Grades

At the semester's end, instructors submit a letter grade for each student in a course. This will be a letter grade unless the student completed the course on the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option. 

If, because of serious illness or other emergency, you cannot complete all the work for a course, you may request assignment of a grade of "I" (Incomplete) in a course.

If you fail to take a final exam in a course at the scheduled time, the instructor will record a grade of "X" (Absence From a Final Exam).  If you have a failing grade going into the exam, the instructor may submit a grade of F for the course.

An "N" indicates that no grade has been submitted. A detailed discussion of grades is available in the Bulletin of Undergraduate Instruction.

NOTE:  If you abandon or otherwise discontinue a course without authorization from your academic dean, University policy stipulates that the instructor is to submit a grade of F. 

If you receive low grades (Ds and Fs), it can result in an academic warning, academic probation, or academic withdrawal*. You are also at risk of not meeting Continuation Requirements**. A summary of the consequences of D and F grades is below.

A summary of the consequences of D, U, and F grades follows:

In the First Semester at Duke: 

In Any Other Semester:

In Course Work Completed in 1 or Both Duke Summer Sessions:

In Course Work Completed in 2 Consecutive Semesters:

*  In determining whether a student should be placed on academic warning or probation or dismissal for academic reason, a grade of U earned in a course is considered equivalent to a grade of F.  Regardless if the course is offered only as S/U or if the student elects to take it on an S/U basis. 

**  In determining fulfillment of Continuation Requirements, grades of "I" (Incomplete) and "X" (Absent From a Final Exam) are assigned to be failing grades until they are replaced by a permanent passing grade.

Last updated: May 28, 2014