grade except S or N (or I, if appropriate) may be entered for a student registered on the S-N system.

If a student's grade base and grade are inconsistent, the Office of the Registrar first attempts to resolve the discrepancy with the instructor; if no resolution is possible, the office posts no grade on the transcript and notifies the student of the discrepancy by mail. The student must contact either the instructor to request a grade on the correct grade base or the student's CLA student community to seek a change in grade base (requests for late changes in the grading base are rarely approved); thus, to avoid inconveniencing students as well as themselves, instructors should submit only grades correctly reflecting student registration.

Directed Study Grades
University Senate policy on evaluating and reporting participation in directed studies projects is that credit, student workload, and grades for an individual project follow the same guidelines used in evaluating student performance in a regular course. Each directed study registration should include a written contract filed at the time of the registration. This contract, outlining the objectives, methods, evaluation procedures, and credits to be awarded through the project, becomes the basis for evaluating the student's work. Departmental approval of the project is required. Instructors who wish to supervise projects outside their own discipline are asked to obtain approval from the relevant department.

Departments are expected to monitor all directed studies instruction provided by their faculty or taught within their discipline by others. (Many departments ask that faculty members report to them the time spent with the project.)

No student may initiate an appeal of the grade earned in a course more than one calendar year after the grade was assigned. Changing a grade to a W (withdrawal) is subject to the one-year limitation on appeal set forth in the preceding sentence.

Confidentiality of Grades
Since student grades are considered confidential information, faculty and staff are expected to take precautions when distributing grades and coursework to ensure their confidentiality.

Encourage students to use the One Stop Student Services website, www.onestop.umn.edu, to learn their grades. When posting scores or grades publicly, be sure to not associate them with names, ID numbers, social security numbers, or other personal identifiers. Scores and grades should not be listed in alphabetical order or numerical order by student name or ID number. Use of other identifiers such as a code name or number is recommended.

Do not put graded materials in public places for students to pick up. Faculty should return graded papers and tests in class, in their offices or departmental offices, via self-addressed mailing envelopes, etc.

To review University policies on access to student records, see www.onestop.umn.edu/registrar/Grades/gradereporting/index.html.

Grade Disputes
Students are entitled to an explanation of the grade they received and to file a complaint if they believe they have been unfairly evaluated and graded. Instructors are expected to deal promptly with these complaints and, if possible, to come to a resolution with the student. If no resolution can be reached, students may appeal to the department chair or designate. Questions should be directed to Nanette Hanks in the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic Programs, 612-624-9839. Students may also make use of the Student Dispute Resolution Center, 612-625-5900, in resolving complaints.

Other Student Complaints
Other complaints such as alleged discrimination may be handled under the Student Academic Grievance Policy effective January 13, 1995. This policy requires each department and college to assist in resolving student grievances. It does not apply to conflicts in student employment or actions taken under the Board of Regents policy, "Student Conduct." Also, complaints alleging violation of the University's policies of sexual harassment and academic conduct are not grievances under this policy and should be referred to the appropriate office for investigation. For more information, contact the University Grievance Office, 612-624-1030.