Grading Information

Grading Information

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.

Undergraduate Students enrolled in Education, Liberal Arts and Business, and Mental Health and Well-Being: 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 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 Registrar they can only be changed by submitting the change of grade form available to faculty on the Provost's SharePoint site. Questions regarding grade changes should be submitted to the Office of the Registrar 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 cumulative 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.

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 academic levels. 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 Vice Provost of the Academic Program 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. If a final grade is not recorded after the course sequence concludes and no extensions are granted, the SIP grade will be converted to an F.

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 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. Term-based courses must be changed by the grading deadline listed on the academic calendar. If students do not meet these deadlines, they will receive an “F” grade for the course.

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 Vice Provost of the Academic Program, 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.

Incomplete Grade Policy - Graduate Students

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.

An incomplete grade request must be 1) initiated by the student before the end of the semester/ term in which the course is taken or by a date set by the instructor in the course syllabus, 2) agreed to by the instructor, and 3) committed to in writing by completing, signing, and filing a Contract for Completion of Incomplete Coursework (Incomplete Contract). Students should be prepared to provide documentation of their circumstances when submitting a request. Incomplete Contracts are available online through the Office of the Registrar forms webpage.

Remaining course requirements must be completed in accordance with the Incomplete Contract. Course instructors will set deadlines for the completion and submission of outstanding course requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all work is completed and submitted within the deadlines set by the instructor which may be earlier than the University’s semester end deadline.

In all cases, the incomplete grade must be changed no later than the grading deadline for the subsequent semester/term (e.g., fall 2023 incomplete grades must be changed by the posted grading deadline in the Academic Calendar for spring 2024 courses; fall term 1 incomplete grades must be changed by the posted grading deadline in the Academic Calendar for fall term 2 courses.) The changing of an “I” to an academic grade is relayed from the instructor to the Office of the Registrar by submitting the change of grade form available to faculty on the Provost's SharePoint site.

An “I” grade that is not resolved within the time frames indicated above will automatically become a grade of “F” (Failing), with the exception of incomplete grades assigned to PhD Educational Studies, PhD Counseling Psychology, and PhD Expressive Therapies students, which will remain “I” unless completed.

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 may 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 Vice Provost of the academic area 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

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

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

Art and Design: Students receive midterm grades if the academic status at midterm is C- or lower. Students can check midterm grades using Self-Service. Some Art and Design 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.

It is recommended that all faculty post midterm grades.