Grading Information

Grading Information for All Schools

Grading and GPA: Most courses offer evaluation of student performance according to the grade and the quality point system listed in the “Grade and Transcript Key.” In some courses, students will receive a pass/fail grade instead of a letter grade. Grades submitted by faculty on Self-Service are final grades. Faculty members should discuss in each course the criteria and evaluation system used for grading. No grade changes are accepted after graduation. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure they understand the expectations of course requirements and grading procedures.

To compute a GPA, the student may use the key to the transcript to translate letter grades into quality points (for example, a three-credit course with a grade of “B” [3.0] is worth nine quality points), add all quality points earned, and divide the total by the number of credits attempted. The grades “P” (pass), “I” (incomplete), “W” (withdrawal), “AW” (administrative withdrawal), and “NA” (never attended) are not included, but “F” (failing) is always included in calculating the grade point average, except when the course is repeated.

CLAS Students: Two elective courses per academic year may be taken for a pass/fail rather than for a letter grade. The student must request authorization from the instructor to take the course on a pass/fail basis no later than the close of add/drop. The request may be granted or denied at the discretion of the course instructor. The pass/fail option can only be used with courses that are considered "free electives" (course credits not specially applied to a program of study or general education requirements) and the terms of the option for pass/fail grading cannot be retracted once they are submitted.

Veteran’s Administration Beneficiaries may take courses on a pass/fail grading basis only if pass/fail grading is the sole grading option. If VA beneficiaries are given a choice between pass/fail and grades on the A-F scale, they should always choose grades on the A-F scale.

Graduate degree students at the master’s, certificate of advanced graduate study, or Ph.D. levels must earn a grade of “B-” or better in all core or required courses for the course to count toward degree requirements. A student must re-take core or required courses for which a grade of “C+” or below was earned.

Graduate students may earn a maximum of three (3) credits of “C+” grades in elective courses to apply the courses toward degree requirements. A grade of “C” or below in elective courses is considered a failing grade and will not be applicable toward degree requirements. Elective courses may be repeated or another elective course may be added as a substitute. All grades will be recorded and appear on a transcript.

If a required course is failed, the course must be repeated or an equivalent course taken. No credit is accrued with a grade of "F". If a student repeats the same course, both grades will be recorded on the official transcript, but only the second grade will be used to compute the cumulative GPA.

Final Grades: Students may view their final grades via Self-Service. at the close of each semester. Grades are available in Self-Service to students in real-time, after the faculty member has entered them electronically. FERPA does not permit the posting or displaying of student grades.

Grade Submission: Faculty members submit grades via Self-Service at lesley.edu/selfservice to the Office of the University Registrar. Grades are due within 7 days after the final end date of the semester or term. All grade submission deadlines can be found on the academic calendar at lesley.edu/students/academic-resources/academic-calendars.

Grade Changes: Once final grades are submitted to the Office of the University Registrar they can only be changed by submitting the change of grade form available to faculty on the Provost's web page. Questions regarding grade changes should be submitted to the Registrar's Officer via the Support Hub at support.lesley.edu

Repeating Courses

A student may repeat any course once unless the student has earned a B- or greater in this course. A student will accrue no credit for courses in which the student receives a grade of "F" and a student will receive credit for a course only once. If a student repeats a course, both grades will be recorded on the student’s permanent academic transcript, but only the most recent (not necessarily the highest) grade will be used to compute the student’s GPA.

Note: Yellow Ribbon, GI Bill®, or other students receiving veteran's benefits are not necessarily eligible to repeat courses that were previously passed. These students should check with the University's VA Certifying Official, Thomas Graves (tgraves@lesley.edu or 617.349.8781), before electing to repeat a course.

Auditing Classes

Students who wish to audit classes (no grade/no credit) may do so with the following stipulations:

• Students may change their status from credit to audit by the end of the add/drop period;
• Students who wish to change from audit to credit must do so by the end of the add/drop period and must pay the balance of the tuition cost at that time;
• Classes taken as audits may not be applied toward degree or certificate requirements.

