2000-1-4 Grades & Academic Averages

Policy

1. A final grade will be recorded in the student's record for each course in which a student is registered beyond the Registration Deadline.
2. Once a grade is finalized - the grade has been transmitted by the Director, Institutional Intelligence & Registrar to the student and the grade appeal period has passed - the grade is permanent and cannot be removed from or changed in the student's record, except through the Academic Forgiveness process contained within this policy.
3. The exceptions to the above statement are temporary grades (I, NG, IP, X) which, after the specified period of time, must be replaced by a permanent grade and those instances in which the Director, Institutional Intelligence & Registrar determines an administrative error resulted in the recording of an erroneous grade.
4. The following grades may be issued for a student in a course.
   1. Earned grades reflect the evaluated learning of the student in a course.
   2. Awarded grades reflect a status in a course, or circumstances affecting the completion of a course.
   3. Temporary grades are issued for a limited period of time and must be replaced by an earned or awarded grade.

Grade Definitions and Rules

5. The following statements define the grades that may be issued for a course and the requirements and conditions that circumscribe them.

A+ to F

These earned grades are determined by the teacher of the course based on an assessment of the student's completion of the course learning outcomes.

P

An earned grade for having achieved the course learning outcomes in a course in which the student is assessed as either having achieved or not achieved the outcomes.

NP

An earned grade for having failed to achieve the course learning outcomes in a course in which the student is assessed as either having achieved or not achieved the outcomes.

TC

A Transfer Credit may be awarded for a Lambton College course on the basis of a course(s) that the student successfully completed at another post-secondary institution and that is determined to be substantially equivalent in content to the Lambton College course.

The student must have achieved a grade of C, or equivalent mark, or better on the course and completed the course within the past seven years, for the course to be considered for recognition with a TC. Some programs may require a higher grade or a more current completion for the course to be considered

For registration with a TC grade, see the Registration (2000-1-2) policy.

AS

A grade awarded for a course on the basis of an assessment of the student by Lambton College (eg. experiential learning evaluation, successful completion of a challenge test, etc.) through which the student demonstrates achievement of the course learning outcomes.

AG

The Aegrotat grade may be awarded to a student whose performance, over a significant portion of, and number of outcomes in the course, was fully satisfactory but where, because of significant extenuating personal reasons, such as illness, the student is unable to complete the course.  (The grade is not intended for instances in which the student misses tests, assignments, etc. during the course.)  The grade may be awarded if the Dean is confident that the student's attainment of course learning outcomes is largely complete, and success in subsequent courses and attainment of program learning outcomes are not impaired by the awarding of credit for the course in question.

The Aegrotat grade carries no grade point value and so is not included in the calculation of the Grade Point Average. The course in which the Aegrotat grade has been awarded may be counted toward program requirements.

The student requesting an Aegrotat grade must provide sufficient and all requested documentation to the Dean.

This grade is awarded by the Dean of the student's program, in consultation with the Director, Institutional Intelligence & Registrar, in only the most exceptional circumstances.

EX

A grade awarded where extraordinary circumstances prevent a student from undertaking a course and exemption from the course is deemed non-prejudicial to the completion of the academic program and graduation from the program as determined by the program Dean. The student must be registered in the course with this status no later than the Registration Deadline.

W

A grade awarded to a student who withdraws from a course after the Registration Deadline and before the Withdrawal Deadline.

No academic penalty is attached to this grade and no credit or grade point is associated with the grade.

TM

A grade awarded to a student who was withdrawn from a course on disciplinary grounds due to a breach of the Student Code of Conduct.

AU

An awarded grade reflecting the student's status in the course.  The audit status permits the student full access to instructional materials and activities with the exception of the evaluation of the student's work and learning.

The student must be registered in the course with this status no later than the late registration deadline. No credit or grade point is associated with the audit status or grade.

NC

The grade entered in a student's academic record for a student registered in a non-credit course.

I

A student who has achieved, at the completion of a course, a grade that is one grade lower than the minimum required for program progression may be awarded a temporary I grade when, in the opinion of the teacher, sufficient course objectives to obtain the required pass or progression grade could be successfully completed within two weeks of the end of the course. The consideration of the I grade may be initiated by the teacher who will issue it or by the student who may petition the teacher for the I grade.

The grade is temporary and must be changed at the end of the two-week period of the next term to either the minimum required grade for pass or progression in the program, if sufficient additional learning objectives are achieved, or the original grade.

