<Joseph E. Atkinson Faculty of Liberal and Professional Studies

Grading

1. All course grades, including those assigned after a deferred examination(s) are derived from an evaluation of examination and term work, unless otherwise decided by the Atkinson Faculty Council Office on the recommendation of the course director.

2. With the exception of courses explicitly required for certification by a professional body, or other exceptions agreed to by Senate, students pass or fail a course on the basis of final course average, without the additional requirement of having to obtain a passing grade on a final examination. (This does not preclude the possibility of a final examination representing more than 50 per cent of the final grade in a particular course or the requirement that a student pass a specific course lab component.)

3. Unless Senate agrees to explicit exemptions, eligibility to proceed in or graduate from an undergraduate degree program will not be based on a minimum grade requirement for each major course. It should be noted that this does not preclude setting requirements for a minimum cumulative grade point average in a major subject area. Nor does this preclude setting individual course grade requirements when a course is a prerequisite for upper-level courses or as part of a core requirement. Course grades are not official until approved by the Committee on Examinations and Academic Standards.

4. The letter-grade system is the fundamental system of assessment of performance in undergraduate programs at York University.

5. Percentage equivalents grades to letter: Atkinson uses a letter grade system of grading.

6. Repeating passed or failed courses for academic credit:

(a) Students are allowed to repeat a passed or failed course once for academic degree or certificate credit. Students should note that course availability and space considerations may preclude the possibility of repeating a course in the session they choose.

(b) When a student is allowed to repeat a course for academic degree or certificate credit, the second grade will be the grade of record and the only grade calculated in the student's grade point average (major, cumulative, sessional and overall). A course can be credited only once towards satisfaction of degree or certificate academic credit requirements.

(c) The record of both the first and second time the course was taken will appear on the student's transcript, with the first course designated as No Credit Retained (NCR).

(d) The restrictions regarding repeating a passed or failed course also apply to cross-listed courses and degree credit exclusions.

The above items do not apply to graduate degree or diploma programs, the BEd degree programs of the Faculty of Education, or the LLB degree program of Osgoode Hall Law School.

When a course is repeated, the first instance of the course being taken and the grade that was awarded will continue to appear on the transcript with the designation "NCR" - "No Credit Retained" - added as a qualification beside the grade. The transcript legend will explain that the NCR designation means that neither the course credit nor grade have been included in the calculation of the student's grade point average.

7. Pass/Fail alternative grading option:

Students in good standing academically who have passed a minimum of 24 credits are allowed to take up to 12 credits on an ungraded basis (pass/fail alternative grading option) toward an Honours degree or six credits toward a bachelor degree. The pass/fail alternative grading option cannot be used for courses taken to satisfy major, minor, general education, Certificate requirements or 1000-level science courses.

The ungraded option must be requested from the course director/instructor on a Pass/Fail Option Application Form (available from Student Client Services) within the first two weeks of class for the specific course. The completed form must then be submitted to the Office of Student and Academic Services, 123 Atkinson Building (for Atkinson students). Students will be notified in writing of their eligibility or ineligibility.

Reversing. Students who elect to switch back to graded status can do so up to the last date to drop the course. Written notice must be received in the Registrar's Office by this date, using the space provided on the eligibility letter.

Calculation of averages and credits. Courses taken on an ungraded basis are recorded as either P/Pass or F/Fail. They do not have grade point values so they cannot be calculated into an average. P/Pass credits are added into the total number of credits earned and credits taken. F/Fail credits are added into the total number of credits failed and credits taken.

Grade reports and transcripts. The ungraded option will appear as either P or F on both grade reports and transcripts.