Policy 3.08

Part 1. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define acceptable grades for students attending credit classes at Minneapolis College.

Part 2. Definitions

The definitions contained in this section are applicable throughout Minneapolis College's policy and procedures.

College-Level Courses: "College-level courses" are courses with a course number of 1000 or higher.

Departmental Dean: "Departmental dean" means the dean of academic affairs assigned as administrator for that department.

Developmental Education Courses: As defined in Policy 3.06, Part 2.

Instructor: "Instructor" means the faculty member assigned to teach a given course and evaluate a student's performance.

Letter Grade: "Letter grade" means a grade of A, B, C, D, or F.

Student: "Student" means an individual who is enrolled in a class or program at Minneapolis College.

The College: "The College" means Minneapolis Community and Technical College or Minneapolis College.

Part 3. Grade Determination

Subpart A. Evaluation of Performance

Evaluation of a student's performance is determined by the instructor of the course and cannot be appealed except as allowed in Part 8 of this policy. When the request is submitted in writing with reasonable advance notice of five business days, a student has a right to receive an assessment of their progress in the course from their instructor.

Subpart B. Grading Criteria

The instructor shall establish the criteria used to evaluate a student's performance and communicate the criteria to the student in a written syllabus.

Subpart C. Amendments to Grading Criteria

The instructor has the right to alter the written grading criteria if the alteration:

• Is more generous;
• Does not disadvantage a student; and
• Is communicated in writing to all students.

Subpart D. Grade Submission

The instructor of a course shall submit a grade as provided in parts 3, 4, or 5 of this policy for each student who is not auditing or withdrawn from the course. The grades must be submitted by the deadline and in the manner designated by the Registrar's Office each semester.

Subpart E. Grade Changes

An instructor may change a grade only if there has been an error in the computation, transcription, or reporting of the grade. After final grades are posted, changes may be made based on additional work completed by a student in the incomplete process outlined in Part 7.

Part 4. Letter Grades

Subpart A. Grade Option

The instructor of a student shall evaluate the student relative to the established expectations for the course using one of the following letter grades.

• Grade A. A grade of "A" indicates superior performance by the student. It is equal to 4.0-grade points per credit in the GPA calculation and counts as successfully earned and completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade B. A grade of "B" indicates above-average performance by the student. It is equal to 3.0-grade points per credit in the GPA calculation and counts as successfully earned and completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade C. A grade of "C" indicates average performance by the student. It is equal to 2.0-grade points per credit in the GPA calculation and counts as successfully earned and completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade D. A grade of "D" indicates below-average performance by the student. It is equal to 1.0-grade point per credit in the GPA calculation; counts as successfully earned and completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade F. A grade of "F" indicates inadequate performance by the student, is considered "earned" and is equal to 0.0-grade points per credit in the GPA calculation; counts as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.

Part 5. Pass/No Credit and Pass/Fail Grades

Subpart A. Grade Options

The instructor of a student who is taking a course for a Pass/No Credit grade or a Pass/Fail grade shall submit a grade using that basis for each student who has not withdrawn from the course.

• Grade P. A grade of "P" or passing indicates that a student's performance was adequate relative to the established expectations for the course. “P” grades do not influence GPA calculations, but count as successful completion for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade NC. A grade of "NC" or no credit indicates that a student's performance was inadequate relative to the established expectations for the course. “NC” grades do not influence GPA calculations, but count as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Grade F. A grade of “F,” as defined in Part 4, Subpart A, indicates inadequate performance by the student, is considered "earned" and is equal to 0.0-grade points per credit in the GPA calculation; counts as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.

Part 6. Other Transcript Notations

Other notations on student’s transcripts include honors (H), incomplete (I), withdrawal (W), auditing (AU), and missing grade or in progress (Z).

• Honors (H). Accompanies a letter grade to signify that the course was completed as an Honors Option course. Does not influence GPA calculations or measures of academic and financial aid satisfactory academic progress.
• Incomplete (I). A grade of Incomplete is a temporary grade issued when the instructor has a reasonable expectation that the student can complete unfinished course requirements. An “I” does not influence GPA calculations but counts as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Withdrawal (W). Indicates a student-initiated or an administrative withdrawal has been reported after the first five days of the semester up to the 80th percent point of the semester (this time period is adjusted for classes that do not meet the full length of the semester. A “W” does not influence GPA calculations but counts as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.
• Auditing (AU). 0-grade points per credit. Audited courses are not given college credit, are not eligible for financial aid or VA benefits, and cannot be used to satisfy graduation requirements, and are excluded from GPA and the evaluation of Satisfactory Academic Progress completion rate requirements. The grade of "Audit" is selected by the student during registration.
• Z – Denotes a class in progress or no grade reported. A “Z” does not influence GPA calculations but counts as attempted/not completed for the purpose of measuring both academic and financial aid satisfactory progress.

