Grading and Grade Entry

• Grade Entry FAQ
• Grading System
• Incomplete Grades
• Grade Changes
• About the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module
• Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module FAQ
• Entering Midterm or Final Grades
• Importing Grades
• Exporting Grades

1. How do I get to the progress report and/or final grade entry page?
2. What do I do once I get to the progress report and/or final grade entry page?
3. How can I see a list of students in my class?
4. When does the final grade entry window open?
5. When are final grades due?
6. If I am teaching a short session course during a Summer Semester, when are my final grades due?
7. Must thesis (7000- and 9000-level) grades be entered?
8. Am I required to enter progress report grades?
9. When are progress report grades due?
10. I think I have entered my progress report and/or final grades, but I am not sure. How do I check?
11. If I enter my grades on T-Square do I also have to enter them in Banner?
12. Where can I find instructions for uploading my grades from a spreadsheet?
13. I missed the deadline to enter my final grades. How can I enter my final grades now?
14. I missed the deadline to enter my progress report grades. How can I enter my progress report grades now?
15. Can I change an Incomplete (I) or Not Reported (NR) final grade from a prior term online?
16. Do I have to enter the Last Date of Participation field when entering final grades?
17. I still have questions, whom do I contact?

1. How do I get to the progress report and/or final grade entry page?

• Log into BuzzPort
• On the "Faculty" tab locate the "Faculty Toolkit" panel
• Select the "Registration (OSCAR)" link
• Select "Faculty Services"
• Make your selection from the menu options

2. What do I do once I get to the progress report and/or final grade entry page?

• Select the appropriate grade for each student from the drop-down list in the "Grade" column
• Enter "Last Date of Participation" for any student assigned "F" or "I" grades

3. How can I see a list of students in my class?

• Log into BuzzPort
• On the "Faculty" tab locate the "Faculty Toolkit" panel
• Select the "Registration (OSCAR)" link
• Select "Faculty Services"
• Select the "Summary Class List" option

4. When does the final grade entry window open?

It opens at 8:00 am on the Monday of final exam week.

5. When are final grades due?

Grades are always due by noon on the Monday following final exam week

6. If I am teaching a short session course during a Summer Semester, when are my final grades due?

There is no separate grade entry for short session courses. Grades for short session courses are due at the same time as regular session courses, by noon on the Monday following exam week.

7. Must thesis (7000- and 9000-level) grades be entered?

Yes. All grades must be entered online.

8. Am I required to enter progress report grades?

Yes, if you are teaching a 1000- or 2000-level course. Satisfactory (S) or Unsatisfactory (U) grades must be entered for all students in 1000- and/or 2000-level courses.

9. When are progress report grades due?

See the Academic Calendar.

10. I think I have entered my progress report and/or final grades, but I am not sure. How do I check?

• Log into BuzzPort
• On the "Faculty" tab locate the "Faculty Toolkit" panel
• Select the "Registration (OSCAR)" link
• Select "Faculty Services"
• Select the "Summary Class List" option
• Check if your grades are posted in the "Final" column

11. If I enter my grades on T-Square do I also have to enter them in Banner?

No. If you enter your grades in T-Square, they are automatically moved to Banner. However, you must enter "Last Date of Participation" in Banner for any students assigned "F" or "I" final grades

12. Where can I find instructions for uploading my grades from a spreadsheet?

• Log into BuzzPort
• On the "Faculty" tab locate the "Faculty Toolkit" panel
• Select the "Registration (OSCAR)" link
• Select "Faculty Services"
• Select "Upload Your Grades From a File" option
• Select "Grade Upload Help Information"

13. I missed the deadline to enter my final grades. How can I enter my final grades now?

You cannot enter the grades on-line. You must complete a pink grade change form for each student. Blank forms can be obtained from the academic office of your department.

14. I missed the deadline to enter my progress report grades. How can I enter my progress report grades now?

You cannot enter the grades on-line. You must individually notify each student in your 1000/2000 level classes as to their progress in your class.

15. Can I change an Incomplete (I) or Not Reported (NR) final grade from a prior term online?

No. You must complete a Grade Change Form for each student. Blank forms can be obtained from the academic office of your department.

