Grading Policy
Graduate students’ grades in all courses counting toward an advanced degree may be reported as:
A +/-, B +/-, and C +/-.
Faculty members are not required to use a plus/minus grading scale; that decision should be based on the faculty member’s evaluation of student performance and/or polices of their academic program.
Grade point averages are calculated as:
| Grade | GPA |
| A+ | 4.0 |
| A | 4.0 |
| A- | 3.7 |
| B+ | 3.3 |
| B | 3.0 |
| B- | 2.7 |
| C+ | 2.3 |
| C | 2.0 |
| C- | 1.7 |
The Graduate School considers grades of C+, C and C- as passing grades; however, grades in the C range may not be acceptable for specific programmatic requirements and may result in the student being unable to maintain a 3.0 cumulative average.
No D grade may be awarded to a graduate student, and a grade of F means the work has not satisfied the minimum requirements of the course. W denotes withdrawn passing and does not affect a student’s grade point average.
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Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) Grading
Graduate students may be graded satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) in graduate-level courses only when those courses are designated as “graded on S/U basis only” in the Schedule of Courses (available through myZou).
Grades of S/U do not count in the calculation of a student’s GPA, as per University regulations.
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Incompletes
An incomplete grade (I) may be recorded when the student’s work, for good reason, is incomplete but otherwise worthy of credit, or when the instructor is unable to assign a grade at the end of the semester. The student must finish this work within the next calendar year of residence.
Research (e.g., 8090/9090) courses should NOT receive an incomplete grade.
If the work is not completed after one calendar year, the request to change an I grade will require an accompanying letter of justification from the instructor. Although I grades do not automatically convert to an F if not completed, academic programs or the instructor may establish conditions or regulations pertaining to I grades that are more stringent.
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Unreported Grades: NR
When grades are not reported by the instructor, they are recorded as Not Reported (NR). The NR designation will remain on the student’s transcript until a letter grade is submitted. If a letter grade is not submitted, the NR can remain on the student’s record indefinitely and will not revert to an F.
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Graduate-Level Credit
No graduate credit is given for courses numbered below 7000. Graduate students taking 7000-level courses cross-leveled with 4000-level courses will be given additional course requirements in order to warrant graduate credit received for those courses.
Courses at 8000/9000 level are primarily for graduate credit. 8090/9090 Research (8990/9990 Research for Engineering students) is reserved for master’s and doctoral degree students working on a thesis or dissertation.
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Grade Point Average
A graduate student’s grade point average is based on the student’s entire graduate record at MU. If a student retakes a course, the grade from the first time the course was taken cannot be replaced; it will be calculated into the student’s GPA along with the grade from the retaken course.
To remain in good standing, a graduate student must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better.
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GPA and Probation
At the end of each semester, graduate students with a cumulative GPA below 3.0 are placed on academic probation. If at the end of the following semester the cumulative GPA is 3.0 or better, the probationary status is removed. A student on probation failing to raise the cumulative GPA to 3.0 may, on the recommendation of the department or area program, be allowed a second probationary semester.
A student is subject to dismissal upon failure to raise the cumulative GPA to 3.0 by the end of the second probationary semester, or at any time a semester/term or cumulative GPA falls below 2.0.
Note: Summer session is not counted as a semester.
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GPA & Graduation
To graduate, a student must have an overall GPA of 3.0 in all graduate courses taken at MU and not just those courses listed on a plan of study.