2.0 Course Evaluation
2.1 Credit
To obtain credit in a course, students must meet all the course requirements for attendance, term work and examinations as published in the course outline.
2.2 The Course Outline
The instructor is required to provide to the students of each course a formal statement called the course outline. The course outline must be given to the students before the last date for course changes, in a document distributed in class or posted at the class Web site.
The course outline must specify all the elements that will contribute to the final grade, and the weighting of each element.
The course outline may specify requirements that must be satisfied for the student to be eligible to write the final examination or the deferral of the final examination. If no such conditions are explicitly mentioned in the course outline, all students are eligible to write the final examination or, where circumstances warrant, to apply to the Registrar's Office for deferral of the final examination.
The course outline may also specify the requirements imposed on those auditing a course, including attendance, to successfully complete the audit.
2.2.1 Early Feedback Guideline
Providing feedback to students on academic work, completed or in progress, is an integral part of teaching and learning in that it allows students to measure their understanding of material, the success of their learning strategies, and their progress on learning objectives. While the nature and frequency of such feedback will vary with the course and level, Carleton University is committed to providing students with appropriate and timely feedback on their work. Accordingly, wherever possible, and especially in first and second year courses, instructors are urged to include academic work that is assigned, evaluated and returned prior to the 25th teaching day of each term. More generally, all instructors are urged to include academic work that is assigned, evaluated and returned prior to the 40th teaching day of each term.
The spirit of this guideline should be followed during the summer term. In particular, all instructors are urged to include academic work that is assigned, evaluated, and returned at least two days prior to the last day to withdraw from the course in Early Late, or Full Summer term.
Course outlines should provide an indication of approximately when the first graded piece of work will be returned to students. In cases where a course does not lend itself to early feedback, this should be clearly noted on the course outline.
2.3 Standing in Courses/Grading System
Standing in a course is determined by the course instructor, subject to the approval of the faculty Dean. Standing in courses will be shown by alphabetical grades. The system of grades used, with corresponding grade points is:
| A+ | 12 | B+ | 9 | |
| A | 11 | B | 8 | |
| A- | 10 | B- | 7 | |
| C+ | 6 | D+ | 3 | |
| C | 5 | D | 2 | |
| C- | 4 | D- | 1 | |
| F | 0 |
Grade points indicated above are for courses with 1.0 credit value. Where the course credit is greater or less than one credit, the grade points are adjusted proportionately.
The following percentage equivalents apply to all final grades at Carleton:
| A+ | 90-100 | B+ | 77-79 | |
| A | 85-89 | B | 73-76 | |
| A- | 80-84 | B- | 70-72 | |
| C+ | 67-69 | D+ | 57-59 | |
| C | 63-66 | D | 53-56 | |
| C- | 60-62 | D- | 50-52 | |
| F | 0-49 |
Grade points indicated above are for courses with 1.0 credit value. Where the course credit is greater or less than one credit, the grade points are adjusted proportionately.