Requesting Transcripts

Students may request that an official transcript of their academic record be sent to the recipient(s) of their choice via the National Student Clearinghouse at studentclearinghouse.org or view an unofficial transcript online through their Self-Service account.

Grade and Transcript Key

To compute their GPA, the student should use the table above to translate their letter grades into credit points, add all credit points, and divide the total by the number of credits completed. In computing grade point averages, Pass (P) is not included, but a Fail (F) is always included except when the course has been repeated.

* “I” followed by a grade signifies a prior incomplete which has subsequently been graded   This is only used for undergraduate courses in Fall 1996-Spring 2013. Grade point scale above applies.

* If a student repeats a course in which a grade other than "F" was received, both grades remain on the official transcript, but only the second grade will be used to compute the cumulative GPA.

Fail (F):  If a required course is failed, the course must be repeated or an equivalent course taken. No credit is accrued with a grade of "F." If a student repeats the same course, both grades will be recorded on the official transcript, but only the second grade will be used to compute the cumulative GPA.

Pass (P):  This grade applies only to courses that are offered on a pass/fail basis and to courses in which the student elects the pass/fail option. Minimum passing grades vary among the schools. To earn a grade of "Pass" at the graduate level one must receive a B- or better. At the undergraduate level one must earn a C- or better for courses taken as pass/fail.

Incomplete (I):  Students who have successfully completed a majority of course requirements (as determined by instructor) but are unable to complete all requirements due to extenuating circumstances may request a temporary grade of “I” (incomplete). The course instructor will determine whether a student is eligible for an Incomplete. Incomplete grades are not guaranteed.

Withdrawal (W):  Students who withdraw from a course after the add/drop period terminates will receive a “W” grade on their transcripts. Students may not withdraw from a standard 15-week course during the last three weeks of the semester. Students may not withdraw from a term-based 8-week course during the last two weeks of the term.

Administrative Withdrawal (AW): This is an administrative grade assigned to students who have attended no more than the first two classes, but who have not officially dropped or withdrawn from the course. Students who stop attending after the second class, but who fail to withdraw by the published University withdrawal deadline must be assigned a letter grade. If student conduct in class rises to a level where it interferes with the ability of the faculty member to teach, the Dean of the College reserves the right to administratively withdraw, with prior written notice, any student who interferes with the teaching/learning process. The grade "AW" is recorded on the transcript, but the student's grade point average is not affected.

Never Attended (NA): “NA” is an administrative grade assigned to students who are officially registered for the course and whose name appears on the grade roster, but who have never attended class. The grade “NA” is recorded on the transcript, but the student’s grade point average is not affected. Beginning fall of 2022 “NA” grades are no longer recorded on a student’s transcript for non-attendance marked by faculty.

Still in Progress (SIP):  An “SIP” grade is a placeholder grade for courses extending beyond the semester or term for which the course is scheduled, such as thesis, research, and field study. The grade “SIP” is recorded on the transcript, but the student’s grade point average is not affected. “SIP” grades are converted to final grades after the course sequence concludes with a final grade.

Incomplete Grade Policy - Undergraduate

Incomplete (I): Students may be eligible for an incomplete grade (I) if they experience serious or unavoidable circumstances past the deadline to withdraw from the course and have satisfactorily completed a substantial part of the course work as determined by the instructor. Examples of such circumstances include verifiable cases of illness, death or serious illness in the family, significant accident or other grave circumstances beyond a student’s control. Students must speak with the instructor before making a formal request and may be asked to provide documentation of their circumstances. The course instructor will determine: a) whether a student is eligible for an Incomplete; b) what outstanding work the student is able to complete; c) and when the outstanding course requirements are due.

Requests for an Incomplete grade must be formalized through a Contract for Completion of Incomplete Coursework available on the Office of the University Registrar webpage. Remaining course requirements must be completed in accordance with the Incomplete Contract. 

