Grades and Academic Standing
Grades
Grades, with numerical values corresponding to these letters, are recorded as follows:
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| A | Excellent, 90-100. |
| B | Good, 80-89. |
| C | Average, 70-79. |
| D | Passing, 60-69. |
| F | Failure, below 60. |
| CR/NC | Credit/Non-credit: used for courses that do not meet the normal or traditional framework of course scheduling and do not lend themselves to letter grading. |
| I | Incomplete: given to a student who is passing but has not completed a term paper, examination or other required work. The instructor and the student are required to complete the standard university contract form for each course in which the temporary grade of I has been assigned. A copy of the contract must be submitted to the Registrar’s Office by the instructor no later than the date grades are due. The grade of I will be used only to allow a student who has encountered some emergency such as illness or an accident an opportunity to complete the requirements for a course. A grade of I reverts to a grade of F one year from the close of semester/term in which the grade was originally recorded if the course requirements have not been satisfied. Grade of an I will be assigned by the Office of the Registrar upon receipt of the I Contract. |
| Q | Dropped: given when a student has officially dropped or withdrawn from the university before or on the date indicated on the official university academic calendar for an automatic Q, regardless of student's standing in class. |
| QE | Dropped: given when a student impacted by SB1231 has officially dropped a course and extenuating circumstances are involved (refer to “Exceptions to the Maximum Number of Non-Punitive Drops for Undergraduates Subject to Senate Bill 1231.” Also applies to students impacted by SB1231 who officially withdraw from the university. |
| QF | Dropped: given when a student impacted by SB1231 has officially dropped a course after the accumulation of six (6) QI grades regardless of the student’s academic standing in the class. |
| QI | Dropped: given when a student impacted by SB1231 has officially dropped a course before or on the date indicated on the official university academic calendar for an automatic Q, regardless of student's standing in class. Students are allowed a total of six (6) drops during their entire undergraduate studies. |
| X | No grade posted by instructor: used to indicate that no grade was posted by the instructor teaching the course. Grade of X reverts to a grade of F at the end of the next semester. |
Mid Semester Grades
Mid Semester grades will be required for all undergraduate students. Grades to be used for mid-term grading are A, B, C, D or F.
Removing the Grade of I
The grade of I must be removed within the time specified by the instructor, not exceeding 12 months from the date the I was recorded. When the student completes the work in the course, the instructor submits a request for a grade change through the chair of the department and the college dean to the Office of the Registrar. The grade of I may be changed only to A, B, C, D or F. Should the instructor not submit a Request for a Grade Change, the I will become an F. Extension of time, when merited, may be granted by the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs after consultation with the dean of the college concerned. I grades must be completed prior to graduation. I grades not completed by the end of the semester in which the student is scheduled to graduate will turn into F's and will be calculated into the cumulative grade point average. Extensions must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar by the instructor.
Students should not register again for a course for which they have received an I grade.
Removing the Grade of X
The grade of X must be removed by the end of the next semester or it will be changed to an F. The instructor must submit a Request for Grade Change to the Office of the Registrar and the X can only be changed to an A, B, C, D or F. The student should contact the instructor if a grade of X appears on his/her transcript.
Change of Grade
After being reported to the Registrar, grades other than I or X may not be changed unless an error has been made by the instructor.
Students should review their end of semester final grades closely to ensure their accuracy. If an error or discrepancy should occur, the student should contact the appropriate professor and/or the Office of the Registrar immediately for resolution. It is recommended that those changes occur no later than the beginning of the next semester. Under no circumstances will grades be changed after one calendar year.
Repetition of a Course
If a student repeats a course that may not be taken for additional credit, it is the policy of the university to count as part of a student's cumulative grade point average only the last grade received in the course, whether passing or failing, other than a grade of Q. However, for purposes of grade point average calculation on course work for graduation, grades stand as recorded unless the same course is repeated at this university.
Starting with 2015 Fall Semester, all new admits, including transfers, can only exclude a grade one time. Any courses taken for the third time, cannot be excluded and will be averaged in the student’s GPA.
Students who have received their first bachelor’s degree from this institution cannot repeat courses that were used to earn the first degree for purposes of grade point average calculation.
