Catalog HOME General Information College of Arts and Sciences   General guidelines   Degree Programs   Graduation Requirements   Major and Minor Study   Advising & Academic Standing   Grading   Transfer of Credit   Miscellaneous Information   Abbreviations Conservatory of Music Double-Degree Program Registrar's Office Grading PLEASE NOTE: Students matriculating at Oberlin College in fall 2004 will enter under a new grading system. For specific information regarding deadlines for course and grade options, please see the calendar on the back cover of the catalog. For students matriculating fall 2004 and later, the following grading policies will be in effect: Two grading options are offered: letter grades or Pass/No Pass (P/NP). Each semester undergraduate students may choose to have some or all of their courses evaluated P/NP. To exercise this option, students must file a form, signed by the advisor, in the Office of the Registrar by the last day of the eighth week of classes or the last day of the fourth week of classes for a module course. Once the deadline has passed, no change in the grading option may be made. This means that students must elect the P/NP grading option by the deadline. Similarly, P/NP grading will not be reversed to letter grading after the deadline. If no option card is submitted, letter grades will be recorded. In addition to a student opting to take a course P/NP, an instructor may declare an entire course graded on the P/NP basis. In this case, the course will be listed as such in the catalog and the student has no option as to which grade option will be used. Letter Grades. The grades recorded and their equivalents in quality points (used in computing grade-point averages) are as follows: A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D F W 4.33 4.00 3.67 3.33 3.00 2.67 2.33 2.00 1.67 1.0 0.0 0.0 To obtain the quality points earned in a course, the numerical equivalent of the grade is multiplied by the number of hours for which the course was taken. The grade-point average is computed by dividing the total quality points by the total number of hours for which letter grades are recorded. Pass/No Pass. All passing work (A+ to C-) is given the uniform grade of Pass (P). Work below C- is considered not passing, and is given a grade of No Pass (NP). Departments will have the option of deciding how to handle P/NP grades with respect to credit in the major. Please consult the major requirements in this catalog for specific information regarding P/NP grades. Repeating Courses with a D or F grade. A student may repeat once a course for which a grade of D or F is received. Both grades and both courses count in calculation of the GPA. Only one of the courses counts as credit toward graduation. Withdrawal Grades. A student may withdraw from a class between the end of the Add/Drop period and the last day of the eighth week of classes (last day of the fourth week of classes for modules). If a student withdraws from a class, the notation W (Withdrawn; no indication of passing or failing) will be entered on the student's transcript. After the end of the eighth week of classes (fourth week for a module course), a letter grade or P/NP will be awarded. Minimum GPA Required for Graduation. In order to graduate a student must have a GPA of at least 1.67. P and NP grades do not enter into the GPA calculation. Written Evaluation. Upon request, a student may receive a written evaluation of his or her work taken under the P/NP option. Students desiring such an evaluation should obtain the necessary forms from the Office of the Registrar and give them to the course instructor at the end of the semester or course. At the student's request, such written evaluations may be sent, along with transcripts, to a graduate or professional school and/or a prospective employer. Following are the grading policies in effect for students who have matriculated prior to fall 2004: Two grading options are offered: letter grades or Credit/No Entry (CR/NE). Each semester undergraduate students may choose to have some or all of their courses evaluated Credit/No Entry. To exercise this option, students must file a card, signed by the advisor, in the Office of the Registrar by the end of the eighth week of semester classes or the end of the fourth week of module classes. (NOTE: this deadline is later than in previous years; it is now coordinated with the deadline for P/NP in the new grading system. See the back cover of the catalog for the entire academic calendar.) Once the deadline has passed, no change in the grading option may be made. This means that students must elect the CR/NE grading option by the deadline. Similarly, CR/NE grading will not be reversed to letter grading after the deadline. If no option card is submitted, letter grades will be recorded. In courses in which the instructor declares credit/no entry grading, the student has no option. Letter Grades. The grades recorded and their equivalents in quality points (used in computing grade-point averages) are as follows: A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- W NE 4.33 4.00 3.67 3.33 3.00 2.67 2.33 2.00 1.67 0.0 0.0 To obtain the quality points earned in a course, the numerical equivalent of the grade is multiplied by the number of hours for which the course was taken. The grade-point average is computed by dividing the total quality points by the total number of hours for which letter grades are recorded. Credit/No Entry (CR/NE). All passing work (A+ to C-) is given the uniform grade of CR (Credit). Work below C- is considered not passing, and is given a grade of NE (No Entry). No Entry. Whether a course is taken for letter grades or Credit/No Entry, work below the C- level is considered not passing and No Entry is made on the student's permanent record. Thus, if a student does not pass a course, there is no indication on the official transcript that the course was attempted. The following policies apply to all Oberlin College students in the College of Arts and Sciences: Incomplete Grades. An incomplete grade is a temporary grade, assigned at the end of a semester, to permit students additional time to complete work in a course. There are two kinds of incompletes: 1. While at Oberlin a student is allowed up to two incompletes authorized by course instructors for educational reasons, such as a desire by the student to spend additional time on a particular course. A request for such an educational incomplete must be submitted to the Office of the Dean of Studies in advance of the scheduled final exam in that course. Course work must be finished by the end of the first week of Winter Term for first semester incompletes, and by three weeks after the end of the semester for second semester incompletes. Additional educational incompletes beyond the first two may be authorized by the Dean of Studies, but only in very exceptional circumstances. 2. Emergency incompletes may be authorized by the Dean of Studies due to circumstances beyond the student's control. Normally such incompletes are for medical or life crisis reasons. The due date for course work will depend on how much time was lost due to the emergency, up to a maximum of three weeks. The due date for either an educational or emergency incomplete may be extended only for emergency reasons. If work is not completed within the specified time, a grade will be recorded based on the extent to which the course requirements have been met. All requests for incompletes must be made through the Office of the Dean of Studies for courses offered in the College of Arts and Sciences. Asterisk Grade. An asterisk grade is used at the end of the first semester to indicate that the work of a course covers two semesters and that no grade can be recorded yet. When the final grade is given at the end of the second semester the asterisk is removed and the grade earned is recorded for both semesters. Grade Reports. Semester grade reports are available to students via the online student record system. Federal law prohibits student grade reports from being sent to parents unless the student signs a form releasing this information. If a student opts to release grades to his or her parents, either the student or the parents must request a copy of the grades each semester from the Office of the Registrar.