Grades for all courses taken prior to Fall 2001 appear either as one of 15 letter grades from A+ through F- or as numeric marks from 0 to 100.
Effective Fall 2001, numeric grades on a scale from 0-100 are used by all faculties.
Averages are reported in all faculties as percentages. Average calculation values are used for calculating overall averages for students with letter grades on their records.
The following conversion scale applies for Waterloo courses taken prior to Fall 2001 and Wilfrid Laurier University (Laurier) courses with a letter grade.
| Assigned Letter Grades |
Average Calculation Values |
| A+ |
95 |
| A |
89 |
| A- |
83 |
| B+ |
78 |
| B |
75 |
| B- |
72 |
| C+ |
68 |
| C |
65 |
| C- |
62 |
| D+ |
58 |
| D |
55 |
| D- |
52 |
| F+ |
46 |
| F |
38 |
| F- |
32 |
Non-numeric Grades
| Grade |
Description |
Average Calculation Value |
| AEG |
Aegrotat, credit granted due to illness or extenuating circumstances
|
not applicable |
| AUD |
Audit only, no credit granted |
not applicable |
| CR |
Credit granted |
not applicable |
| DNW |
Did not write examination, no credit granted |
32 |
| IP |
Course in progress, no grade assigned at this time and no credit granted |
not applicable |
| MM |
Missing mark, no credit granted |
not applicable |
| NCR |
No credit granted, failure recorded |
not applicable |
| NG |
In progress grade |
not applicable |
| NMR |
No mark reported, no credit granted |
32 |
| RPL |
Supplemental grade confirming a failed course has been replaced by a suitable alternative passed course |
not applicable |
| UR |
Grade under review or disciplinary proceedings underway, decision pending, no credit granted.
Note: Where disciplinary penalties are being considered or have been imposed for an academic offense committed in a course, the student may not drop the course in question. The student is responsible for all course material and assignments until the case is resolved. |
not applicable |
| WD |
Withdrew after the drop deadline, no credit granted |
not applicable |
| WF |
Withdrew/Failure, no credit granted |
32 |
INC
An INC should only be assigned when an instructor-student agreement for completion of outstanding course element(s) is in place.
All assessment components for a course are to be completed during the term in which the course is taken. In exceptional circumstances, an instructor may grant a student an extension for specific outstanding course element(s), given credible documentation has been submitted by the student1. The instructor will determine completion dates for outstanding course element(s) within a maximum lapse period of one year from the fully graded date of the term in which the course was offered. An INC agreement will specify the earned grade to-date and the course element(s) to be completed.
A grade of INC will remain until the outstanding course element(s) have been graded or the lapse period has expired.
When the lapse period has expired, the INC reverts to the:
- earned grade, based on all completed course element(s), OR
- if the syllabus for the course specified that the missing coursework was required to pass the course, the lesser of:
- the earned grade or 4% less than the passing grade.
1 If the circumstance is related to a documented disability, students are encouraged to connect with AccessAbility Services in order to protect their privacy.
FTC
Failure to complete course requirements, no credit granted. Counts as 32 in average calculations.
Changes to Official Grades on a Student's Record
Official grades are released to students each term in accordance with the Calendar of Events and Academic Guidelines. A change to an official grade can result from one of the following circumstances:
- Instructors may change a grade in response to a student's completion of coursework as defined in an INC agreement or request for reassessment of submitted coursework. Grade changes of this nature must be submitted by instructors within one year of the term's fully graded date, in accordance with the Document Retention Schedule for Examination Papers and Course Assignments.
- After the one-year period, official grades may only be changed as the result of policy-related processes, such as student petitions or challenges (Policy 70), student discipline decisions (Policy 71), and/or student appeals (Policy 72).
Any grade change will result in the re-calculation of all averages and reassessment of academic standings and/or graduation eligibility. Until a grade change is granted, the student record will remain unchanged and academic advice provided will be based on the existing record. Students should be aware that a pending grade change may impact their tuition fees, financial aid eligibility, and subsequent studies.
Unit Weights and Degree Requirements
Courses are assigned unit weights, which vary from 0.25 to 1.0 credit or more. Most one-term courses have a 0.5 unit weight except for lab courses, which are generally 0.25 unit each.
Course unit weights are used to calculate weighted averages as well as the tuition fees payable for the term. Part-time students especially should be aware of this fact when choosing courses.
Students should read individual Faculty regulations carefully to be sure that degree requirements are understood and met in the manner required.