Section Navigation

• 1 Introduction to the During the Term Section
• 2 Running the Class
  • 2.1 First Class Session
  • 2.2 Add/Drop/Withdraw Procedures
  • 2.3 Student Conduct
  • 2.4 Student Grievances
  • 2.5 At-Risk Students
  • 2.6 Attendance
  • 2.7 Contact Hours
  • 2.8 Re-Scheduling a Class
  • 2.9 Academic Honesty Policy
  • 2.10 Final Exams
  • 2.11 Determining Grades
• 3 Assessment
  • 3.1 Assessing Student Learning
• 4 Academic Support for Students
  • 4.1 The Online Writing Center
  • 4.2 Library Resources and Services
• 5 Other Student Services and Resources
  • 5.1 Career Services
  • 5.2 Student ID Cards
  • 5.3 Dean of Students Office
  • 5.4 Tuition Adjustment
  • 5.5 Student Health Insurance
  • 5.6 Advising and Counseling
• 6 Services for Students with Disabilities
  • 6.1 Disabilities Overview
  • 6.2 Key Legal Terms
  • 6.3 Legally Designated Rights and Responsibilities
  • 6.4 Accommodation Process
  • 6.5 Creating and Maintaining an Accessible University Classroom
• 7 Review of During the Term Section

Determining Grades

Instruction and evaluation are integral to maintaining the quality of Webster's academic programs. Instructors must be willing to focus on both the needs of the student and the integrity of the academic program. Students must be evaluated according to objective standards to preserve the quality and integrity of the academic programs. It is the instructor's responsibility to evaluate each student and to assign the appropriate letter grade. Some students will succeed; some will not.

The primary focus of an instructor's evaluation criteria is to determine what constitutes satisfactory work on the graduate level, which is a grade of B. Once that criterion is objectively determined, it is simply a matter of degrees as to whether a student's performance is superior, a grade of A, or marginal, a grade of C, when compared to the criteria for satisfactory work. The second major focus of an instructor's evaluation criteria is to determine what constitutes "work that is unsatisfactory on the graduate level." There is a minimum level below which a student's work clearly can be classified as unsatisfactory. It is the instructor's responsibility to determine that level. A student's ability to write grammatically correct English should be a part of that evaluation for every course.

The grading system and the instructor's objective determination of the grades should be included in the course syllabus and verbally explained at the first class session. In most courses, students receive a letter grade for their course. The University also has an optional "Pass/Fail" grading system for undergraduate programs (see undergraduate catalog for details). Students who wish to select the non-graded option must do so by the end of the second week of class. Faculty should observe the following guidelines in assigning grades.

Letter Grading System / Graduate Programs

Grade	Definition
A/A-	Superior graduate work
B+/B/B-	Satisfactory graduate work
C	Work that is barely adequate as graduate-level performance
CR	Work that is performed as satisfactory graduate work (B– or better). Grade of CR is reserved for courses designated by a department, involving internships, a thesis, practicums, or specified courses.
F	Work that is unsatisfactory (note: The letter grade F is not used in the M.A.T or Ed.S programs; use NC instead)
I	Incomplete work
ZF	An incomplete which was not completed within one year of the end of the course. ZF is treated the same as an F or NC for all cases involving G.P.A, academic warning, probation, and dismissal.
IP	In progress
NR	Not reported
W	Withdrawn from course
Z	A temporary designation given by the registrar indicating that the final grade has not been submitted by the instructor. When the final grade is filed in the Office of the Registrar, that grade will replace the Z

Letter Grading System / Undergraduate

A/A-	Superior work in the opinion of the instructor
B+/B/B-	Good work in the opinion of the instructor
C+/C/C-	Satisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor
D+D-	Passing, but less than satisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor
I	Incomplete work in the opinion of the instructor
F	Unsatisfactory work in the opinion of the instructor
W	Withdrawn from course
IP	Course In progress
NR	Not reported for the course
Z	A temporary designation given by the registrar indicating that the final grade has not been submitted by the instructor. When the final grade is filed in the Office of the Registrar, that grade will replace the Z