Grading Procedures

Academic and Performance Standards

Student achievement is assessed on an A+ through F grading scale.  The official grading system of Indiana University is as follows:

• A+ or A:  4.0
• A−:  3.7
• B+:  3.3
• B:  3.0
• B−:  2.7
• C+:  2.3
• C:  2.0
• C−:  1.7
• D+:  1.3
• D:  1.0
• D−: 0.7
• F:  0.0

Guidelines for Student Grades

It is up to you to assign grades to students in your studio and in your courses. While you may consult with departmental colleagues, you should assign grades according to your own judgment and standards. It might be helpful to consult http://gradedistribution.registrar.indiana.edu/ for historical grade information by course number. (Courses with small enrollment are not listed to protect students' privacy.)

Grade disputes can be minimized by ensuring that the grading criteria are outlined clearly in a syllabus and that those criteria are followed. This applies not only to regular courses, but also to lessons and ensembles.

Undergraduate Grades

1. Undergraduates need to pass, with a D− or higher, lessons and recitals to fulfill degree requirements. The following guidelines are in place for grading undergraduate upper division exams and may be helpful in considering lesson and recital grades as well

2. Undergraduates are expected to earn certain minimum grades in some courses. Here is a summary of these requirements:

All Undergraduate Students

• C or higher in T109, T132, T231, T232 and T331.

BME Students

• All BME students must earn a C or higher in EDUC P254, and a C+ or higher in MUS E131, MUS E232 and EDUC M342.
• BME students on the Choral Teaching and General Music Teaching tracks must earn a C+ or higher in EDUC M343.
• BME students on the Instrumental Teaching-Band track must earn a C+ or higher in EDUC M344 and EDUC M434.
• BME students on the Instrumental Teaching-Strings track must earn a C+ or higher in EDUC M344 and EDUC M436.

All Audio Engineering and Sound Production Students

• C or higher in A111, A112, A211 and A212.

Miscellaneous

• B+ or higher in E130 is required to pursue a minor in music education
• C or higher in A100 is required for A312 and A330

3. GPA Requirements

• BME students must have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 to graduate
• All other undergraduate students must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 to graduate
• Scholarship recipients must maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA

Graduate Grades

Graduate degree and diploma students are expected to earn certain minimum grades; grades below the minimums do not count toward requirements. Grades just below these minimums are the ones that most often lead to disputes and appeals. Here is a brief summary of the requirements; note that some departments have higher standards for certain courses.

Proficiency courses (master's and doctoral degrees)

Master's degrees

Doctoral degrees

Diplomas (PD/AD)

Grade Rosters and Deadlines

Verification of Attendance Rosters

You will receive an email from the Office of the Registrar regarding Verification of Attendance Rosters at the beginning of the second week of classes for the semester.  The purpose of these rosters is to verify enrollment in the courses you teach and to resolve enrollment discrepancies.  You are expected to verify and submit the on-line roster by Monday of the sixth week of classes.  It is particularly important to check early in the semester that everyone who is attending is actually enrolled in the class, and to inform the Registrar of students who are enrolled but not attending. 

Early Evaluation Grade Rosters

Only music freshmen with fewer than 26 credit hours and University Division students with fewer than 56 credit hours receive Early Evaluation Grades. Early Evaluation Grade Rosters are available online beginning the fourth week of the semester and are due the Monday of the sixth week of the semester.

Final Grade Rosters

Final grades must be assigned and entered online by 3:00pm on the third day following the last class, jury, or final exam. All grades must be entered on time. Faculty should not leave campus without fulfilling this responsibility, as students can find themselves unable to graduate or ineligible for financial aid because of missing grades.

Please refer to the Office of the Registrar website for detailed grade entry instructions.

Please contact the Music Undergraduate Office (812-855-3743) or the Music Graduate Office (812-855-1738) for assistance with rosters and grading.

Special Grades

Incomplete Grades

R Grades

Withdrawal Grades

Pass/Fail Grades

FNN and FN Grades

Extended-X Policy

Recital Grades

Grades for recitals are submitted directly to the recorders in the Music Graduate Office and Music Undergraduate Office. For graduate recitals, a written grade request will be sent to the instructor which should be returned to the graduate office in JS120.  For undergraduate recitals, the instructor will receive a grade request via email.  For more information, please see the Recitals section of the JSoM Bulletin.

Change of Grade and Grade Appeal

No grade may be changed after six calendar months from the date of the last day of final examinations. Grade appeals in the Jacobs School of Music are considered by the Academic Fairness Committee; there is no further appeal outside the School. A student must submit a grade appeal in writing to the Associate Dean for Instruction no later than four weeks after the grade is awarded. Procedures for grade appeals are outlined here.