Revised "Incomplete" Grade Policy
Revised Incomplete Policy (Academic Regulation 17) Takes Effect Fall 2007
Changes in Effect for Fall 2007 Grade Submittals:
On December 7, 2006, the Oregon State University Faculty Senate voted to approve the change to Academic Regulation 17 governing the assignment of an incomplete “I” grade. This change will be implemented starting with the processing of grades for the Fall 2007 term. The revision achieved the following outcomes:
- Confirm that a student may request that an incomplete (for a course that has not been completed) be granted by an instructor, if the reasons for the incomplete are acceptable to the instructor, and so long as the student is passing the course at the time the request was made.
- The incomplete that is filed by the instructor at the end of the term must include an alternate/default grade to which the incomplete grade defaults, if the student does not make an effort to resolve the incomplete course work within one year of recording the incomplete. Examples of the new incomplete grades are (I/A, I/A-, I/B+, I/B, I/B-, I/C+, I/C, I/C-, I/D+, I/D, I/D-, I/F, I/P, and I/N). Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade options are converted after the submission of the “I/Alternate Grade” is determined by the instructor. For example, if the student has requested an incomplete and has opted for an S/U grade, the instructor will submit an “I/Normal Grade” (e.g., I/B+) at the end of the term. The Office of the Registrar will subsequently convert the “I/Normal Grade” to an “I/S” or “I/U” in accordance with the grading option chosen by the student.
- The calculation of the Alternate/Default Grade is determined by the work to be completed for the course over the entire term. For example, while a student may be passing at the time the incomplete request is granted, the Alternate/Default Grade is NOT what the student has earned up to the point of the incomplete request. The Alternate/Default Grade is what grade the student would have earned if the instructor includes what was completed and if the student did no more work from the point of the incomplete request to the end of the term.
Example: A student has earned a “B” through the eighth week of the term, but requests an incomplete for the rest of the term. The remaining work would comprise 50% of the final grade. Without completing the remaining work the earned grade would have been an “F”. The student, consequently, would have an “I/F” filed by the faculty/instructor at the end of the term when grades are reported to the Office of the Registrar.
Outcomes:
- If the student does not complete the assigned work within one year’s time or within the time allotted by the faculty/instructor, the instructor can change the grade to an “F” or the grade would default to an “F” after a year.
- If the student completes the work, the faculty would replace the incomplete with whatever grade the student earned as part of the incomplete.
Impact on Degree Conferrals:
Another aspect of the revised Incomplete Policy in Academic Regulation 17 affects the degree audit completed for students who have applied to graduate from Oregon State University. Beginning Fall 2007, all pending applications for graduation will include a review of any incomplete grades with an alternate/default grade. If an “I/Alternate Grade” is currently outstanding at the time a pending graduate’s file is being reviewed for graduation (which happens after grades are processed for the term in which the student is graduating), that review will take into account the automatic default of the incomplete to the Alternate/Default Grade. This automatic default may impact a student’s ability to graduate, if by its inclusion, the student’s GPA (major GPA or institutional GPA) or other major/institutional requirements are altered. This encourages the student to ensure that all “I/Alternate Grades” are resolved with their instructor prior to the last day of Dead Week for the term in which they are graduating. Note: Academic Regulation 17 specifically states: “Under no circumstances shall a student who earns an A-F grade or an N or U grade have their grade changed retroactively to an I grade.”
Click here for Frequently Asked Questions
Click here for sample Contract for Completion of I Grade
Click here for AR 17
Updated 11/27/07
