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for students to view. Professors report mid-term assessments for all first-year students and for
upper-division students whose grade is “C-" or below or "U."
Final grades are due as soon as possible after final examinations. Consult the academic calendar
for exact dates. All grades should be carefully checked; once they are recorded they should not
be changed unless they are in error. The College's grading guidelines appear below. Additional
information appears in the
Catalog
. The assigning of "plus" and "minus" is College policy; the
following rounded ranges are suggestions.
Letter Grade
Qual.Pts.
MidPoint % Actual Lower Limit %
Rnd. Range
A
4.00
96.67
93.34
93 - 100
A-
3.67
91.67
90.00
90 - 92
B+
3.33
88.33
86.67
87 - 89
B
3.00
85.00
83.33
83 - 86
B-
2.67
81.67
80.00
80 - 82
C+
2.33
78.33
76.67
77 - 79
C
2.00
75.00
73.33
73 - 76
C-
1.67
71.67
70.00
70 - 72
D+
1.33
68.33
66.67
67 - 69
D
1.00
65.00
60.00
60 - 66
F
0.00
<60
IV.D. GRADE APPEALS
Birmingham-Southern College supports the academic freedom of faculty members in assigning
students a final grade. If a student believes an error has been made in the calculation or
recording of a final grade, he or she should immediately alert the professor. Beyond such errors,
a formal appeal of a
final
grade is granted only when there is
clear and convincing
evidence
that the final grade was "arbitrary and capricious, irrational," or "made in bad faith" [Susan M. v.
New York Law School, 556 N.E. 2nd 1104, 1107 (1990), 76 N.Y. 2nd 241, 557 N.Y.S. 2nd
297]. Students should understand that an allegation that a final grade was arbitrary and
capricious, irrational, or made in bad faith is a
serious
charge and should not be made
unadvisedly.
If a student wishes to appeal a final grade, he or she must contact the professor no later than 30
calendar days after the beginning of the next regular term. If this consultation fails to resolve the
issue, the student may contact the appropriate department chair, who will then contact the
professor concerned. If the complaint remains unsettled, the student may contact the appropriate
area chair next. If the matter is still unresolved, the student may file a written appeal with the
Provost on a form provided by the Office of Academic Affairs. After reviewing the appeal, the
Provost, at his or her discretion, may deny the appeal or may request that the Faculty Advisory
Committee select a three-person committee from the full-time Faculty of the College. Two
members of this committee must come from the academic area involved, and the third will come
from outside the academic area. The committee will determine its own procedures and review