Grades

Grades

Grading measures the ability of students to master specific objectives within a given course. A grade is based upon the level of performance in examinations, term papers, reports, class discussion and the final examination in the course or project. Odessa College uses the following grade and grade point system:

The following grades are not used for GPA calculations:

Note: If a course is repeated, the latest grade will be computed in the GPA if the student requests this option in the Records Office. Some schools to which the student might transfer may not exclude the first grade when calculating the student’s GPA.

Students are expected to be familiar with their scholastic status at all times. Student Success Coaches are available and will confer with students during and at the end of the semester concerning unsatisfactory work. Such conferences should help determine the cause of unsatisfactory work, and the counseling staff will advise students on ways to improve their performance.

Honor Roll

Students making a grade of “A” in all courses during long semesters are listed on the President’s Honor Roll. Students who make no grade lower than “B” are listed on the Dean’s Honor Roll. Both full-time and half-time (6 semester hours or more) students are eligible for academic honors. Honor roll status appears on the official and unofficial transcripts for those students who meet the requirements. Additionally, the honor rolls are printed each term in the Odessa American newspaper, and the honor rolls are listed on the OC website.

Grade Replacement

All courses, including repeated courses, in which a student is registered on the official day of record, or census day, will be listed on the official transcript and will appear on the student’s permanent academic record. If a course is repeated, the student must request that the last grade earned will be the grade calculated in the cumulative grade point average. This is not an automatic process. Withdrawals and incompletes, however, may not be used to replace an earned grade.

Incomplete Grades

The conditional grade of “I” indicates that a student has not completed the required work for a course. This grade may be given only if (1) the student has passed all work completed, and (2) he/she has completed a minimum of 75% of the required coursework. This grade is given when circumstances beyond a student’s control prevent him/her from completing the work for a course by the end of the scheduled semester.

A grade of “I” will only be assigned when the conditions for completions have been discussed and agreed upon by the instructor and the student. This agreement is to be documented by the instructor, who will provide a copy to the student. The final decision as to the student’s eligibility for a grade of “I” rests with the instructor. If a grade of “I” is given, the student does NOT need to register for the course for the next semester. He/she must simply complete the work and submit it to the instructor for grading no later than the week of final exams in the subsequent long semester. A student may not withdraw from a course after being given a grade of “I.” If the work is not completed and submitted to the instructor by the end of the long semester following the semester/session in which the grade was given, the grade of “I” will be changed to an “F.” This grade cannot be contested or changed.

The instructor must submit to the Records Office a Request for a Grade Change in order for the grade of “I” to be updated.

An “E” grade may be given when an instructor wishes to indicate that you have made progress in the math studio. An “E” grade is non-punitive and is not calculated in your GPA. An “E” grade indicates that you participated in a course, but were unable to do C-level or passing work that would qualify you to enroll in the next math course. The “E” grade indicates below college skill level work, but shows that you participated in and attended the class and attempted to do the work in the course.

Students on Federal Financial Aid should check with the Financial Aid Office concerning “E” grade(s) and any impact they have on benefits.

A “Z” grade is restricted to modular courses and noncourse based options (NCBOs). This grade indicates the course or NCBO was not completed and no other grade is assessed. For modular courses, enrollment by the student in a subsequent semester is required. The grade of “Z” will be given only if students have completed the minimum number of modules, as designated in the course syllabus.

Changes or Contested Grades

All grade changes must be requested and made no later than the end of the long semester following the one in which the original grade was assigned. Students who wish to contest a grade from an instructor must address the issue with the instructor, department chair, dean, then vice president for instruction, in that order no later than the end of the long semester following the one in which the contested grade was assigned. Any change of grade must be documented and submitted to the Records Office using the Grade Change Request form available on the Records Office website. Any grade change request received by Records Office will be processed in a timely manner.