16. Do I have to enter the Last Date of Participation field when entering final grades?

The "Last Date of Participation" field should only be entered for students assigned an "F" or "I" final grade. The date should be the last date on which the student either attended class or demonstrated "participation" in the class in some way such as turning in homework, turning in a paper, or taking an exam or quiz. Use whatever the most recent date was when the student indicated some form of participation in the class.

17. I still have questions, whom do I contact?

The Registrar's Office is eager to help you.

Email the Registrar's Office

Authoritative information regarding grades and grade point averages is published in the Catalog.

Catalog: Rules & Regulations V

Effective September 17, 1973

Faculty are encouraged to review the policy on the use of the Incomplete grade in the GT Catalog.

catalog.gatech.edu/rules/5

Faculty are advised that Incomplete grades should not be granted lightly. It may not be in the student's best interest to carry Incomplete grades into the next term. Faculty should consider the following factors very carefully before agreeing to assign an Incomplete grade.

Acceptable reasons for assigning an "I" would include, but not be limited to, the following:

• Personal illness of the student
• Personal/family emergency (death in family, serious illness in family, birth of child, etc.)
• Technical issues such as loss of research data, laptop failure, etc.
• Interruptions to internet access
• Disruptive situations in the area where the student and/or their family is located
• Disruptive employment situations

If the faculty member feels that it is appropriate/needed, they can ask the student to provide documentation of the extenuating circumstances to the Dean of Students office. Depending on the faculty member's awareness of the student's circumstances and level of comfort with the reasons the student is giving for needing an Incomplete, the Dean of Students involvement may be advisable. Medical documentation should be provided to the Dean of Students office to limit the proliferation of HIPAA-protected information.

The Dean of Students office may already be aware of the student and their circumstances and may already have information or documentation that would be sufficient to support an Incomplete grade.

• If not, the Dean of Students office would gather information from the student about the circumstances and then determine what kind of documentation would be needed.
• Faculty should contact the Dean of Students office with related questions.

The IJ grade is used to denote an incomplete grade due to pending Office of Student Integrity investigations. It cannot be assigned by the faculty member in the grading system.

Other factors that should be considered and general guidance:

• The reason for the "I" grade should be non-academic in nature.
• The student must have been doing satisfactory work (i.e., passing the course) up to the point where the "I" grade is requested.
• In general, Incomplete grades should be granted ONLY after at least 70% of the term and at least 70% of the course assignments have been completed.
• The amount of work needed to resolve the incomplete should be reasonable for the student to complete in the next term (e.g., a final exam or final paper). If the student is missing so much work that a passing grade could not have been assigned, a grade of "F" should be assigned.
• A student with an "I" grade in a course is not permitted to sit in on or register for the course again to resolve the "I" grade.
• The faculty member and the student must discuss and agree upon how the student will access course materials to make up the "I" grade when the request for the Incomplete is made.
• The instructor may also consider the type of assignments that were missed such as group presentations, group projects, laboratories, or other examples where it would be difficult to recreate the work or conditions for the work to be completed.
• An incomplete should not be granted so that a student can re-take a test, quiz, or exam to improve their grade.
• Discussions about a possible Incomplete grade for a student should not occur until late enough in the term when it can be determined that the student is passing and that they have successfully completed enough of the class to have a reasonable chance of making it up by the deadline.
• When completing a grade correction form to remove the "I" grade, the instructor is required to identify the non-academic reason that the "I" was given, not what the student was required to do to make up the work.
• Once a final grade is assigned to a course, it cannot be converted to an "I" (Incomplete) grade. An "I" grade must be assigned as part of the final grading process.
• When a grade of "I" ("Incomplete") is assigned in a course, the "I" grade must be removed and the grade change reported by the end of the student's next academic term in residence or, if the student has not been enrolled, by the end of the academic term one calendar year from the date the incomplete was assigned.
• This deadline for the student to finish an Incomplete is strictly enforced. At the end of every semester, the Registrar's Office runs the "I to F" process. After an Incomplete has been converted to an "F" grade it will not be changed back to an Incomplete. At that point, the grade for the course is an "F."
• Students who receive a grade of "I" (Incomplete) should consult the Student Rules & Regulations VII of the Catalog regarding the length of time allowed to resolve the Incomplete.
  • An extension of the time needed to make up the missing assignments is possible but should be done only under extenuating circumstances beyond the student's control. School/College policies may vary. This is at the instructor's discretion, and they should consult with their School/College office before granting an extension of time to make up the Incomplete grade.
  • Acceptable reasons for allowing an extension of the deadline for resolving an Incomplete grade prior to its reversion to an F include:
    • The instructor is not available during the semester in which the make-up assignments are due.
    • The student is participating in a co-op or internship, is not actively enrolled in coursework for that semester, and is therefore unable to focus on resolving the Incomplete grade.
    • The instructor, for whatever reason, cannot continue working with the student on resolving the Incomplete grade and the School must assign a different instructor to work with the student.
    • The student continues to experience the illness or extenuating circumstances that warranted the Incomplete grade initially or if new extenuating circumstances occur. Updated documentation must be submitted to the Dean of Students Office.
  • If the issues continue beyond a calendar year a discussion with the student's academic advisor around a Petition to the Faculty to withdraw from the course should occur.
  • The reasonable time frame of an extension for making up an Incomplete grade is dictated by the professor, based on the assignments that are missing. The student must comply with it or be assigned the grade they have earned.
  • When the extension of the due date is approved, an exact date must be provided to the Registrar's Office such as "12-1-2022." This date is entered into an extension field in the SIS (Banner) which is what prevents the conversion of the Incomplete to a grade of F if not completed by the due date. The extension date must be reported directly to the Registrar's Office and can be entered only by authorized Registrar's Office staff.