It is the responsibility of the student, after repeating a course, to file a special request form in the Office of the Registrar, so that the adjustment in the grade point average, when applicable, can be entered on the permanent record.
Repeated Grade Notation
Repeated course(s) and grade(s) are not removed from the official or unofficial transcript. The repeated grade and grade points will be removed from the cumulative grade point average only. The repeated course will be identified with the letter E next to the quality points on the transcript. Repeating a course after graduation will not change your graduation grade point average.
Academic Standing
Classification of Students
| Classification | Credits |
|---|---|
| Freshman | fewer than 30 semester hours of credit. |
| Sophomore | at least 30 semester hours of credit, but fewer than 60 semester hours. |
| Junior | at least 60 semester hours of credit, but fewer than 90 semester hours. |
| Senior | at least 90 semester hours of credit. |
Grade Point Average (GPA)
The grade point average accumulated on the permanent record of a student at Texas A&M University-Kingsville will be based on course and grade points earned by a student on work taken at this university. Transfer courses will be accepted as credit only. Such credit may be used for fulfilling degree requirements and graduation requirements. (For information on specific college admission, certification and graduation requirements, refer to the appropriate section of this catalog.)
A student's grade average on this university's work is expressed in grade points. Each semester hour of A counts four points, B three points, C two points, D one point and F zero points. The cumulative, or overall, grade point average (GPA) is computed by dividing the total quality POINTS earned by the total number of quality hours (GPA HRS). Transferred and credit only hours are not computed in the cumulative Texas A&M University-Kingsville grade point average. Passed Hours are credits where a passing grade was earned (including courses graded as credit (CR) only.
Grade Point Summary
All official and unofficial transcripts will include some of the following items (institution and transfer course work will be listed on separate lines under the TRANSCRIPT TOTALS):
- Attempted Hours: all hours attempted whether passed or failed
- Passed Hours: only the hours where a passing grade was received
- Earned HRS: number of hours earned (does not include failing grades, excludes grades Q, QE or QI)
- GPA HRS: hours used to compute GPA (including failing grades; does not include excluded grades Q, QE or QI)
- Points: (Quality Points) grade points from the following grades: A, B, C, D & F
- GPA: POINTS divided by GPA HRS
Honor Roll, Dean's List and President’s List
Full-time undergraduate students of highest academic rank will be honored each semester by the publication of their names on the President’s List, Dean's List or the Honor Roll List. The President’s List requires a grade point average of 4.00 on all work attempted for a particular semester, with a minimum of 15 semester undergraduate hours completed, exclusive of credit only (CR) courses. The Dean's List requires a grade point average of 3.65 on all work attempted for a particular semester, with a minimum of 13 semester undergraduate hours completed, exclusive of credit only (CR) courses. The Honor Roll requires a grade point average of 3.5 on all work attempted for a particular semester, with a minimum of 12 semester undergraduate hours, exclusive of credit only (CR) courses.
Minimum Grade Requirements
The minimum grade point requirement for students who are considered to be making satisfactory academic progress is a 2.0 cumulative institution grade point average and a 2.0 GPA is required for graduation. All transfer students must have a cumulative 2.0 GPA to transfer into Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
Extracurricular Good Academic Standing
The university defines good academic standing as an institutional cumulative GPA of 2.0 or above. Student clubs, honors societies, student-athletes—in short, ALL extracurricular activities—may choose a GPA higher than 2.0 for its members to qualify as being in good academic standing.
A student is considered in good academic standing to participate in University extracurricular activities for the entire academic year if the student was in good academic standing at the beginning of the fall semester of the academic year in question. Students who were not in good academic standing at the beginning of the fall semester, but who have brought their institutional cumulative GPA up to 2.0 or greater by the end of the fall semester may ask to be recertified as in good academic standing for the remainder of the academic year in question. Students who were not certified in fall semester because their participation in extra-curricular activities began later in the academic year may ask to be certified at the time their activity begins.
Certification and recertification will be performed by the Office of the Registrar for student-athletes, and by club/organization advisers for students participating in extracurricular clubs/organizations recognized by the Office of Student Activities.