Part 7. Selection of a Grade Method

When there is more than one grade method option for a course, students may change their grade method until the withdraw deadline of the course, as indicated on the course schedule.

Part 8. Assignment of an Incomplete

Subpart A. Instructor Discretion

At the discretion of the instructor and in accordance with the criteria in subpart C, below, a student may be granted an incomplete when the instructor believes there is a reasonable expectation that the student can complete the work for a course.

Subpart B. Completion of Coursework

The instructor and student should identify in writing expectations for completing the work. The deadline to complete coursework is determined by the instructor, but maybe no later than eight weeks into the next semester, not including the summer session. Upon the completion of the coursework, the instructor is responsible for communicating the grade change to the Office of the Registrar.  If the instructor has not submitted a letter grade by the end of the eighth week of the semester following the Incomplete, a grade of "F" or "NC", as applicable, will be entered by the Registrar's Office. If the student is enrolled in coursework during the semester following the grade of Incomplete and the conversion of the incomplete to a grade of "F" or "NC" results in the student not meeting the minimum requirements of Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy 4.13, the student will be allowed to complete the enrolled coursework and will not be placed on academic probation or suspension until the end of the current term.

Subpart C. Criteria

• Clinicals and some courses with laboratory components are not eligible for incompletes. All work and all hours for these courses must be completed by the end of the semester in which the student is registered.
• The student must present the instructor with a documentable and legitimate reason for not being able to complete the course by the end of the semester in which the student is registered for the course.
• The student must have completed at least 75% of the course requirements up to the point where the request for an incomplete is made.
• The student must be earning a passing grade in the course at the time that the request for an incomplete is made.
• The student must be able to complete all remaining requirements of the course without direct instruction or supervision.

Part 9. Dean's List

Subpart A. Criteria

A student who completes 9 or more college-level credits in a semester with a semester GPA of 3.0 or greater will be included on the Dean’s List. A letter of acknowledgment will be sent to each student on the list.

Subpart B. Excluded Credits

The following credits will not be included to determine eligibility for academic honors:

• Developmental education and English as a second language credits;
• Credits taken for a pass or fail grade;
• Credits taken for audit;
• Credits from which the student withdrew; and
• Credits that are currently in incomplete status.

Part 10. Appealing Grades

Subpart A. Conditions for Appeal to Departmental Dean

A student who disagrees with a final grade awarded for a class may appeal the final grade to the departmental dean within six weeks after the date that final grades are posted only if the student has first appealed to the instructor and one of the following two conditions applies:

• An error was made in calculating the grade; or
• The instructor deviated from the evaluation criteria established by the syllabus for the course.

Subpart B. Final Determination

A student may appeal the decision of the departmental dean to the Vice President for Academic Affairs within five (5) business days of receipt of the decision of the dean. The decision of the Vice President is final and cannot be appealed under any circumstances.

Part 11. Academic Forgiveness

Subpart A. Definition

Students may have their previous academic performance at Minneapolis College exempted from grade point average.

Subpart B. Conditions for Academic Forgiveness

• The option to petition for Academic Forgiveness is available only to students who have not registered for courses at the college for a minimum of five consecutive years.
• The student may submit a petition requesting Academic Forgiveness to the Registrar upon successful completion of 12 credits of 1000 level or higher courses. Successful completion is defined as earning a minimum of 2.0 in all coursework attempted to meet the 12-credit threshold to allow a petition for Academic Forgiveness to be submitted.
• Students who have already earned any MCC, MVTI, MTI, or Minneapolis College certificate, diploma, or degree are not eligible to petition for Academic Forgiveness.
• Transfer institutions, and selective admissions programs, may choose not to honor the Academic Forgiveness granted by Minneapolis College. Academic Forgiveness applies only to Minneapolis College.

Subpart C. Terms and Criteria for Academic Forgiveness

• A student may submit a petition for Academic Forgiveness only once.
• All grades and credits for all courses attempted during the consecutive academic terms for which Academic Forgiveness has been approved will not be used in calculating the cumulative GPA that is printed on transcripts and in determining whether graduation requirements have been met.
• Academic Forgiveness does not extend to financial aid. All credits and all grades attempted will be included when determining satisfactory academic progress for academic and financial aid purposes.
• Students must meet the academic program graduation requirements in place at the time of their readmission.
• The student transcript will include a statement indicating Academic Forgiveness. All forgiven courses will remain on the academic record.

The student may only request forgiveness for grades received after 1995.

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Date of Adoption: Not currently documented

Date of Implementation (if different from from adoption date):  N/A

Date of Last Amended: 7/29/2021

Date and Subject of Revisions: 7/29/2021 (Comprehensive), 1/23/2015