Dear Colleagues
As we near final exams week, I would like to share important information regarding Incomplete grades. When assigning Incompletes, we ask that you please bear the following points in mind:
Students should always consult their academic advisor when considering an Incomplete grade. Advisors can help students understand how an Incomplete may impact future class schedules and progress toward graduation. Advisors can also inform students of other academic options that may be available. Please refer students to the undergraduate advising office for their college:
- College of Chemistry
- The College of Computing, Data Science, and Society
- College of Engineering
- College of Environmental Design
- College of Letters & Science
- Haas School of Business
- Rausser College of Natural Resources
Instructors should never assign an Incomplete grade unless the student has requested it, the student's work in the course has been of passing quality to date, and the class cannot be completed due to circumstances beyond the student’s control. If you do not know why a student has failed to submit a paper or take an exam, or why a student is not passing your course (i.e., you do not know whether the reasons are within or out of their control), you should not assign an Incomplete grade. Instead, you should assign the student the grade they have earned for the course with the missing coursework graded as zero.
Examples of circumstances beyond the student’s control include but are not limited to: death of a close relative, global events, major illness, and/or mental health crisis. If you are concerned for a student’s well-being or safety, please consult the Gold Folder for assistance and consider submitting a Care Report to the Center for Support and Intervention.
For students with pending conduct cases, instructors should use the Review Deferred (RD) option instead of assigning an Incomplete grade. RD is the appropriate grade placeholder for cases pending with the conduct office and should be used exclusively for student conduct-related matters. It is important to note that 'Incomplete' grades should not be used for resolving conduct cases. For students with pending conduct cases that have been or are going to be referred to the Center for Student Conduct or the Graduate Academic Misconduct Process for review, instructors should use the Review Deferred (RD) option instead of assigning an Incomplete grade. RD is the appropriate grade placeholder for pending conduct cases and should be used exclusively for student conduct-related matters.
Instructors who opt to assign an Incomplete grade should do the following:
- Inform the student in writing (or via your department or college’s contract form, if available) of the work they must complete;
- Establish a timeline that will enable you to grade their work in time to meet the deadlines listed below, and a means for the student to complete this work;
- Replace the student’s Incomplete on the grade roster in CalCentral with the final grade prior to the deadlines below. This should be done as quickly as possible once the student has completed the work and satisfied all remaining assignments.
The instructor deadline to replace incomplete grades is as follows:
- For Incompletes assigned fall semester: First day of instruction of the following fall semester
- For Incompletes assigned spring semester or summer session: First day of instruction of the following spring semester
IMPORTANT REMINDERS ABOUT INCOMPLETE GRADES
Students must complete their work at least 30 days prior to the instructor’s deadline for replacing the Incomplete grade. You are under no obligation to allow your student the maximum time permitted by regulation to resolve the Incomplete grade. Instructors who negotiate an earlier deadline will be responsible for monitoring the student’s completion of work by the early deadline.
Incomplete grades should be resolved as soon as is feasible for all concerned. It is often in the student’s interest to complete the work as soon as possible, when course content is still fresh. While instructors may prefer to have the student complete the next offering of a course —which might be as much as a year later—instructors should be aware this might delay a student’s graduation or incur substantial additional costs.
If the student does not finish the work according to the agreed upon timeline, whether assigned or negotiated, you can assign the student the grade earned at the time of the deadline. Requests to extend a deadline to resolve an Incomplete require approval from the instructor and the student’s college. These requests must be submitted to the college prior to the student deadline to resolve the Incomplete grade. Again, the student deadline is 30 days prior to the instructor deadline for replacing the Incomplete grade.
Students should never re-enroll in the same course to resolve an already-assigned Incomplete grade. If a student does re-enroll in the same course, the first enrollment will lapse to an F after the first day of instruction. If attending your course or completing exams with the following semester’s cohort is required, the student should audit your course, not re-enroll. If a student re-enrolls, they will end up with your course on their transcript twice, but they can earn only one passing grade for the work. If the course is next offered after the original instructor deadline, the student and instructor should request an extension before the original student deadline.
The grading option that the student chooses in CalCentral by their college’s deadline will determine if the Incomplete will be resolved for a letter grade or a P/NP. After the college’s deadline, the grading option cannot be changed by either the student, the instructor, or the college.
When a student accumulates excessive Incomplete units (12 or more), their enrollment in next semester courses should be put on hold. Therefore, Incomplete grades should only be assigned if a student requests the Incomplete and the student is eligible under the guidelines for assigning an Incomplete grade. For this same reason, it is vital that instructors report the final grade for the student as soon as possible.
A student may retain up to two Incompletes on their record permanently by petitioning their college to “freeze” their Incomplete grade. A student does not have to resolve an Incomplete to graduate, unless completion of that course is needed for a requirement. Students do not need permission from the instructor to freeze an Incomplete grade; however, this decision is irrevocable and the student cannot repeat the course. The Incomplete cannot be frozen if an extension has been granted already.
Failure by the instructor to submit new grades via the grade roster in CalCentral or to sign off on a petition to extend an Incomplete grade prior to the deadlines listed below will result in the Incomplete lapsing to an F or NP, depending on the grading basis. The F or NP then becomes the final grade and cannot be changed back to Incomplete or any other grade. If the student still needs the course to complete a degree requirement, they must repeat the course. If the student has graduated, access to change the grade will not be available on the grade roster and the instructor must email egrades@berkeley.edu with student and class information.
- Spring 2025 Incompletes will lapse to an “F” or “NP” after January 20, 2026
For more information on Incomplete Grades and Grade Changes and Corrections, visit the Office of the Registrar website.
Wishing you a successful completion of the spring semester and thanking you for all that you are doing to support our students.
Sincerely,
Oliver M. O’Reilly
Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education
This message has been sent to deans, department chairs, and instructors.