Faculty Grade Submission

Effective August 25, 2017, there is a new method for submitting final grades. The new application is hosted within Eagle Service, but will still be accessed via the myAU portal (“Submit Final Grades” link).

The new application includes a process for faculty to create a contract with the student for any Incomplete grades awarded. For each Incomplete grade, the faculty member must specify the requirements that must be completed, the date the outstanding work is due, the default grade that will be awarded if the work is not completed, and the date that the default grade will replace the Incomplete.

If you have any questions during the grade submission process, please contact the Record Services team (record_services@american.edu) who are ready and able to assist you. 

How to Submit Final Grades

In Fall 2017, the university adopted a new final grade submission process.

1. Click on the "Submit Final Grades" link in the portal ( https://myau.american.edu).

2. You will be directed to the Eagle Service home page. Click on the "Faculty" section.

Eagleservice Faculty Button

3. From the available terms, you will select the section you want to grade.

List of sections with ECON-200-005 in focus.

4. Once you select your section, click on the "Grading" tab.

Section details. ECON-200-005. Grading tab in focus.

5. On the Grading tab, you MUST click on the "Submit Final Grades" link in order to enter grades. The default view is the roster overview, not the grade submission page.

Section details. ECON-200-005. Grading. Submit Final Grades in focus.

6. Once you click on the "Submit Final Grades" section, you will be able to enter grades on a student-by-student basis using the drop-down grade selector.

Submit Final Grades

. Column Headers: Student Name, Student ID, Never Attended, Last Date of Attendance, Final Grade.

The student's name and Student ID# will populate from the section. Select a Final Grade from the drop-down list of available grades. Pass/Fail classes now require the selection of a letter grade. Both the undergraduate and graduate academic regulations specify a minimum grade threshold to achieve a passing grade. Once the appropriate letter grade for the performance in the class is selected, the system will translate the grade to either a P or an FZ, based on the letter grade selected and academic level associated with the class.

If you select an FX grade (administrative fail), you will be required to enter either a Last Date of Attendance or check the “Never Attended” box. Administrative fail is assigned by the instructor in lieu of a grade of F when a student never attended or ceased attending the class, rendering an assessment of academic performance impossible. If awarding an FX, select the FX grade from the drop-down menu before checking “Never Attended” or placing a last date of attendance. If you accidentally check “Never Attended” before selecting FX, uncheck it, and then place the FX grade. For students taking the class Pass/Fail, FX will be converted to a ZX.

Faculty who award an Incomplete (I grade) must enter a date in the "Incomplete Grade Expire Date" column and complete the Incomplete Grade Contract via the Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration section in Eagle Service (additional instructions below). For your convenience, here are links to the Undergraduate Academic Regulations (section 3.5) and the Graduate Academic Regulations (section 3.7) regarding the assignment of incompletes.

For select courses, faculty may award an IP (In Progress). This option will only appear for IP-eligible courses. Unlike Incompletes, once an IP has been awarded, the final grade can only be placed via the Grade Change Request under “Academics” in the MyAU portal.

Grades entered into the Faculty Grade Submission application are immediately written to the student information system. For this reason, do not enter grades as "practice" or until you are ready to enter grades for the entire section.

How to Post an Incomplete Grade Contract

If you have awarded a grade of I - Incomplete to any student, you must complete an Incomplete Grade "contract" for that student. To do so, click on the "Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration" link on the Eagle Service landing page.

Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration. Here you can view any incomplete grades you have assigned to your students.

There are two sections on the Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration page. At the top of the page is where you complete the contract for newly awarded Incomplete grades in the "Post Incomplete Grade Contracts" section.

Post Incomplete Grades Contracts. The student's default grade will become the final grade once the expiration date has passed.

The first six columns populate from the Final Grades Submission process:

Student Name, Student ID, Section, Term, Acad. Level, Final Grade

The Default Grade is the grade that the student will earn if the student does not complete the requirements in the timeline specified in the Incomplete Grade Contract. Select the default grade using the drop-down grade picker.

Default Grade. Select Grade (dropdown).

The Work Due Date is the date by which the student must complete all outstanding requirements and submit them to the faculty member for grading. This date should be far enough in advance of the Incomplete Grade Expire Date to allow for appropriate evaluation and grading.

Work Due Date. mm/dd/yyyy (field).

The Incomplete Grade Expire Date is the date that the currently selected Default Grade will be posted to the student information system. The grade will default to the end of the following semester, but can be adjusted by the faculty member.

Incomplete Grade Expire Date. mm/dd/yyyy (field).

In the Work To Be Completed box, please detail any outstanding requirements the student must complete. Provide detailed instructions for the student including:

  • Specific details of what assignments are outstanding
  • Meeting dates/times/frequency between student and instructor
  • Details about any equipment or space the student will need to complete the assignments
  • Detailed instructions about how to submit the outstanding assignments The more detail the faculty can provide in this space, the better it will be for students and faculty alike.

Work to be Completed. Please detail the outstanding requirements to be completed (field).

Post Incomplete Grades

The second section of the form, "Pending Incomplete Grades Overview" is in the lower half of the page and lists all of the open Incomplete grades you have awarded.

