Academic Information
About This Section
The information in this section is centered around helping you understand what is expected of you as a CCD student and a member of the community. For academic integrity and standards, use this as a guide for student success. This guide will also assist you in determining graduation requirements and transfer options.
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CCD policies set the expectations for students, faculty, and staff at CCD. If any of these policies are confusing, please reach out to your faculty member or to your academic advisor for clarification.
CCD Grade Policy
You are evaluated in class using a letter-grade system which is based on how many course learning outcomes you have met. Instructors have the authority to assign grades. For more information, read your course syllabus and ask your instructor to explain their grading system.
This is the meaning of each grade.
CCCS Inventory of Common Grading Symbols
I - Incomplete
The I or incomplete grade is a temporary grade. It is designed for students who have completed a majority of the coursework (defined as at least 75 percent of all course assignments and tests) in a satisfactory manner (grade C or better), but are unable to complete within the semester due to documented illness or circumstances beyond their control.
If circumstances prevent you from completing a test or assignments by the end of the term, then it is your responsibility to initiate the request for an incomplete grade from the instructor. The instructor will determine whether you have a reasonable chance of satisfactorily completing the remaining course activities in a timely manner. In the event that you and your instructor cannot reach resolution concerning an incomplete, then you should contact the program chair.
In requesting an incomplete grade, you must present the instructor with documentation of circumstances justifying an incomplete grade. The instructor and you will sign an incomplete grade form and submit it to the appropriate dean for approval. While waiting for the work to be completed, the instructor will assign an incomplete grade on the grade roster.
Military personnel and emergency management officials who are required to go on temporary duty (TDY) during a term should contact their instructor for special consideration. Documentation of official TDY assignment is required and must be approved by the provost.
An incomplete grade, which is not converted to a letter grade by the instructor after one subsequent semester (not including summer semester), will become an F grade unless a higher default grade has been assigned by the instructor.
To avoid duplicate payment of a course, you should not re-enroll in a class in which an incomplete grade is pending, since according to the College’s definition of enrollment, you are still enrolled.
S/A, S/B, S/C - Satisfactory
These are satisfactory grades awarded only for developmental and remedial courses. The A, B and C indicate the level of satisfactory performance. These grades are not included in the GPA calculation. The course will count for attempted and earned credits.
U/D, U/F - Unsatisfactory
These are unsatisfactory grades awarded only for developmental and remedial courses. The D and F indicate the level of unsatisfactory performance. These grades are not included in the GPA calculation. The course will count in attempted credits, but will not carry earned credits.
W - Withdrawal
The W or withdrawal grade is assigned when a student officially withdraws from a course after the course census date. A withdrawal can only be processed during the first 80 percent of the course. No academic credit is awarded. The course will count in attempted hours.
AW - Administrative Withdrawal
The AW or administrative withdrawal is assigned by the College when a student has been administratively withdrawn. No academic credit is awarded. The course will count in attempted hours. CCD only grants AW grades for extenuating circumstances that are documented, appealed and approved by the extenuating circumstance appeal committee.
Last Day of Attendance
Faculty members are required to provide the last date of attendance for each student who is awarded an F, I, U, or U/F.
Repeat Field Indicators - I or E
Assigned for repeated courses on a student’s transcript, an I will indicate include in earned hours and GPA calculation or E will indicate exclude from earned hours and GPA calculation.
Credit Hours
CCD follows the Colorado Commission on Higher Education and federal guideline on credit hours. That is, that one credit equals 50 hours of student effort both in and out of class. For a lecture class, that means that for every credit you receive, there must be 12.5 hours of in-class time, and 37.5 hours of out-of-class time (homework, reading, preparing for class or exams). All courses including online, hybrid, and accelerated are designed so that you have the opportunity to devote enough time to meet your required course outcomes. When deciding on a course load, you should keep these time requirements in mind.
Extenuating Circumstance Appeal Process
Sometimes students experience an extraordinary emergency that is beyond a student’s control. In those rare cases, the extenuating circumstance appeal committee can consider whether to approve a late withdrawal. Students are limited to a total of 1 approved Extenuating Circumstance Appeal during their time as a CCD student, and the appeal must be submitted within 1 year of the semester they are requesting the appeal for
- The Extenuating Circumstances Appeal form can be found online at ccd.edu/docs/extenuating-circumstance-appeal-process-form
- You must complete and submit an extenuating circumstance appeal form and all supporting documentation within one calendar year from the end of the semester for which you are appealing. Incomplete packets will not be considered. Completed extenuating circumstance appeal will be reviewed and you will be notified via CCD email of the committee's decision within 30 calendar days.