Other grades and notations in current use by the university are as follows:
| F | Failure. The grade of F is assigned when the student has failed to meet the conditions of “satisfactory performance” defined in the Course Outline. F carries 0.0 grade points. |
| FND | Failure with no deferred final examination allowed. The grade FND is assigned only when the student has failed the course on the basis of inadequate term work as specified in the Course Outline. FND carries 0.0 grade points. |
| ABS | Absent from a required final examination. ABS is assigned only when the student is absent from the required final examination and has achieved satisfactory performance during the term as specified in the course outline. ABS is equivalent to an F and is carries 0.0 grade points. |
| AEG | Aegrotat . Pass standing is granted under special circumstances by an academic appeal committee, in response to an application from or on behalf of a student, on the basis of course work when no further assessment is considered feasible. AEG has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| AUD | Audit. No academic credit. Indicates the course was not taken for academic credit, but that the student has the permission of the instructor to audit the course and has satisfied the conditions for successful audit of the course. AUD has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| DNC | Did not complete the course. No academic credit or impact on the CGPA calculation. In credit courses, the notation DNC is assigned by the appropriate appeal committee in the case of a student, who, having achieved satisfactory performance during the term, and has been granted a deferred final examination in the course then is unable to write the deferred examination due to continued and documented personal or medical reasons. In the case of audited courses, DNC is assigned by the instructor when the student has registered to audit the course and has not satisfied the requirements for successful audit. |
| CTN | Continuing. This notation is assigned by the Registrar's Office only to the first half of a course taught as consecutive sections over two terms. |
| WDN | Withdrawn. No academic credit. WDN has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| CH | Credit granted under challenge for credit policy. CH has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| UCH | Unsuccessful attempt for CH. UCH has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| SAT | Satisfactory performance in an ungraded program requirement or option. SAT has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| UNS | Unsatisfactory performance in an ungraded program requirement or option or course taken on a Letter of Permission. UNS has no impact on the CGPA calculation. |
| CUR | Current registration. This interim notation is assigned only by the Registrar's Office, and indicates that the student is currently registered in this course. |
| GNA | Grade not available. This interim notation is assigned only by the Registrar's Office, and indicates that the grade for this course is not available. GNA is replaced with the appropriate grade for the course as soon as it is available. The following are interim notations that are, after due process, replaced with one of the grades above. |
| DEF | Final grade deferred for documented personal or medical conditions. DEF is an interim notation assigned by the Registrar's Office. DEF must be replaced by a grade within the prescribed time or it is replaced with an F. (See 2.5, Deferred Final Examinations.) |
| IP | In Progress. This interim notation is assigned only with the permission of the Registrar's Office when the final grade in a research thesis or project is not available before the deadline for grade submission. IP must be replaced by a grade within the prescribed time or re-registration in the course will be required, or the IP is replaced with an F. |
- The following notations are no longer in use by the University:
| FNS | Failure without access to a supplemental examination because of incomplete term work or unacceptably low standing. No academic credit. |
| FWS | Failure with access to supplemental examinations. |
2.3.1 A course is considered to be completed when the course registration results in a notation or grade other than WDN, DNC, IP, CTN or AUD.
2.3.2 A course is considered to be successfully completed if the course is completed with a passing grade, SAT, CH, or AEG.
2.4 Examination Regulations
Students writing tests and examinations should be aware of the rules governing examination conduct. These rules include those listed in the Academic Integrity section of this Calendar as well as those printed on the back cover of official examination booklets. Students may find the latter at carleton.ca/cu/programs/exam/ and section 14.0 of these Academic Regulations of the University.
For examinations scheduled during the official examination period, it may be necessary to schedule examinations during the day for classes held in the evening and vice versa or on Saturday.
All tests and examinations, except laboratory examinations, oral and slide tests and other particular tests, are subject to the following rules:
- Tests or examinations given in class may not exceed the time allotted for the class;
- Final examinations in the summer term will be held in official examination periods;
- In courses numbered below the 2000-level, if there is a final examination or an end of term examination in a multi-term course, this examination will be held in the official examination periods;
- In courses numbered below the 4000-level, no tests or examinations may be held during the last two weeks of fall, winter or summer terms, or between the end of classes in a term and the beginning of formally scheduled examinations;
- In courses below the 4000-level, take-home examinations may not be assigned before the last day of classes and are due on the last day of the official examination period;
- In courses at the 4000-level, arrangements for examinations outside the official examination period are at the instructor's discretion but must be announced at least three weeks in advance.
2.5 Deferred Final Examinations
Students who do not write or complete a final examination because of illness or other circumstances beyond their control may apply to write a deferred examination.
If a student becomes ill or receives word of an emergency during an examination and cannot complete the examination, he or she must hand in their answer books immediately to the proctor and request that their examination be cancelled. The examination must be cancelled by the proctor in order for the student to be eligible to apply for a deferral.