Policy and Process

The Registrar's Office is responsible for processing all grade changes. The links below provide more information on the related Catalog policies. Faculty are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these policies to be aware of on bases and in what timeframes changes of grade are allowed. The policies also outline the use of the Incomplete grade and how that deficiency is removed. There are deadlines stated within the policies for these changes.

In order for a student to receive a grade change, the faculty member who taught the course must make the request through the online change of grade system. The Registrar's Office or the School office can provide the link. Once the request is entered through the online form, the designated official in the School/Program/College office reviews it and either approves it or contacts the faculty member for further information or to discuss it. Once the School/Program/College designated authority approves it, the change is in the queue for the Registrar's Office where it is again reviewed. If more information is needed, the Registrar's Office staff member reaches out to the faculty member. If not, the Registrar's Office approves the change, and makes the update to the student's record in the SIS (Banner).

The online grade change requests are reviewed as they come in and are processed at least once a week. There are times during the year, grading periods for example at the end of the term, when no grade changes can be made. Any requests received in this period of time until the system is again open for this action.

A grade of "NR" (Not Reported by the faculty member) is to be removed as soon as the faculty member can submit final grades and is only assigned in the case of an extreme emergency when the normal grading deadline cannot be met. Faculty should contact the Registrar's Office for assistance.

With the exception of grades changed via the grade substitution policy, only the final grade earned in a course for a given term is shown on the official transcript. The official transcript displays on the most recent grade assigned to a given course. Prior grades assigned to the course are tracked in the database but are not displayed on the official transcript. When a change of grade is made in the database, it is immediately reflected in the student's record and on the transcript. Academic standing, including Dean's List and Faculty Honors, are revised through 24-hour automated process when a change of grade occurs and are calculated at the end of the term when final grades are processed.

Guidance

• Faculty are encouraged to consider a change of grade only within the parameters that are outlined in the Catalog policy. Students should not be allowed to complete additional work after the term is over and the course is graded to try to improve their grade. This type of opportunity provided to some students and not others is inherently unfair. A student who is worried about their grade point average should speak with their academic advisors about their concerns. Grade substitution is sometimes an option for students to improve the GPA, for example.
• If an I grade has reverted to an F grade, the grade of record is an F, and it is not possible to convert it back to an I.
  • At this point, this is not about renegotiating an I grade; it's about whether a change of grade is appropriate to replace the I/F with a letter grade.
  • Unless the timeline for a change of grade to be possible has passed, the faculty member could agree to accept the missing work and file a change of grade. There should be some non-academic mitigating circumstances as to why the student did not make up the work for the Incomplete before it reverted to an F grade.
  • It is up to the faculty member to decide this, but it is strongly suggested that if the faculty member agrees to let the original work be made up, a specific due date for the work is set before the deadline for a change of grade expires. Faculty should contact their School/Program/College if they have questions.