- Your extenuating circumstance appeal will be denied if you failed to comply with any deadline.
- If an appeal is denied, you may request to have the appeal reconsidered by the committee, if you can supply additional documentation to support the extenuating circumstance. When a second review is requested, the decision made by the committee is final.
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Students who have received financial aid and are granted an extenuating circumstance appeal may not receive refunds. Credit balances will be used to repay federal aid first. Contact the Financial Aid office for more information.
Grade Appeals
If you wish to appeal the grade you received in a class, you must begin that appeal process within 60 calendar days after the date grades are posted for the semester in which the grade was awarded. Before you can make an appeal, you first discuss the grade with the instructor. If that does not resolve the problem, you discuss your grade with the program chair. If you do not know the name of the program chair and dean, you can request that name from your academic advisor or from the Office of the Provost. If there is no resolution, you can then appeal the grade by submitting a written statement to the dean of that center explaining the problem. The dean will investigate and respond in writing within 15 days. The dean’s decision is the final step of the grade appeal process.
Grade Point Average (GPA)
Grade points measure your achievement for the credit hours completed.
Calculating GPA
Calculating your GPA is important. Please read this explanation and the example below to understand how to do this calculation. Multiply the grade points by the number of credit hours for each course. Total the number of credits and the number of grade points separately. Divide the total grade points by the total credits.
| Grade | Equals | Points |
|---|---|---|
| A | = | 4 grade points |
| B | = | 3 grade points |
| C | = | 2 grade points |
| D | = | 1 grade points |
| F | = | 0 grade points |
NOTE: All other grades (Satisfactory, Unsatisfactory, S/A, S/B, S/C, SP, I, W, AU, AW, NC, U/D, U/F) are not calculated into your GPA.
The following is an example of how to calculate grade point average:
| Course | Credits | Grade | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANT 1001 Cultural Anthropology | 3 | A | 12=(3 x 4) |
| BIO 1111 General College Biology | 5 | A | 20=(5 x 4) |
| CIS 1018 Introduction to PC Applications | 3 | B | 9=(3 x 3) |
| ENG 1021 English Comp I | 3 | D | 3=(3 x 1) |
| PSC 1011 American Government | 3 | F | 0=(3 x 0) |
| Totals | 17 | 44 |
Total grade points divided by total credits equals the cumulative grade point average. Therefore, the grade point average for the above example is 44 divided by 17 for a 2.59 GPA.
Degree Works also lists your current GPA.
Repeating Courses
All CCD college-level courses may be repeated twice. You can only use one grade toward your certificate or degree, except for variable credit courses, some competency-based courses, and other clearly designated courses that may be repeated within program requirements. The highest grade will be used in the GPA calculation.
Once you attempt to register for the same course a third time, you will be directed to an academic advisor and must be approved for registration. If you are denied registration, you have the right to appeal to the director of academic advising. A fourth repeat attempt will require an appeal, which must be approved by the director of academic advising.
All grades for the repeated class will be listed on the transcript. The transcript will note which course(s) were repeated and designate which course will be included in your GPA. All credit hours earned for initial and repeated courses will be deducted from your remaining COF stipend eligible hours. Repeating a course may impact your financial aid eligibility. If the same grade is earned two or more times for a repeated course, the most recent instance of the duplicate grade will be included in the term and cumulative GPA. All other duplicate grades will be excluded from the term and cumulative GPA. The repeat policy does not apply to courses transferred to CCD.
If both the initial and the repeated course were taken in fall semester 2006 or after, the system should automatically remove the lower grade from the GPA. If either the initial or the repeated course (or both) were taken prior to fall 2006, then you must complete a Petition for Repeat Course form and submit it to the Office of Registration and Records. If you do not see the repeated designation, you may submit a Petition for Repeat Course form to the Office of Registration and Records.
For Developmental Courses Only
The grading system for developmental courses changed beginning fall semester 2006 and developmental grades are no longer included in the cumulative GPA calculation. However, if either the initial course or the repeated course (or both) were taken prior to fall 2006, then you must complete and submit a Petition for Repeat Course form to the Office of Registration and Records in order for the developmental coursework to be reviewed.