In both cases, the application for a deferral must:
- be made in writing to the Registrar's Office no later than five working days after the original final examination or the due date of the take-home examination; and
- be fully supported by appropriate documentation and in cases of illness by a medical certificate dated no later than one working day after the examination or by appropriate documents in other cases. Medical documents must specify the date of the onset of the illness, the (expected) date of recovery, and the extent to which the student was/is incapacitated during the time of the examination. The university's preferred medical form can be found at: carleton.ca/registrar/forms/Med_Cert_Carleton_University.pdf The granting of a deferral also requires that the student has performed satisfactorily in the course according to the evaluation scheme established in the Course Outline, excluding the final examination for which deferral privileges are requested. Reasons for denial of a deferral may include, among other conditions, a failure to (i) achieve a minimum score in the course before the final examination; (ii) attend a minimum number of classes; (iii) successfully complete a specific task (e.g. term paper, critical report, group project, computer or other assignment); (iv) complete laboratory work; (v) successfully complete one or more midterms; or (vi) meet other reasonable conditions of successful performance.
Aegrotat standing may be considered for applicants for deferred finals but will be granted only if a substantial proportion of the term work has been completed and is of high quality.
Students will not be given a deferral of a deferred examination. Students granted a deferred final examination who are then unable to write the deferred final examination due to properly documented personal or medical conditions will receive one of the notations Aegrotat (AEG), Did Not Complete (DNC) or the grade F for the course as assigned by the appropriate appeal committee. AEG denotes a pass standing and is assigned only in cases where a substantial proportion of the term work has been completed and is at a high academic standard.
DNC denotes that the course has been neither passed nor failed and is assigned when satisfactory performance has been achieved during the term. In all other cases, the grade F is assigned. (see Standing in Courses, Section 2.3).
Students who have obtained approval for a deferred examination in a CUTV course will not have access to tapes for the course after the end of the academic term of the original course.
Deferred final examinations are scheduled in the time period approved by Senate, unless alternate arrangements are made with the instructor. Except for the special cases described below, deferred final examinations are held in February for fall term courses, in June for fall/winter and winter term courses and in October for summer term courses, except where such a delay will delay graduation.
The deferred examination schedule is altered for certain courses:
MATH 0007, MATH 0107, MATH 1005, MATH 1007, MATH 1107, MATH 1009, MATH 1119, MATH 2004, MATH 2007, MATH 2008, MATH 2009, MATH 2107, STAT 2507, STAT 2509, STAT 2605
For these courses, when the course is offered again the next term, the deferred final examinations are held in April for fall term courses, in December for summer term courses and, with the other deferred examinations, in June for winter term courses.
2.6 Deferred Term Work
In some situations, students are unable to complete a significant term assignment because of illness or other circumstances beyond their control, which forces them to delay submission of the work. If this happens late in the term, it may be necessary for the due date to be delayed beyond the deadline for reporting the course grades. The student should, in the first instance, consult with the course instructor. If a student is unable to submit an essential piece of term work in time for the determination of the final grade, the student may apply for a deferral of the assignment deadline. The application for deferred assignment must:
- be made in writing to the Registrar's Office no later than five working days after the last day of classes; and
- be fully supported in cases of illness by a medical certificate or by appropriate documents in other cases. Medical documents must specify the date seen, date of the onset of the illness, the (expected) date of recovery, and the extent to which the student was/is incapacitated during the time the assignment was to be prepared.
- Be supported by official confirmation of the assignment due date; for example, a copy of the course outline specifying the due date and any documented extensions from the course instructor. If the deferral of the assignment is approved, the student will receive the interim notation DEF, which will be replaced when the assignment been submitted and graded. The final dates for submission of deferred term assignments are the following, unless alternate arrangements are made with the instructor:
Fall-term courses: January 15
Fall/winter- and winter-term courses: May 15
Summer-term courses ending in June: July 15
Summer term courses ending in August: September 1
2.7 Review of Grades
Whenever possible, both during the term and after, concerns about the grading of student work should be settled informally between the student and the instructor. The protocols described here are the procedures to follow when this informal process cannot be followed. The outcome of a review may raise, lower or leave unchanged the original grade.
2.7.1 Definitions
Term work consists of any assigned course work that is returned to the student on or before the date when the term ends, as stated in the university's official schedule, provided in the Academic Year section of this Calendar. This date often differs from the last day of classes.