NG

A student who has been prevented from completing a course by the end of the term due to extenuating medical or personal reasons may apply to the program Dean for a No Grade (NG) to be awarded in order to allow additional time to complete the course.  The student must be prepared to provide documentation to support the request for the NG.  If, in the opinion of the Dean, the request is valid - the reasons are extenuating and legitimate, and the student has a reasonable probability of successfully completing the course - the NG grade will be entered in the student's record. The NG is a temporary grade and must be replaced by one of the earned grades by the end of the eighth week of the next term.  No penalty is associated with the NG and the permanent grade issued will reflect a normal assessment of the student's learning. If the course work is not completed or a grade submitted by the deadline, the NG will be converted to a grade of F.

IP

This temporary grade may be awarded when a student is unable to complete a field, clinical, practicum or co-op placement because of a problem originating with the agency or employer.  A student requesting, of the program Dean, an IP grade for a placement must provide documentation to support the request.  If, in the opinion of the Dean, the request is valid, the IP grade, which has no grade point value or penalty attached, will be awarded and recorded on the student's academic record. IP is a temporary grade and must be replaced by the end of the next program academic term with an earned grade or W.

X

The X grade is issued by the Director, Institutional Intelligence & Registrar when one of the other grades is due but not yet available at the time of issuance of the student's academic record. The grade is temporary and will be replaced as soon as possible with the appropriate grade.

U

The U grade is issued when one of the evaluation components of the course has not been finalized because of an academic integrity review of the component. The grade is temporary and will be replaced as soon as possible with the appropriate grade.

Calculation of Grade

6. In courses in which student work is graded numerically, the following conversion table will be used to calculate the final grade.

Minimum Grade for Passing and Progression

7. In Ontario College certificate, diploma, advanced diploma and graduate certificate programs, generally D is the minimum grade for passing a post-secondary course and being awarded credit for it. Some programs may have progression requirements that stipulate a higher grade for progression through or graduation from the program. See the Progression & Graduation from a Program (2000-1-5) policy. Such program requirements will be published in the course outline(s) and program documents.
8. In degree level courses, D is the minimum grade for passing and being awarded College credit. In degree programs, C- is the minimum grade for progression through and graduation from the program. Degree programs may establish a higher minimum grade for progression or graduation from the program. Such program requirements will be published in the relevant course outline(s) and program documents.
9. Apprenticeship: an apprentice is deemed to have successfully completed a level of training if the grade-point average for that session of in-school training is 2.00 or above, with no grades below C. A lower grade point average or grades below C indicate that the apprentice has not satisfactorily demonstrated achievement of learning outcomes, and so has not been successful in that level of in-school training.

Grade Point Average (GPA)

10. An academic average for a student is determined by the calculation of a grade-point average (GPA). The GPA is defined as the credit-hour weighted mean of the grade points earned by a student. Credit-hour is a numerical weight assigned to a course, typically reflecting the weekly course hours. Grade point is the numerical value assigned to a grade. See the above table for the grade points for each grade.
11. A Current GPA is calculated for the courses completed in the current (most recently completed) term. A Program GPA is calculated and includes all courses in the program of study completed to date. The grades and conversion table described herein become effective for courses begun on or after September 1, 2013. Program GPAs calculated after this date will be based on grades and grade points for each course in effect at the time of the student's completion of the course.
12. Grade Point Averages will be calculated and rounded to two decimal places.

The following example illustrates the calculation of a GPA.

Repeated Courses

13. If a student repeats a course, both (all) course registrations with associated grades will be shown in the student's academic record and on transcripts.
14. If a student repeats a course, the student's current or term GPA will include the course and grade completed in that term; the program GPA will include only the higher (highest) grade earned for the course.

Appeal of a Final Grade

15. A student who feels a final grade is incorrect, inappropriate, etc., may appeal for a review and change of the grade.  The student should read and follow the Appeal of an Academic Decision (2000-1-13) policy.

Academic Forgiveness

16. Academic forgiveness provides a mechanism for the deletion of a student's academic performance prior to an absence, enabling that student to re-start his/her academic studies. To be eligible, a student must be absent from full-time studies for a minimum of three years and have completed the first term of the new program, with a term GPA of greater than 2.0. The request must be made to the Director, Institutional Intelligence & Registrar. Academic forgiveness may only be granted once.