Pending Incomplete Grades Overview. The students whom you have assigned a grade of 'I' (Incomplete) to are listed below. Show 10 entries.

For each student, you will see the following standard information:

Student Name, Student ID, Section, Term, Default Grade

Additionally, you will have the option of modifying the Work Due Date and the Incomplete Grade Expire Date.

Work Due Date. 11/08/2017. Incomplete Grade Expire Date. 11/22/2017.

How to Change an Incomplete Grade to a Final Grade

When the student has submitted the specified work and you are ready to post a final grade, use the "Update Final Grade" button to change the Default Grade to the Final Grade.

Update Final Grade

Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration. Update Final Grade. Select a grade from the drop-down list and click Post Final Grade.

The student's ID, name, the number of credits and academic level will be displayed.

Column headers ID, Name, Final Grade, Credit, Acad Level

Use the drop-down selector to report the final grade. The final grade should be determined following the evaluation of any work submitted by the student as part of the Incomplete Grade contract.

Final Grade. Select Grade...

Once you select the final grade, click on the "Post Final Grade" button. The grade will be submitted to the student information system and the Incomplete Grade Contract will be removed from your view in the Faculty Incomplete Grades Administration section.

Post Final Grade. Cancel.

Grading System

The grading system has changed over time. To view grading practices over time, view the tabs below. 

Selected
2012 - Present
1978 - 2012
1970 - 1978
Before 1970

Grading System from Fall 2012 to Present

Present Grading System

Grade:

Quality Points (QP):

A (Excellent)

4.00

A-

3.67

B+

3.33

B (Good)

3.00

B-

2.67

C+

2.33

C (Satisfactory)

2.00

C-

1.67

D (Poor)

1.00

F (Academic Fail)

0.00

FX (Administrative Fail in Course for Grade)

0.00

ZX (Administrative Fail in Pass/Fail Course)

0.00

FZ (Academic Fail in Pass/Fail Course)

0.00

Academic Fail: Academic Fail indicates the student's continued enrollment in the course and he or she did not satisfy the instructor's summative requirements for passing the course.
Administrative Fail: Administrative fail is assigned by the instructor in lieu of a grade of F when a student never attended or ceased attending the class, rendering an assessment of academic performance impossible. Instructors will be asked to provide the last date of attendance.

Additional Posting Symbols for Grades in Courses

R = Follows grade entry indicating course has been repeated
N = No grade or invalid grade submitted (assigned by the academic unit or appropriate administrative officer when an expected final grade has not been received before the grade posting deadline. The academic unit and the registrar are expected to secure an appropriate final grade within one semester.)
IP = Course in progress
I* = The instructor of record may assign an Incomplete status for a grade when extenuating circumstances prevent a student, who has otherwise completed the majority of the work in the course, from completing all work during the stated instructional period. The grade will appear on the student transcript as an "I*" where "*" is the default grade that will be assigned to the course if the student does not submit any further work by the contracted deadline (for example: IB+, IC-, ID, IF, etc.).
 

Calculating GPA

To calculate the cumulative grade point average, divide the sum of the quality points by the sum of semester hours. The graduate cumulative grade point average contains only graduate-level courses.

Grading System from Fall 1978 through Summer 2012

Grading System 1978F - 2012S

Grade:

4 Point-System Quality Points: 3 Point-System* Quality Points:  

A (Excellent)

4.0

3

A-

3.7

 

B+

3.3

 

B (Good)

3.0

2

B-

2.7

 

C+

2.3

 

C (Satisfactory)

2.0

1

C-

1.7

 

D (Poor)

1.0

0

F (Failure)

0.00

-1

* The 3-point system was used prior to Fall 1970.

Note: There is no official percentile equivalent for grads at American University.

Grades not calculated in the grade point average:

I Incomplete

IP In progress

L Audit

N No grade reported or invalid grade

P Pass**

W Withdrawal (after first two weeks of semester)**

ZF Fail on pass/fail option

ZL Administrative withdrawal from audit

ZX Fail (administrative penalty) on pass/fail option

*Incompletes: Before Fall 1980, an Incomplete could stand as a permanent grade. Effective Fall 1980, an Incomplete may no longer stand as a permanent grade. The Incomplete Contract between student and instructor includes a default grade specified by the instructor; this grade is recorded as the final grade should the student fail to submit the outstanding work by the end of the following semester.

**Pass: indicates a quality of performance no less than C for undergraduates or B for graduate students on a conventional grading scale.

Discontinued

R Repeated course (follows the grade). Reinstated Fall 2012

S Satisfactory

U Unsatisfactory

WF Withdrawal failing

WP Withdrawal passing

Z No grade reported (on pass/fail option)

Grading System From Fall 1970 through Fall 1978

Transcripts include undergraduate courses taken under the course unit system. Total all the course units and multiply by four, and then add to the total number of semester hours:

GPA = quality points divided by semester hours + (course units x 4)

Grading System Before Fall 1970

A 3-point grading scale was used. Also all work attempted (as distinct from satisfactorily completed) was included in the calculation as "hours attempted."

To combine the 3-point and 4-point systems, the following formula is used:

GPA = [quality points + hours attempted (3 point system) + quality points (4-point system)] divided by [hours attempted (3-point system) + hours attempted (4-point system)]