Final work is any assessed work received back later than this date. Final work includes, but is not limited to, final examinations.
2.7.2 Review of Grade for Term Work
A request for Review of Grade for Term Work is made to the instructor assigned to the course and the request can apply to any or all assignments, tests and other evaluations. The request must be made within 14 days of the day the grade is available to the student.
2.7.3 Review of Grade for Final Work
Students may request a Review of Grade for Final Work at the Registrar's Office. The course instructor conducts the Review of Grade for Final Work, or, if the instructor is not available, an alternate qualified reader designated by the chair or director. Check the Academic Year section of this Calendar for the application deadlines.
2.8 Appeal of a Grade
If the process of Review of Grade for Term Work or Final Work has not resolved the concerns, or if review is not appropriate, and where reasonable grounds exist which suggest error in the grade assigned by an instructor, then an appeal of the grade may be made to the dean of the faculty offering the course. The appeal is specific to the grade on a given piece of work, and more than one such grade may be appealed.
The dean, designated chair or director will, when reasonable grounds exit, assign assessment of the written or equivalent course work to at least one qualified reader other than the instructor. After due consultation, the dean, as chief academic officer of the faculty, will assign the grade. The outcome of the appeal may raise, lower or leave unchanged the original grade.
The appeal must be submitted to the Registrar's Office with full supporting documentation within 14 days of the completion of the review, or, if there was no review, within 14 days of receipt of the original grade.
2.9 Academic Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
Carleton University is strongly committed to providing access and accommodation for all individuals with identified and duly assessed disabilities. The university has a Senate-approved policy on academic accommodation that forms part of its Human Rights Policy. This policy should be consulted for further information and is available at: carleton.ca/equity. The policy promotes efforts to accommodate students with disabilities so that they will have the opportunity to meet learning objectives and be fairly evaluated in their performance. In no case, however, does academic accommodation negotiate away, lower, or remove the academic standards and learning objectives of any course or program, rule, regulation, or policy at the university.
The Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities is the designated unit at the university for assisting the Carleton community in integrating persons with disabilities into all aspects of Carleton's academic and community life. The Paul Menton Centre provides assessment of academic accommodation, advises students on strategies to open a dialogue with instructors and acts as consultant, facilitator, coordinator and advocate in this area for all members of the university community.
The Paul Menton Centre provides individualized support services, based on appropriate and up to date documentation, to persons who are deaf or hard of hearing, with learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder (ADD), visual impairments, head injuries, physical disabilities including mobility impairments, or who have psychiatric, other medical or non-visible disabilities.
Students are responsible for applying for special services by making an appointment with the appropriate coordinator at the Paul Menton Centre. All requests will be considered on the basis of individual need. Students are advised to come to the Centre early in the term to discuss service requests.
Examination accommodations for all tests and examinations (in-class, CUTV, or formally scheduled) must be arranged by specific deadline dates. Please consult the Paul Menton Centre for a list of deadlines for all examinations. Accommodation requests not made prior to the specified deadlines will not be fulfilled.
2.10 Academic Accommodation for Students with Religious Obligations
Carleton University accommodates students who, due to religious obligation, must miss an examination, test, assignment deadline, laboratory, or other compulsory event. The University has a Senate-approved policy on religious accommodation that forms part of its Human Rights Policy, available at: carleton.ca/equity.
Accommodation will be worked out directly and on an individual basis between the student and the instructor(s) involved. Students should make a formal written request to the instructor(s) for alternative dates and/or means of satisfying requirements. Such requests should be made during the first two weeks of any given academic term*, or as soon as possible after a need for accommodation is known to exist, but in no case later than the penultimate week of classes in that term. Instructors will make reasonable accommodation in a way that shall avoid academic disadvantage to the student.
Students unable to reach a satisfactory arrangement with their instructor(s) should contact the Director of Equity Services. Instructors who have questions or wish to verify the nature of the religious event or practice involved should also contact this officer.
*When a student's presence is required prior to the date on which classes begin (e.g. for field trips or orientation activities), any student who cannot meet this expectation of attendance for reasons of religious accommodation should notify the Registrar's Office in advance.