SPSU 1001 Hitchhiker’s Guide to SPSU Mid Term Assessment Copyright © 2010 by Bob Brown

Midterm Grades For undergraduate students only. Are submitted by faculty in week 3 of a regular semester Visible to you nearly immediately after. (Must be “released” by the Registrar.) Grades are S (satisfactory) or U (unsatisfactory.) Midterm grades are evanescent; they “disappear” at the end of the semester and are replaced with your final grade.

A Midterm Grade of S A grade of S means you are on track to earn a satisfactory grade. That’s a C in some courses (all computing – CS/IT/SWE/CGDD – courses and ‘basic’ ENGL and MATH) It’s a D in others. A grade of S is not a guarantee of a satisfactory grade at the end of the term.

A Midterm Grade of U A grade of U means, if you were given a final grade on work to date, it would be unsatisfactory: a D or lower. It is probably not too late to “pull it out.” Check the grading plan in your syllabus: What part of your course grade is already accounted for. How well did you do on that part What would you have to do on the remaining work to bring your grade up.

Withdrawing from a Course You can withdraw from a course using BANNER until the midterm deadline. If you withdraw, your transcript will show a grade of W. A grade of W does not affect your GPA. It may affect your financial aid by affection your completion ratio; you must check with the Financial Aid office. If you withdraw from a required course, you must repeat it.

Withdrawal After the Deadline If you withdraw from a course using BANNER after the deadline, your transcript will show a grade of WF. A grade of WF counts the same as an F in your GPA. A grade of WF is very likely to affect your financial aid.

Petition for Late Withdrawal You can petition for a late withdrawal up to the last day of classes. (And no later!) If granted, your grade will be a W. Late withdrawal is not automatic. Usually you must present evidence of hardship, for example, illness or a changed work schedule. Your professor must agree. In some cases, the department chair and dean must also sign off.

A Grade of “Incomplete” These are rare at SPSU because…  You must be doing satisfactory work in a course when…  A non-academic event makes it impossible for you to complete the course. You have one semester to complete the remaining work, or your I turns into an F! You and your professor should agree in writing what “the remaining work” is.

Grade Forgiveness If you repeat a course: The last grade you earned is used for your GPA All grades appear on your transcript. You must repeat required courses for which you earned an unsatisfactory grade Below C in major required courses Below D in other courses. Grade forgiveness allows you to improve your GPA, and maybe avoid probation Grade forgiveness may not apply to financial aid.

The Grade Forgiveness Trap Example: Bob earned a C in CGDD2002. Bob’s GPA needs help, so he repeats 2002 to earn a higher grade and get that C out of his GPA. But, Bob is overconfident and earns a D on the second try. Big trouble: The D is now used instead of C for Bob’s GPA Bob must repeat 2002 again because it’s a required course for his major and so needs a grade of C or better!

“Satisfactory Academic Progress” To continue to receive financial aid, you must make satisfactory academic progress There is a time limit There is a completion requirement There is a GPA requirement

The Time Limit It’s expressed in credit hours, not years. You must complete your program within 150% of the hours required to graduate Determine hours to graduate from the catalog Multiply by 1.5 (150%) Subtract any hours transferred in Example: 128 hours to graduate in Construction 50 hours transferred in 128  1.5 – 50 = 192 – 50 = 142 hours maximum

The Completion Requirement You must complete 66.7% of hours attempted. In other words, you must pass 2/3 of your classes, credit hours being equal. The completion requirement is cumulative. (That’s good after you’ve been here a while, but a couple of F’s early on can put you in jeopardy.)

The GPA Requirement Your cumulative GPA must be 2.0 (could be higher for some types of aid.) Your GPA is the number of quality points earned divided by total credit hours attempted. A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F, WF, or I=0 Times credit hours for the course. Grade forgiveness may not apply Example: A, B, and C in three 3-hour courses 4    3 = 27 / 9 = 3.0

Financial Probation or Suspension Probation: GPA less than 2.0 but greater than 1.0 Completion less than 66.7% but greater than 25% Suspension: GPA less than 1.0 Completion rate less than 25% On probation, but still not making SAP Computed at the end of each spring term.

Academic Standing Dean’s List: 12+ credit hours, 3.5 GPA for the current term Dean’s Merit List: Less than 12 hours, 3.5 GPA for the current term. Good standing: cumulative GPA of 2.0 A cumulative GPA below 2.0 refers student to Student Status Committee for consideration for probation. Students who do not meet probation requirements are suspended.

Grade Appeals The only basis for a grade appeal is “clear evidence that a grade was assigned by some criteria other than an evaluation of academic performance.” Grade penalties for academic misconduct are allowed (up to a grade of F for the course) You may appeal a misconduct penalty on grounds of innocence. All appeals start with the professor.

So, You’ve Gotten Behind… Take stock: Where do you stand now? What do you have to do to earn a satisfactory grade? Can you do it? (Be honest with yourself!) By yourself? With help?

Getting Help Your professors want to help you: They are available during office hours and probably at other times. They can answer specific questions. They usually cannot provide personalized tutoring

Tutoring Available for many core subjects in the ATTIC (it’s in the basement of the Student Center.) Available for computing subjects in the CSE main lab. Tutoring schedules are posted in both places.

Helping Yourself Have you read the assigned material before class? Every time? (You need to do so.) Have you been in class (and engaged with the professor and the class) on time? Every time? (You need to do so.) Have you made an honest attempt at every homework problem on time, every time?

About Grades for This Course All grades are based on discussion, assignments and assessments (no exams) And, it’s all (or at least mostly) work you should be doing anyway.

Homework For each of your classes, based upon graded work to date, assess your expected final grade. You will have received s from me confirming grades I’ll also pester you this semester, but don’t expect that later If your expected final grade is less than A, identify three things that could help you improve it.

Questions