• Grading System
• Incomplete Grades
• Credit/No Credit Option
• Change of Grades

Grading System

Solano College uses the following letter grade system for evaluating the quality of students' work:

A grade point average (GPA) is determined by dividing the total number of grade points earned by the total units attempted, excluding credit/no-credit courses and those in which W or I grades are earned. (Example: 36 grade points divided by 12 units attempted equals 3.0 GPA/B average.)

Incomplete Grades
An incomplete grade may be assigned only when a student has failed to complete the final examination, a class project, or a term paper because of illness or severe personal problems. Incomplete work must be completed by the end of one calendar year.

When such conditions exist, the instructor and student must complete an “Incomplete Grade Contract” which outlines the work to be completed within one calendar year to result in an agreed-upon grade and states a preliminary grade which represents the grade earned by the student in work completed. When the work has been completed as outlined on the contract, the instructor will forward a “Change of Grade” card to the Division Dean. If the instructor of the course is no longer on campus, the manager will make arrangements to change the incomplete grade.

Students may not re-enroll in a course where they have an Incomplete Grade. Students who do not complete the contract will be assigned a grade at the end of one calendar year.

Credit/No Credit Option
The purpose of the credit/no-credit option is to encourage students to take challenging courses for electives outside the major area while avoiding undue concern for grades in competition with students who may be better prepared.

The CR grade represents a letter grade of A, B, or C. The NC grade represents a D or F letter grade. Units earned in the grading system are not used in computing grade point averages. A letter grade cannot be changed to a credit/no-credit grade, and a credit/no-credit grade cannot be changed to a letter grade unless the course is repeated. A course in which a grade of NC has been earned may be repeated once for a CR or letter grade. Some courses are offered only on a CR/NC grading basis and letter grades may not be earned in these courses. These courses are identified in the Course Descriptions section of the Catalog.

Students may request CR/NC grades in any regular graded class offered by the College but they are limited to a total of 15 semester units under the CR/NC option while attending Solano College. In order to exercise this option, a petition must be filed with the Office of Admissions and Records at the time of registration, or by the FIFTH week of the semester for a full semester course. Petitions for summer session and short-term courses must be filed within the first thirty percent of the course.

Students should be aware that other colleges and universities may be reluctant to accept CR/NC grades. Students should not take the CR/NC option in their major fields of study.

Change of Grades
Students requesting a change of grade must initiate the request within one year after completing the course for which the grade change is being requested. After this period, if there are extenuating circumstances, a change of grade may be requested; however, the period for requesting a grade change may not exceed four years after the completion of the course.

Students should submit a request in writing directly to the faculty member within one year after completing the course for which the grade change is being requested. If the faculty member is not available, the request should be submitted through the appropriate Division Dean; however, only the faculty member that assigned the original grade may authorize a change of grade.

Important Note: Except in the cases of mistake, fraud, bad faith, or incompetence, a grade assigned by an instructor is not a grievous issue as described by the California Education Code (Section 76224): “…when grades are given for any course of instruction taught in a community college district, the grade given to each student shall be the grade determined by the instructor of the course and the determination of the student’s grade by the instructor, and in the absence of mistake, fraud, bad faith, or incompetence, shall be final.”