Grading System

The Undergraduate Bulletin describes the grading system and the method of computing quality point average for undergraduates. The Graduate School Record and the Graduate School Handbook describe the grading system for graduate students. Undergraduate grades assigned to graduate students carry no graduate credit; they are useful for certification only.

NOTE: Undergraduate grades are the only grades given in courses numbered below 399. By action of the Faculty Council, Pass/Fail is not an option during the summer term, except when courses are regularly offered only on a Pass/Fail basis. Grades at UNC-Chapel Hill are authorized as follows: a plus or minus may be affixed to letter grades B and C; the grade A may be assigned a minus, but not a plus; the grade of D may be assigned a plus, but not a minus.

Grade Reports

WRITTEN GRADE REPORTS ARE NOT MAILED EXCEPT BY REQUEST. There are two methods which may be used to obtain grades.
Grades are reported within 24 to 48 hours after instructors submit them to the Registrar.

Call the Registrar at (919)962-0495 if you have questions about the grade reporting services.

Removal of Temporary Grades

Undergraduates who receive a temporary grade of IN (work incomplete) or an excused AB (absent from final examination) with prior excuse in a summer session have until the end of the first eight weeks of the subsequent fall semester to clear an IN and until the last day of classes of the fall semester to clear an excused AB. Graduate students who receive a temporary grade of IN or an excused AB in a summer session have one calendar year to convert it into a permanent grade. Any temporary grade not removed within these time limits is automatically changed to an F.

Grade Protests

If you wish to protest a course grade in a summer session course, first talk with the course instructor. If you cannot resolve the matter with the course instructor, consult with your dean or designated adviser to determine if you wish to appeal the grade according to the following procedure. Submit a written appeal together with any relevant graded papers and evidence of unfair or discriminating grading practice to your academic dean no later than the last day of classes of the subsequent fall semester.

Generally, you must show proof of an error or explain how you were graded differently from others in the same class. The dean refers the appeal to the administrative board of the college or school and also to the chairperson of the department in question. The latter appoints a committee to consider the appeal and then makes a recommendation based on the committee's findings to the dean's administrative board. The decision of the administrative board in such cases is final.

Visiting students should file an appeal with the dean of summer school and provide the same information noted above.

Grading Scales

Undergraduate/Professional

A          Highest level of attainment
B          High level of attainment
C          Adequate level of attainment
D          Minimal passing level of attainment
F           Failed, unacceptable performance
IN         Work incomplete
AB        Absent from final examination
FA         Absent from final examination, failing and could not
have passed even if the examination had been taken

Graduate