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Faculty Resources

Grading Policies

Determining final grades in English 126

Grading and English 126

The college-wide policies on grading can be found at the Grading Policies portion of the York College website.

As an instructor, aim to keep your grading as transparent as possible throughout the semester. Clearly identifying how grades are determined on your syllabus will offer clarity for your students. Fully document the basis for student grades.

End of Semester Considerations

The WU versus the F: Making distinctions

  • The WU is a grade given to a student who stops attending before the Final Exam. A student who disappears and does not make contact (or does not respond to contact) and who has not completed the work for the course should be given a WU.
  • An F should be given to a student who does not complete passing work for the course.
  • A student who completes all of the work for the class satisfactorily, but may have missed many classes should receive the relevant grade (A-D).
  • A student who takes the Final exam should receive the relevant grade based on the work (A-F), not a WU.

If you have questions about whether to assign an F or a WU to any given student, please reach out to the Writing Program Director, the Deputy Chair, or the Department Chair.

F Grades

The CUNY F-grade policy allows a student to retake courses with an F grade. If the retake grade is C or higher, the higher grade is computed in the GPA (up to a total of 16 credits). However, the F will remain on the student's transcript.

York no longer uses the NC grade in any course but SD110; therefore, all Fs recorded by instructors will be factored into a student’s GPA, and will be recorded on the transcript.

Incomplete (INC) Grades

INC grades are given at an instructor's discretion to students who have not taken the final examination or who have not completed all of their coursework because of extenuating circumstances.

If an INC is being assigned, the instructor should make an agreement with the student about what must be completed and when. All INC grades must be resolved by the 10th week of the following semester (the last date to submit a change of grade is always listed on the Academic Calendar).

We recommend that you assign INC grades sparingly, only when it is in the student’s best interest, and when you think the student has a reasonable chance of being able to complete the missing work. If you have any questions or doubts about whether to assign an INC grade, please do not hesitate to contact the Department Chair, Deputy Chair, or Writing Program Director for guidance.