Grade Changes
After the final grades are filed in the Office of Admissions and Records, a grade may normally be changed only to correct a clerical error. For these changes, the instructor must file a completed Change of Grade Form in the Office of Admissions and Records. The form must be approved by the department chair and the dean of the college.
Grade Replacement Policy
Students may repeat a maximum of 15 lower-division credits (100-200 level) to replace original University of Nevada, Reno grades. The course(s) must be repeated and completed at the University within the next two regular semesters in which the student is enrolled. If the course is not offered within the next two regular semesters, the student must take the course the next time it is offered. The most recent grade earned in the course will be used in the grade-point calculation. Students who wish to utilize the grade replacement policy must file an application in the Office of Admissions and Records. Students may not apply for grade replacement for courses in which credit was earned by departmental exam or for courses in which they received a sanction for academic dishonesty. Special case: A MATH 128 grade may be replaced by the grades earned in MATH 126R and MATH 127R , as long as they are both completed at UNR and within the two regular semester time limit. Replacement of MATH 126R and MATH 127R grades by a later MATH 128 grade is not allowed.
Probation and dismissal status will not be removed from student transcripts after grade replacement is applied to the student record in cases where the grade point average is improved sufficiently to change the student’s status for the semester in question.
Grade Appeals
A grade assigned by an instructor is only subject to the appeals procedure if:
- There was a clerical/administrative error in the calculation and /or assignment of the grade;
- The grade assignment was based on factors other than the student’s performance in the course and/or completion of course requirements; or
- The grade assignment meant that the student was held to more demanding standards than other students in the same section of the course.
The burden on proof of these conditions rests on the student.
The student should not follow this procedure in situations of academic dishonesty. If a student wishes to appeal a grade received as a sanction for an instance of academic dishonesty, the student must follow the Academic Dishonesty procedure.
There are four possible processes in the grade appeal procedure:
- Student consults with instructor before filing Grade Appeal Form;
- Student files a Grade Appeal Form with department chair;
- Student meets with the department chair or with both the department chair and instructor; and
- Department chair appoints a grade appeal review committee.
1. Student consults with instructor
In the event that a student disagrees with a final grade received in a course, the student shall discuss the basis for the grade with the instructor. This allows clerical/administrative grade errors that are discovered to be corrected by the instructor by means of the Change of Grade Form without the necessity of filing an appeal. If the grade is still in dispute after consultation, then the student may complete the Grade Appeal Form. The consultation step can be skipped only if the instructor is unavailable or fails to respond within 10 working days. (For the purpose of this policy, working days refers to faculty academic contract days.)
2. Student files a Grade Appeal Form with Department Chair
If after consulting the instructor, the student still feels the grade assignment meets one of the three bulleted criteria above, and/or the student was unable to consult with the instructor, the student may complete a Grade Appeal Form and file it with the chair of the department offering the course. (In this document, the term ‘chair’ may also refer to the director of a program offering the course, or a designee for the chair or program director.)
The Grade Appeal Form must be filed no later than 10 working days after the start of the next spring or fall semester (whichever comes first) after the grade is assigned.
3. Student meets with the Department Chair or with both the Department Chair and Instructor
The chair has a total of 30 working days after receipt of the Grade Appeal Form to contact the student, request a written response from the instructor, meet with the student or the student and the instructor to attempt to facilitate a resolution between the student and the instructor, and provide a written summary of the results of the process. A recommended schedule is as follows:
Within 5 days of the receipt of the Grade Appeal form, the Department chair should contact the instructor and the student to begin investigation of the situation.
The department chair requests a written response from the instructor.
The instructor has 5 working days to provide a written response to the chair concerning the appeal.
The chair should arrange a meeting with the student within 5 days of receiving the written response from the instructor.
The chair should complete the written summary of the results of that meeting within 5 days of meeting with the student and student and instructor.
If the chair is able to facilitate an agreement between the student and the instructor on the final grade within 30 working days after the receipt of the Grade Appeal Form, the agreed upon grade is considered final. If this grade is different from the original grade assigned by the instructor, a Change of Grade form will be filed by the instructor.
4. Department Chair appoints a Grade Appeal Review Committee
If the chair is unable to reach a resolution between the student and the instructor within 30 working days of receiving the Grade Appeal Form, the chair will appoint a Grade Appeal Review Committee and forward the Grade Appeal Form, along with the instructor’s response, to the Committee. The committee will consist of the following four members: one student currently enrolled at the institution, one faculty member from within the department, one faculty member from outside the department, and a committee chair (from within or outside the department). The student on the Grade Appeal Review Committee should have the same status as the student requesting a grade appeal. For example, an undergraduate student filing a grade appeal should have an undergraduate student on the Grade Appeal Review Committee while a graduate student should have a graduate student on the Grade Appeal Review Committee. The department chair should not serve on or chair the Grade Appeal Review Committee. The Grade Appeal Review Committee chair will chair the Committee and act as a non-voting member. While the instructor and the student may comment on the composition of the committee within 2 days of its appointment, the final decision on the committee’s composition rests with the department chair.
The Grade Appeal Review Committee does not have subpoena power. The principals (i.e., the student and the instructor) may not be represented by counsel. The hearing of the grade appeal by the committee is a closed meeting to be attended only by the Grade Appeal Committee, the student, and the instructor. The student or the instructor may waive his or her right to attend.
The Grade Appeal Review Committee may request additional materials from the student or instructor within 10 working days of the appointment of the committee, and those materials shall be provided to the Committee within 5 additional working days.
The Grade Appeal Review Committee will convene no later than 20 working days after it is appointed and receives the grade appeal materials, and will make a recommendation of grade assignment with in 5 more working days.
The decision of the Grade Appeal Review Committee is determined by vote and a majority decision rules. The decision does not have to be unanimous. This decision is not subject to appeal. The dean, department chair, instructor, and student will be notified of the decision, and in case the decision involves a change from the original grade, the Registrar’s Office will be notified. A Change of Grade form will be filed by the department chair if the committee recommends a change of grade.
Appealing Grades Received for Improper Withdrawal: Under certain circumstances, students who do not withdraw from the university in accordance with official procedures may appeal the grades they have received that semester. The appeal procedure applies only to emergency or hardship situations, defined as follows:
- Personal illness or accident involving extended hospitalization.
- Sudden and unexpected departure from the area resulting in the student’s inability to return to the university, e.g., death in the immediate family, induction to military service.
The appeal must be made for all course work in the semester in question. It is the student’s responsibility to support the appeal with written, documented evidence, such as an official hospital record, to substantiate the claimed hardship.
Students who meet the specified criteria and elect to file an appeal must submit a written statement with supporting documentation to the registrar.
Appealing Grade Received for Improper Withdrawal from an Individual Course: Under extraordinary conditions a student who does not withdraw from an individual course in accordance with official procedures may appeal the grade received in that course. The appeal procedure applies only to emergency or hardship situations. Specifically, the appeal must be supported by documented evidence that explains the extenuating circumstances and states the reasons the student is applying for a withdrawal from only one course. A student who meets the specified criteria and elects to file an appeal must submit a written statement, official documentation, and a departmental memorandum of support signed by the instructor of the course, the chair of the department, and the dean of the college. The appeal and supporting documents should be submitted to the registrar. All properly documented cases that satisfy the above criteria will be forwarded to the Student Appeals Board for final review and recommendation. This appeal procedure is not meant to relieve the student of grades received simply for poor performance in the class at issue. Students may not apply for improper withdrawal from courses in which they receive a sanction for academic dishonesty.
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