Grading Systems

Official Grades

The instructor, at the conclusion of each term, assigns official course grades. Students go to CampusWeb (campus.mpcc.edu) to view their final grades. Access to grades and transcripts may be withheld if students have not met financial obligations to the college.

Grading System

Coursework attempted at Mid-Plains Community College is evaluated according to the following letter grading system

A+ 4.0
A 4.0
B+ 3.5
B 3.0
C+ 2.5
C 2.0
D+ 1.5
D 1.0
F 0.0
P Passing
NP Not Passing
WIP Work in Progress
I Incomplete
W Withdraw
AU Audit
CE Credit by exam

“P” (Passing), “NP” (Not Passing), “I” (Incomplete), “WIP” (Work in Progress), “AU” (Audit), “W” (Withdrawal), CE (Credit by Exam) grades are not included in the GPA (Grade Point Average). GPA is calculated by multiplying the semester hours of credit for each course by the grade point value to determine quality points, then dividing the sum of the quality points by the total number of GPA credits. Classes numbered below 1000 are not included in the GPA.

Incomplete Grade

The temporary grade of “I” is a faculty prerogative and may be issued when a student has completed a majority of the course requirements, but is unable to complete the remainder due to circumstances clearly beyond his/her control (i.e., serious illness or an emergency). An incomplete grade request must state the requirements to remove the “I” and a date by which the remaining requirements must be completed. If approved, an “I” must be completed by the date specified on the Incomplete Form, but never more than one term after the course has concluded (ie…fall/spring, spring/fall, summer/fall). If course work is not completed during this time, the “I” will be changed to an “F” on the student’s permanent transcript.

Auditing Courses

Students who wish to attend a course without taking examinations or receiving credit for a course may request to audit from an instructor during the first week of class only. Students who audit a course pay the regular tuition rate and fees. Audited courses do not count toward graduation requirements nor do they satisfy prerequisite requirements for other courses. An audit student may not change from audit to credit status once the course has started.

Audited courses are not considered when establishing the full-time or part-time status of a student receiving financial aid or veteran’s benefits.

Change of Grade

Final grades are unalterable except when explanation is made in writing by the faculty member involved that shows that a grade was reported incorrectly as the result of an error in recording or in computing. Changes must be recorded before the next semester ends.

Grade Appeal Procedure

Students are responsible for meeting the standards established for each course taken and the end-of-term grade they receive. Faculty are responsible for establishing the criteria for grades and evaluating students’ academic performance. Within one week following the end of the term, final course grades are posted to the Student Information System (Jenzabar). Students can access their grades online using log-in ID and password. Students can contact student services for more information. Once submitted, course grades are considered final and become part of the student’s permanent record.

It is the student’s responsibility to review his/her grade, and must follow the Grade Appeal process, within fourteen (14) calendar days following the start of the next term, if they are not in agreement regarding their grade. Students must obtain the Grade Appeal Form from the Academic Affairs Office.

Inherent in the traditional concept of academic freedom, is the right of the professional faculty member to be the sole judge of the academic standards employed in the student’s classes to evaluate the quality of the student work. While a student has the right to an informal review and explanation of the grade by the instructor, and the instructor has the obligation to provide such a review, an assigned grade may not be formally appealed unless there is evidence that one or more of the following conditions is present: a mistake in the assignment of the grade or in the process of its recording, or fraud, or bad faith, or incompetence.

WHEN TO FILE A GRADE APPEAL:

You may only appeal the final grade for a course when you are able to provide evidence that an inappropriate grade was assigned as a result of prejudice, or other improper conditions.

WHEN YOU SHOULD NOT FILE A GRADE APPEAL:

  • If you feel the course was poorly designed or you received poor instruction, these may be legitimate concerns, but are more appropriately addressed by the academic Vice President.

  • If you feel the students were graded too severely, provided that all the students in the class were graded in the same fashion--these too may be legitimate concerns, but are more appropriately addressed by the academic Vice President.

FILLING A GRADE APPEAL:

To file a Grade Appeal, the following steps must be completed in the order described.

STEP 1--- Within fourteen (14) calendar days following the start of the next term. The student must first consult with the instructor in an effort to provide a satisfactory resolution of the contested grade. If the instructor reviews the grade and finds a mechanical error or agrees the grade is inaccurate, he or she is free to change the grade as resolved.

STEP2--- If, however, the matter is not resolved in Step 1, the student may present the complaint in writing (e.g. email, written documentation, etc.) within fourteen (14) calendar days following the start of the next term to the Division Chair in which the course was offered. Included in the petition the student should attach the appropriate materials described above, and if available, the instructor’s written explanation for the assigned grade. The Division Chair will attempt to resolve the complaint in consultation with the instructor and the student. The Division Chair will provide a written response to the student (e.g. email) within five (5) calendar days from the time the written complaint has been received. If the Division Chair was the instructor of the course, the student may proceed directly to Step 3.

STEP 3— If the complaint is not resolved at the division level, the student may appeal further by presenting a written petition to the academic Vice President, along with a copy of the materials presented at the previous step and any written responses received from the program. The petition should be presented within five (5) calendar days after the Division Chair response. Within five (5) calendar days of the date the complaint was received, the academic Vice President may use any resources available to resolve the conflict and will provide the results of their finding in writing to the student.

STEP 4--- If the student still contests the grade after the previous steps, the student may present a Formal Grade Appeal form to the academic Vice President or designee who serves as steward of the Grade Appeal Procedure. Copies of the written materials and petitions presented at the previous steps, along with any written responses received from the program or division, must be included with the petition at the time of submissions. This step must be completed within five (5) calendar days of the decision made in Step 3.

The academic Vice President will appoint a Division Chair from another division to chair the Grade Appeal Committee and forward the formal grade appeal along with any supportive materials to the Grade Appeal Committee for review.  The committee members shall review the petition and the supportive materials.  A formal hearing will then be scheduled by the chair.

The Grade Appeal Committee consists of three to five (3-5) faculty members from within or outside the division who have sole discretion to vote.  The chair will also work with the student to assign an employee from Student Services to support and be an advocate for them prior to and during the hearing.  The faculty member for which the grade is being appealed, will also be assigned their Division Chair to support and be an advocate for them prior to and during the hearing.

GRADE APPEALS COMMITTEE HEARING:

If a hearing is convened, first the student and then the instructor will each have the opportunity to present their cases orally and to present any other written materials they deem appropriate. The Grade Appeal Committee members shall have the opportunity to ask questions to both the student and instructor. At the end of the meeting, the student and then the instructor shall be given the opportunity for brief closing statements.

The Chair of the Committee should inform the student, the instructor, the Division Chair, and the academic Vice President of the committee’s decision in writing with in ten (10) calendar days of the hearing. If a majority of the Committee agrees that the grade should be changed, the Chair will notify the academic Vice President of the Committee’s decision. Otherwise, the grade shall remain as recorded. The decision of the Grade Appeals Committee shall be final. Per decision of the committee the faculty member is expected to change the grade. When the appeal process concludes, all documentation is forwarded to the Registrar Office, who will maintain such documentation in accordance with appropriate retention schedules.

The only option to appeal the final decision of the Grade Appeals Committee comes with any new or additional information that was not available or known at the time of the hearing. This information, and all preceding information, shall be presented to the academic Vice President for review and determination.