Steps in Process

The deadline by which students must submit outstanding course requirements is at the end of the fifth week of the subsequent semester/term. Fall term 1 incomplete grades must be changed by the grading deadline in the Academic Calendar for fall term 2 courses). 

Course instructors may set a deadline for the completion and submission of outstanding course requirements that is earlier than this final date. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all work is completed and submitted within the established deadlines.

Faculty must grade the submitted work and change the student’s grade from an I to the grade earned by mid-semester so the student can make informed decisions about their course selection for the following semester. Grades are changed via a Grade Change dynamic form.

If the course is a requirement and a passing grade was not earned, the student must repeat the course at the current tuition rate to earn a passing grade. The policy regarding incomplete grades remains in effect regardless of the student’s withdrawal or leave of absence status. No grade changes are accepted after graduation. Students who receive two or more successive incomplete grades will be subject to an academic review to determine eligibility for continued enrollment.

In those exceptional cases in which a student wishes to request an extension of the incomplete course contract beyond the original time frame, the student must submit an Incomplete Course Contract Extension form. The extension request must be submitted before the due date on the original incomplete course contract. Extensions are not guaranteed, and extension requests submitted after the original deadline will not be reviewed. Further extensions will not be considered. The only exception to this policy may be made in regard to a course or set of courses offered in an unusually designed program that requires a unique treatment of “incomplete” grades for the success of the program. In such cases, the Dean of the school/college, in which the course resides, must submit a written petition to the Provost justifying an exception to this policy and offering a proposal for resolving the “incomplete” grade. The petition must be submitted to the Provost prior to the scheduling of the course or courses.

Undergraduate Grade Monitoring

Early Alerts

LA+D and CLAS: Early Alerts are required for all students who are at-risk by the 3rd week of semester-based classes, or the 1st week of term-based classes. Faculty members submit the early alert via Advise, Lesley’s online retention system.

Mid-Semester Evaluations

LA+D and CLAS: Mid-semester evaluation forms are recommended for all students and are required for students with a grade-to-date of C- or below by the 7th week of semester-based classes, or the 3rd week of term-based classes. Faculty members submit mid-semester evaluations electronically via Advise to notify students of poor progress in their course(s).

Mid-semester evaluations do not appear on the student's permanent academic record. Copies of the report are automatically sent electronically to the students and their advisors.

Midterm Grading

LA+D: Students receive midterm grades if the academic status at midterm is C- or lower. Students can check midterm grades using Self-Service. Some LA+D faculty post grades for all academic performance at midterm but the general rule is that no midterm grade means academic performance is satisfactory at the semester midpoint.

CLAS: It is recommended that CLAS faculty post midterm grades.

Grade Grievance Policy

Lesley is committed to delivering quality academic services, including fair grading to all students. We recognize that day-to-day problems affecting students in their classes will normally be resolved between the students and the instructor. Such matters shall not be deemed grievances.

The Grade Grievance Policy provides students with a mechanism to appeal grades which they believe constitute an unfair or incorrect application of the grading policy as outlined by the faculty member in their syllabus, or are the result of a perceived lack of requested reasonable accommodation for a documented disability.

This grievance procedure will be instituted only after the student has made attempts to resolve the issue through informal discussion with the faculty member, but still believes the grading outcome to be unacceptable. In the event that the student has made every reasonable effort to contact the faculty member for an informal discussion of the grade, either in person or on the telephone, but has been unable to do so, then the student may proceed to Level I.

All records related to this policy will be maintained in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences or the College of Art and Design Dean's Office for a period of seven (7) years following the resolution of the grievance. The case records of the committee remain confidential under the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, commonly known as the Buckley Amendment.

Level I – Filing of Written Complaint Within thirty (30) calendar days of the beginning of the semester following the one in which the student received the disputed final grade, the student shall present a written complaint to the department chair who supervises the course instructor, and to the course instructor. The written complaint must include the title of the course, the dates of the course, the grade received, the reasons why the student believes the grade is incorrect, and the outcome the student seeks.