Using the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

All midterm and final grades should be submitted through the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) module.

Selecting a Course to Grade in the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

3. Select the Midterm Grades or Final Grades tab.
4. Select a Course from the list of gradable courses.
5. Review information in the Course Details tab on the right.

Entering Midterm or Final Grades in the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

6. Select a student from the Enter Grades section of the page.
7. Review the information in the Student Details tab on the right side of the page.
8. Enter a grade for the selected student. Fill in the "Last Day of Participation" in the "Last Attend Date" for final grades of "F" and "I."
9. Repeat Steps 4 through 6 to continue selecting students and entering grades.
10. Save the changes.

Understanding How to Import Grades into the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

Grades for class rosters can be exported from the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) module using the options in the Tools menu.

The module includes a wizard for guiding users through the process of importing, including the mapping of columns.

Selecting a Course for which to Import Grades into the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

1. Select the Midterm Grades or Final Grades tab.
2. Select a Course from the list of gradable courses.
3. Select the Import option from the Tools menu.

Selecting a File to Be Imported into the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

1. Browse for a file to import by clicking "Browse."
2. Then, click "Upload."

Be sure the spreadsheet has a column for the "Last Day of Participation" for any student receiving a final grade of "F" or "I."

3. Select "Continue."

There are multiple worksheets in the spreadsheet file, choose one to import.

4. Preview the file by selecting the appropriate worksheet of the spreadsheet to import.

The "My spreadsheet has headers" indicator is checked by default. If there are no headeres, un-select the indicator.
Columns are sortable. To sort, click on the sorting arrows in the column headers.
Use the "Go Back" button to choose a different file or use the "Cancel" button to stop the process.

5. Click "Continue."

6. Use the dropdown selectors to map the spreadsheet columns to the module's columns.

The Student ID and either the Final Grade or Midterm Grade must be mapped for the "Continue" button to be active. Last Attend Date should be mapped to the column containing "Last Day of Participation" data. After reviewing the mapped columns, the user must click "Continue" to import the data. A green check mark appears atop the wizard for each column that has been mapped. Columns the user does not intend to import must be set to "Ignore." Use the "Go Back" button to choose a different file. Use the "Cancel" button to stop the process.

7. Select "Continue."
8. Review the data summary to see the data that will be imported, then click the "Import" button.

The summary lists the number of records that will be imported and the number of errors for records that will not be imported. Use the "Go Back" button to re-map the columns or view the import summary. Use the "Download the validation report" link to view an Excel spreadsheet with the error details by record. The default title for the validate report uses the term code, subject, course number, section number, and "_Validation_Report" in the file name. For example, 2018_02_Biomedical_Engineering_2201_Validation_Report.xls. You can save the validation report and download it to your desktop. You can correct any errors, save the document, and start the import process again, if needed.

9. The Notification Center displays the number of records imported successfully and saved as well as the number of unchanged records that were not imported. Click "Finished."

After grades are imported, the information in the Course Details area is updated, and it gives the number of grades (Midterm or Final) still yet to be entered. The bar under Grading Status will be completely green if all grades have been entered.

Understanding How to Export Grades from the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

Grades for class rosters can be exported from the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) module using the options in the Tools menu.

The module includes a wizard for guiding users through the process of exporting. The files exported from the module are spreadsheet files in Microsoft Excel's ".xls" or ".xlsx" format. These files are designated as "Read Only" at first, but they can be saved using the "Save As" command and then renamed, allowing editing.

Selecting a Course for which to Export Grades from the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

1. Select the Midterm Grades or Final Grades tab.
2. Select a Course from the list of gradable courses.
3. Select the Export Template option from the Tools menu.

4. To increase the number of records shown, adjust the "Per Page" selector.

Exporting Grades from the Banner Faculty Grade Entry (FGE) Module

1. Select the export file type as Excel (.xls or .xlsx). Then click "Export."
2. Open the file in the default application: Microsoft Excel.

The default file name uses the term code, subject, course number, section number, and "_Template."
For example: 201802_Biomedical Engineering_2210_Template.xls

3. Review the exported date in the spreadsheet file.

The file is "read only." You can use the "Save As" command and rename the file in order to edit it. Do not change the student ID.