Catalog

Grade Information

Grading System
Grade Point Average
Dean's List
Repeating Courses
Academic Fresh Start
Grade Appeals
Retention Standards
Academic Probation & Suspension
Academic Action Appeals

 

Grading System

The following grading system is used at Nashville State Community College:

Grade		Quality Points/Grade Points Values per Semester Credit Hour
A	Superior	4
B	Excellent	3
C	Average	2
D*	Passing, but below Average	1
F	Failure	0
WF	Failure for non-attendance; Administratively withdrawn	0

*This grade not used for any remedial or developmental course.

A “WF” is a grading standard in which a student may be withdrawn from class by his/her instructor for non-attendance and/or violation of the instructor’s stated attendance policy. A “WF” counts as attempted semester hours and carries zero quality points per semester hour. The following standards will be followed in administering this grade type:

1. Students earn a “WF” grade in one or two ways (a) when a student has missed class for two consecutive weeks without contacting the instructor. The instructor must complete the appropriate form to assign a “WF” and report the non-attendance immediately to the Records Office; (b) when a student has violated the instructor’s stated attendance policy, a “WF” will be submitted to the Records Office. This grade may be assigned anytime during the semester once the student has violated a course enrollment policy and applies to both day and evening students.

2. Faculty must include a “last day of attendance” on the “WF” form before submitting it to the Records Office for processing.

Other marks which may appear on the grade report and/or transcripts are as follows:

W Withdrawal – withdrawal from course initiated by the student.

I Incomplete – The “I” indicates that the student has not completed all of the course work due to such extenuating circumstances as personal illness, death in the family, or other justifiable reasons. If the “I” grade is not removed by the deadline, it will be automatically change to an “F”. The deadlines for removal are in the Records Office and listed on Academic Calendars found in the catalog and all printed schedules.

X Continuation – The “X” indicates the student attempted a remedial or developmental course, but progress was not sufficient to warrant a grade. It carries no connotation of failure. It indicates the student, upon the advice of the instructor, should register for the same course and takes more time to earn a grade. The “X” grade is restricted to use in the R/D courses. An overall maximum of 15 semester hours of “X” is allowed. Veterans who are receiving educational benefits cannot be awarded an “X” grade in any course.

AU Audit (see requirements for auditing a course elsewhere in this catalog).

Grades of “W”, “I”, “X”, and “AU” have no grade point value and are not used in computing grade point average.

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Grade Point Average

The academic standing of a student is expressed in terms of a quality point average (QPA)/grade point average (GPA). When a course is completed, the number of grade points earned is determined by multiplying the credit hours earned for that course by the grade points assigned to the letter grade earned. Examples on calculating a GPA are found on the Records Department Web page.

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Dean’s List

Degree-seeking students who achieve a term QPA/GPA of at least 3.5 during any semester in which they are at least part-time (six hours) will be listed on the Dean’s List based on college-level course work.

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Repeating Courses

For the purpose of raising a grade point average, a student may only repeat a course in which the previous grade earned is “C” or lower. The Vice President of Academic Affairs must approve any exception to this before the student registers to repeat the course. When a course is repeated for the first time, the last grade earned is used in the calculation of the student’s quality/grade point average. The grade earned in the third and subsequent attempts will be used in calculating the QPA/GPA. The credit hours earned by repeating a course will be counted only one time in the cumulative total hours earned. In all instances, the last grade earned is used to determine whether the student meets graduation requirements.

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Academic Fresh Start

Any person who has not been enrolled in a college or university for a period of four years and who, upon re-enrolling or transferring to Nashville State Community College completes 15 semester hours of degree course work with a minimum cumulative GPA of a 2.0 may petition for an Academic Fresh Start. All prior credit earned (institutional and/or transfer) will be negated once the Academic Fresh Start is applied. The Academic Fresh Start form should be submitted to the Director of Records and Registration for approval. The Academic Fresh Start form is located on the Records Web site at the following address: www.nscc.edu/records.

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Grade Appeals

A student who believes that an error has been made in the grade assigned for a given course has through the end of the following term in which the grade was earned to request a review of the grade in question. A student must first confer with the instructor. If the problem cannot be resolved, the student may initiate the appeal procedure. All appeals should be submitted in writing to the Dean responsible for the class in which the grade is being appealed or the Dean for Student Services.

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Retention Standards

Associate Degree Programs and Technical Certificate Programs
The minimum quality/grade point average to achieve the Associate Degree or Technical Certificate is 2.0. To establish a measure of academic standing, a table of minimum retention standards has been established. The following table describes minimum cumulative grade point average required for the credit hours attempted and is designed to serve as a guide to students who fall below the 2.0 cumulative grade point average.

GPA Hours	Minimum Cumulative GPA
0-14	-
14.1-26	1.0
26.1-40	1.4
40.1-48	1.7
48.1-56	1.9
56.1- +	2.0

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Academic Probation & Suspension

Academic probation and suspension is based on the college’s retention standards as described previously.

Probation: Once a student falls below the minimum cumulative GPA, they will be placed on a probationary status. While on probation, the student must attain a minimum term GPA of a 2.0. The student will remain on probation until the minimum required cumulative GPA is attained. However, if the student falls below a term GPA of 2.0 while on probation, the student will be placed on a one-term suspension. Note: If a student is placed on suspension during the spring term, the suspension is applied to both the summer and fall terms and thus the student would not be eligible for re-enrollment until the spring term of the following year under a post-suspension probationary status.

Suspension: While on a probationary status, if a student fails to attain a 2.0 term GPA, they will be placed on a one-term suspension. When a student returns from a suspension, they will be placed on a post-suspension probationary status. The student will remain on a post-suspension probationary status as long as they attain a term GPA of 2.0 or get their cumulative GPA back up to the minimum standard. If the student fails to attain a term GPA of a 2.0 while on a post-suspension probationary status, they will be placed on suspension for two-terms.
Note: Once placed on suspension, if the student has pre-registered for any courses in the next term(s) of enrollment, all courses will be dropped.

Students will be notified in writing at the end of the term if they have been placed on probation or suspension by the Records Office. However, academic standing is not contingent upon receipt of the letter. Students should check their academic standing via MyNSCC at the end of each term.

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Academic Action Appeals

A student may appeal an academic action if he/she believes extenuating circumstances or unusual hardship affected his or her ability to achieve the minimum academic standard. A written appeal must be submitted to the Director of Records and Registration 14 days prior to the official first day of class during a term. The appeal must outline the reasons for the request in addition to submitting any supporting documentation. The Academic Appeals Committee will review and make a final determination regarding the action; notification will be sent to the student regarding the decision.

Students receiving Veterans Education benefits will not be certified to the Department of Veterans Affairs if enrollment is based on a second consecutive waiver of Academic Suspension.

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