The student should attach with the complaint any course-related materials that support the complaint.

Level II – Third Party Facilitation Upon receipt of a formal written complaint grieving a grade, the department chair will ascertain that an informal meeting between the student and faculty member has taken place, or that reasonable efforts by the student to discuss the issue formally with the faculty member have been unsuccessful. When this requirement has been met, the department chair will convene a meeting with the student and the instructor as quickly as possible, but no later than fourteen (14) calendar days, excluding University vacation days, after receiving the complaint. If the instructor or student is unavailable to meet on campus, then the meeting will take place via telephone conference. The student may be accompanied at this meeting with the faculty advisor or another faculty member of the student's choice who will serve in a non-participatory role.

During this meeting, the role of the department chair is to act as a facilitator who may make recommendations, but does not render a decision. As a facilitator, the department chair will review the written complaint and supporting documents and will work with the student and the instructor in an effort to resolve the dispute. If the basis of the grade grievance is that requested reasonable accommodation was not made for the student with a documented disability, the Coordinator of Disability Services for the college or a representative from the Center for Academic Achievement, as appropriate, will also participate in this meeting. Within seven (7) days from the conclusion of this meeting the department chair or Academic Dean will reconfirm in writing to the student and faculty member the outcome of the Level II meeting. If a satisfactory resolution has not been reached at this level, then the student may initiate Level III of the process.

Note: The department chair who supervises the faculty member serves as facilitator.

Level III – Grade Grievance Committee The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences maintain the Grade Grievance Committee for issues that deal with grade grievances.  The College of Art and Design maintains the Academic Review Committee.

If a student seeks to continue the grievance process after Level II, then within seven (7) calendar days after receiving the written confirmation of the outcome of the Level II meeting, excluding University vacation days, they shall request in writing that the department chair notify the Academic Dean.

The student's written request should also include a brief description of the complaint and of the Level I outcome and the Level II outcome. The department chair forwards the student's letter and any materials relevant to the appeal to the Associate Dean within one week. A Grade Grievance Committee is formed by three people from the respective College. In conjunction with the department chair (non-related case), the Academic Dean appoints a faculty member. One person (faculty/administrator with faculty rank) will be appointed by the student. The third person will be a department chair (non-related case). If the basis for the dispute is that a requested reasonable accommodation was not made for a student with a documented disability, then the Coordinator of Disability Services or a representative from the Center for Academic Achievement, as appropriate, will serve on the committee in a non-voting capacity.

The Associate Dean will promptly send the written complaint and supporting documents to the Grade Grievance Committee for distribution. The committee will review the submitted materials, take any other investigatory action it deems appropriate, and render a recommendation by majority vote. The Grade Grievance Committee will make every effort to complete its work within thirty (30) calendar days of the date of the initiation of Level III, and no later than the end of the semester following the one in which the grade was received. Along with its recommendations, the committee will produce a written report setting forth its investigatory process, its reasoning, and the facts upon which it based its recommendation. The recommendation(s) and summary will be sent to the student and the faculty member. During the review process the student and faculty member agree to a mutually satisfactory resolution of the grievance and the process concludes.

Level IV – Appeal to Dean The student and/or faculty member may appeal the recommendations of the committee to the Dean within seven (7) days of receipt of the committee's decision. The request for this additional review shall be in writing and should include the reasons why the student or faculty member believes the committee erred in its recommendations.

The Dean will review the materials submitted to the committee, the committee's recommendations, and its written summary. Within fourteen (14) calendar days, the Dean will inform the student and faculty member in writing of their decision, with copies to the committee. In the event that the Dean makes a final decision that is different from the committee's recommendations, then they will inform the committee in writing of the reasons for their decision. If, subsequent to the final decision, a student or faculty member wishes to include a written statement for the file, they may do so. The Dean's decision is final and binding within Lesley University.

The case records of the Grade Grievance Committee remain confidential under the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, commonly known as the Buckley Amendment.