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ACADEMIC PROGRESS
Courses
As a general rule, most courses taught at WVU extend for one semester, although some extend for two semesters. Credit is not awarded for a course if you do not attend the whole course. The only exception to this rule occurs if the Committee on Academic Standards decides to grant an exception. Grades reported at the end of the first semester in a two-semester course are merely an indication of the quality of the student's work to that point. Credit is not given for that part of the course completed. Courses taught in the summer sessions carry the same credit value as fall and spring semester courses.
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Evaluation of Student Progress
Your progress is evaluated by a variety of methods. The measurement and evaluation of learning are consistent with the objectives of the course and provide the opportunity for you and your instructor to evaluate your progress. The University discourages evaluation by final examination only. You are responsible for all materials presented or assigned in scheduled instructional sections. If you do not complete all assigned work, you may earn an incomplete (I) or a failing grade (F).
The last week of each semester of the academic year is designated finals week. Final examinations for the summer sessions are given on the last day of classes. The Schedule of Courses gives the date and times for final examinations.
Practical laboratory tests, make-up examinations, and regularly scheduled short quizzes are the only tests permitted for day classes during the week of classes preceding finals week. Evening classes have their final exams the last meeting of the class preceding finals week.
If you take a section of a multi-section course, you may be required to take the departmental final examination, given during the regular final examination period.
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Grading System
A |
excellent (given only to students of superior ability and attainment) |
B |
good (given only to students who are well above average, but not in the highest group) |
C |
fair (average for undergraduate students)
|
D |
poor but passing (cannot be counted for graduate credit) |
F |
failure |
I |
incomplete |
W |
withdrawal from a course before the date specified in the University Calendar |
WU |
withdrawal from the University doing unsatisfactory work |
P |
pass (see Pass-Fail Grading below) |
X |
auditor, no grade and no credit |
CR |
credit but no grade |
PR |
progress. Final grade at end of the second semester (HSC) |
S |
satisfactory |
U |
unsatisfactory (equivalent to F) |
*F |
unforgivable F, not eligible for D/F repeat policy |
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Pass-Fail Grading
Pass-fail grading encourages you to take elective courses not related to your degree concentration. Pass-fail grading also facilitates grading in competency-based courses which may be an integral part of your program.
Student Option Any full-time student who has completed 15 hours or more and who has maintained a 2.0 grade-point average may take a maximum of four hours each semester or summer session on a pass-fail basis. Any course taken on a pass-fail basis must be a free elective. You are limited to a total of 18 hours of pass-fail credit in your collegiate career. Unless otherwise indicated, courses in your major, courses in other subjects that are required by the major, and courses taken to satisfy University, college, school, or departmental requirements are excluded from pass-fail. For example, courses elected to satisfy the English, Liberal Studies Program (LSP), or foreign language requirements may not be taken for pass-fail grading.
If you elect a course on a pass-fail basis, you are graded as a regular student. The instructor turns in the appropriate letter grade to the Office of Admissions and Records. This letter grade is then converted to a P on the basis of A, B, C, or D for a pass and F for a fail. The grade of P does not affect your grade-point average. However, any F grade affects your grade-point average whether it is a regular grade or a pass-fail grade.
You choose the option of pass-fail grading for a course during the registration period. Once the registration period has ended, you may not change the grade status in the course.
College or School Option A department or unit may designate any performance-based or competency-based course as exclusively pass-fail. To institute this, the college or school must have the approval of the Faculty Senate. Courses offered only as pass-fail are not included in the maximum of 18 hours that may be freely elected under the student option.
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Grade Points
Each letter grade has a numeric value. Grade points are based on this number value and the credit-hour value of the course.
| A |
B |
C |
D |
F |
I |
U |
| 4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
The grade-point average is computed on all work for which you registered, with the following exceptions:
- Courses with a grade of W, WU, P, S, and X carry no grade value. The grade of incomplete (I) initially carries no grade value.
- The grade of I is given when the instructor of the course believes that the work is unavoidably incomplete or that an additional examination is justified. To remove the grade of I, you do not register for the course again; instead, you arrange to submit incomplete or supplemental work to the original instructor of the course. When you receive the grade of I and later remove the incomplete grade, the grade-point average is calculated on the basis of the new grade. If you do not remove the I grade within the next semester in which you are enrolled, the grade of I is treated as an F (Failure). The Academic Standards Committee of the appropriate college or school may allow you to postpone removal of the I grade if you can justify a delay.
- If you are working toward teacher certification, you are responsible for every registration in a course in which the grade of A, B, C, D, F, WU, P, X, or I is received.
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GPA Calculations
Students like to know how to calculate their overall and semester grade-point averages. The following example shows how to do it. Assume you are registered for 16 hours and receive the following grades in these courses:
| English 1 |
B |
Mathematics 3 |
A |
| Geology 1 |
C |
Political Science 1 |
B |
| Spanish 1 |
D |
Orientation 1 |
P |
Course |
Credit |
Grade |
Grade
Value |
Credit X
Grade Value |
Grade-Points |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| English 1 |
3 |
B |
3 |
3 X 3 |
= 9 |
| Geology 1 |
3 |
C |
2 |
3 X 2 |
= 6 |
| Spanish 1 |
3 |
D |
1 |
3 X 1 |
= 3 |
| Math |
3 |
A |
4 |
3 X 4 |
= 12 |
| Political Science 1 |
3 |
B |
3 |
3 X 3 |
= 9 |
| Orientation 1 |
1 |
P |
0 |
1 X 0 |
= 0 |
1. Multiply the credit by the grade value to get the grade points earned for each course.
2. Add the Total Grade Points, in this case, 39.
3. Divide the Total Grade Points by the total credit hours with a grade value.
Remember that P grades have no grade value, so in this case, there are 15 credit hours for the GPA calculation. 39 divided by 15 = grade-point average of 2.6.
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D/F Repeat Policy
WVU has a D/F repeat policy for undergraduate students who have not received their initial baccalaureate degree. If you earn a D or F in a course at WVU taken no later than the semester or summer session registration when you reach a cumulative total of 60 hours attempted, you are eligible to D/F repeat that course by meeting with your academic advisor sometime during the semester in which you are repeating the course and filling out the appropriate forms. You must repeat the course at WVU. You will have only one opportunity to improve your original grade. The new grade becomes the grade that counts, even if your performance is worse than when you were originally graded.
When you have D/F repeated a course, the following happens:
1. The original grade is disregarded for the purpose of determining your grade-point average, hours passed, and hours attempted.
2. The original grade is not deleted from your permanent record.
3. The second grade is entered on your transcript and marked repeat in the semester that you repeated the course.
4. You can exercise your right under the D/F repeat policy at any time before you receive your initial baccalaureate degree. If you get a grade of F in a course for disciplinary reasons or for cheating, the grade is not eligible for change under the D/F repeat provisions. Such a failure is indicated on your permanent record by an *F and is calculated in your grade-point average.
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Graduation Honors
All candidates for a baccalaureate degree with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) in the ranges below will graduate with the corresponding honors:
Summa Cum Laude - |
Cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 3.8 |
Magna Cum Laude - |
Cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 3.6 but less than 3.8 |
Cum Laude - |
Cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 3.4 but less than 3.6 |
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