05.05 Graduate Credit and Grading
Semester hours of credit are assigned to courses in accordance with the recommendations of the National Association of Schools of Music and the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. In general, one semester hour of credit is assigned for each class hour (contact hour) per week, per semester. In subjects requiring less outside preparation, or with ensemble registrations, two to four one-hour periods per week may be required for each hour of credit. Credit for applied music study is based upon the relationship of that study to the student's major field and the length of the lessons.
Grades for graduate studies are reported on one of the following three systems:
- Letter grades: "A" excellent; "A-"; "B+"; "B" good; "B-"; "C" poor; "E" failure
- "S" satisfactory; "E" failure
- "CR" credit; "NC" no credit
Note: a grade of "I" Incomplete may be awarded at the instructor's discretion when required coursework is outstanding at the end of the semester. The letter "I" will precede the final grade if all work is completed within the time frame agreed to by the instructor (for example: "IB+" or "ICR".) A final grade of "E" will be awarded if work is not completed by the specified deadline. In general, courses taken for a graduate degree at Eastman must receive a letter grade in order to count for degree credit. Exceptions involve the following registrations:
- Required registrations that carry no credit are to be graded on the "S/E" basis. These include degree recitals (ESM 401, 402, 405, 406, and 501- 506), as well as continuation registrations (ESM 985/995/999), and studio accompanying (ACY 100G). A grade of "E" is considered a failure and may cause the student to be placed on academic probation.
- Some required registrations that carry degree credit are graded on a "CR/NC" basis. These include thesis and dissertation registrations that may extend over several semesters. Thesis and dissertation credits should be graded with a "CR" if the student is making satisfactory progress. Other courses that may be graded "CR/NC" include: RPO management internship (ORC 421), study abroad (SAB 400), theory colloquium (TH 591), jazz department forum (JCM 491-2), and in some cases, Arts Leadership (ALC) courses not taken to fulfill degree requirements. A grade of "NC" is considered a failure and may cause the student to be placed on academic probation.
Exceptions to the above letter grade requirement must be approved by the Associate Dean of Graduate Studies. Minimum passing grades for graduate courses are "C" (except that "C" is considered a failure for a student on probation), "S", or "CR". See (Graduate Probation). (rev. 2/15/07)
Policy Handbook Table of Contents
Course Descriptions Index
Registrar Home