2022-2023 Course Catalog

Incomplete Grades

An incomplete grade may be given to a student when a documented illness or another documented extenuating circumstance legitimately prevents the completion of course requirements. An incomplete is not given as a substitute for a failing grade or to invalidate an instructor's attendance policy. Unless the instructor stipulates a shorter time period for completion of the work, an incomplete must be satisfied by the established date on the University's Academic Calendar. Incomplete grades which are not satisfied by the established deadline will convert to the grade of F. Once an incomplete grade has been converted to an F grade, it cannot be reversed, but it can be changed to another letter grade if it falls within the one year deadline for grade changes. If the incomplete is satisfied by the established deadline, a regular letter grade will be recorded upon notification by the instructor to the University Registrar's Office. It is important to note that as long as the "I" is on the record for a course, a student may not enroll for credit in any course that has that course as a stated prerequisite, and the student cannot graduate.

Students who believe they can demonstrate a legitimate need for an incomplete must have instructor's approval. The instructor may ask the student to complete an incomplete grade contract which is available under Documents and Forms on myChatham. An incomplete grade contract helps to establish the terms of the arrangement. If the student is asked to complete the contract, once it's completed the student should return it to the appropriate Academic Dean's Office for forwarding to the instructor.

To be eligible to receive an incomplete grade, a student must have regularly attended class meetings in accordance with the instructor's attendance policy, completed all assignments by the instructor's stated deadlines, and maintained a passing grade of at least "C-" for undergraduate courses, and "B" for graduate courses. The deadline for requesting an incomplete grade is the last day of classes for the semester in which the course was taken.

*The only exception to this policy is for graduate students who are enrolled in graduate continuing credit courses.