The following policy on grading will apply to students entering the first year of the School in Academic Year 1987-88 and thereafter.

I. Core Preclinical, Core, and Selective Clinical Courses

A. Each department or teaching program shall determine for each course the most appropriate method for evaluation of student achievement, based on the nature of the course and on defined course objectives. Such methods as written examinations, oral examinations, literature reports, case reports, problem solving, or other reasonable means by which the student may demonstrate his or her knowledge of the subject under consideration may be employed at the discretion of the Course Director. Participation on clinical rounds is always taken into consideration for grades on clerkships. Each Course Director shall present to the students, in written form on the first day the course meets formally, a statement describing course requirements, evaluative methods to be used and criteria for awarding specific grades.

B. Each department will also present, in writing, on the first day of class, its specific course requirements which may, in any way, deviate from the overall grading policy. For example - A students must successfully complete the laboratory phase of the course in order to achieve a passing grade. Failure to successfully complete the laboratory phase will result in a grade of "Condition Repeat," even though the overall grade point average is 70 or higher.

C. A letter grade describing the student's performance shall be awarded to each student enrolled in each course. Depending on the nature of the course, this grade may simply reflect the student's achievement on objective evaluative instruments or may also include evaluation of non-cognitive qualities and skills. The specific grade awarded to each student shall be based on the following criteria. (Note that where specific numerical grades or grade ranges are cited below for awarding letter grades, these should be considered as suggested guidelines rather than as inflexible rules. Each Course Director has the authority and responsibility for the final determination of letter grades for each student.)

GRADE DEFINITION CRITERIA

H (Honors): Should be awarded to a student whose performance in all phases of the course surpassed the minimum standards required by the faculty and was clearly superior to that of the average student taking the course. In courses in which an overall, final numerical grade is derived, "Honors" might correspond to a grade of 94 (on a scale of 100) or higher.

HP (High Pass): Should be awarded to a student whose performance surpassed the minimum standards required by the faculty and was distinctly above average for students taking the course. In courses for which an overall, final numerical grade is derived, " High Pass " might correspond to grades in the range 86 - 93 (ref. Section I. , Subsection C. above). This grade may also be awarded in the case of a student whose performance was uneven in different phases of the course (e.g., a student who achieved high scores on objective examinations but whose ward or laboratory work was unremarkable).

P (Pass): Should be awarded to a student whose performance in the course met or surpassed the minimum standards required by the faculty. In courses for which an overall, final numerical grade is derived, "Pass" generally corresponds to a grade in the range 70 – 85.

C (Condition): In pre-clinical courses, "Condition" should be assigned to a student whose performance was marginal. In pre-clinical courses for which an overall, final numerical grade is derived, "Condition" generally corresponds to a grade in the range 65 - 69). It may also be assigned to a student who failed to meet the minimum standards required in one or more sections of a course, despite an overall, final passing average (e.g., a student who scored well on written examinations but who did not perform satisfactorily in the laboratory component). Invariably, this grade constitutes an academic deficiency requiring remedial work, at least passing a repeat comprehensive final examination and possibly successful repetition of the course.

In clinical clerkships, "Condition" is assigned to students whose performance on the wards or in other clinical aspects of the clerkship was satisfactory but who failed the final comprehensive examination. In such cases, the deficiency must be cleared by passing a repeat examination.

NOTE: "Condition" grades are noted on the transcript with a "C." When the condition is cleared, the "C" is followed by a "P" ("C/P"). A student can only receive a "Pass" in clearing a deficiency by condition examination. A student must earn a 70 on the condition examination. If a student chooses to repeat the course rather than take the condition exam, the student must pass the course with a 75.

F (Failure): Assigned to the student whose performance did not meet the minimum standards required by the faculty for this course. In pre-clinical courses or in clinical clerkships for which an overall, final numerical grade is derived, "Failure" might correspond to grades below 65. In clinical clerkships, "Failure" should be assigned to students whose performance on the ward or in other clinical aspects of the clerkship was unsatisfactory, irrespective of their having passed the final comprehensive examination.

NOTE: When a student "fails," the "F" remains on the transcript . The course is listed again when the student passes, and the actual grade earned is recorded. Thus a student can "Honor" a course after failing it the first time. The student must make a minimum of 75 for the course to pass a course that is repeated.

I (Incomplete): Assigned in cases where there is an unavoidable delay, caused by illness or other emergencies, in completion of course requirements. This grade will be assigned at the end of the course(s) when all but a minor portion of the course requirements have been completed. The "I" is a temporary grade and will be replaced on the transcript with the grade earned by the student. The student must satisfactorily complete the course requirements, thus earning, at least a passing grade, before being eligible for promotion to the succeeding year of study.

W (Withdrawn): Assigned for all courses currently being taken in cases where a student must be placed on leave-of-absence for a medical or psychiatric condition, as certified by a member of the clinical faculty at the School of Medicine, or in cases where the student is suffering serious personal difficulties, as judged by the Dean or his appointed delegate, and is thus unable to complete course requirements. Generally, a "W," as opposed to an "I," will be recorded on the transcript in cases where the student is forced to discontinue studies before completing approximately two-thirds of the course requirements. The "W" is also assigned in all courses currently being taken when the student voluntarily and permanently withdraws from the School of Medicine .

The School of Medicine reserves the discretion to determine the time frame distinguishing between the grades of "I" and "W," as described above. This determination will be made by the Dean or his appointed delegate in consultation with the Course Director(s).

II. Reporting of Grades

A. Intramural Reporting

1. Pre-clinical

a. Each student's official transcript grade, either H, HP, P, C, F, I, or W, will be entered directly into the database of the Office of Student Affairs by the department issuing the grade. The Office of Student Affairs will only enter grades for T1 and T2 electives.

b. The summary course grade (numerical or qualitative) that resulted from the applied evaluation procedures shall also be transmitted to the Office of Student Affairs, along with the criteria that were applied.

c. Student Evaluation Forms, distributed by the Office of Student Affairs, shall be completed by the course instructors and transmitted to the Office of Student Affairs.

d. At the conclusion of a course, each student will be given his transcript grade of H, HP, P, C, F, I, or W, as well as the summary grade. Information transmitted to the student shall also include the class average, highest score, and lowest score, when quantitative procedures were applied.

e. All progress exams that are returned to students will carry letter designations of H, HP, P, C, or F. If a department desires, progress exams may be returned to the students with numerical grades under condition that each student's grade is reported solely to that student. Numerical grades, when derived by a department for portions of a course or for the entire course, are considered confidential information.

2. Clinical

a. An overall grade of H, HP, P, C, F, I, or W shall be entered directly into the database of the Office of Student Affairs by the department assigning the grade.

b. Student Evaluations Forms, distributed by the Office of Student Affairs, shall be completed by the course instructors and transmitted to the Office of Student Affairs.

c. At the conclusion of a course all students will be given their grade of H, HP, P, C, F, I, or W.

B. Extramural Reporting

No numerical grades for any course will be reported extramurally. The official transcript for each student will show only the letter grade, H, HP, P, C, F, I or W earned in each course.

III Pre-clinical (T1/T2) Electives

Students are required to complete one elective during the first two years (four semesters) of school. This may include research, MPH classes, or other electives listed on the Student Affairs website. These are graded P (Pass) or F (Fail). The specific grade awarded to each student shall be based on the following criteria:

GRADE DEFINITION CRITERIA

P (Pass) Should be awarded to a student whose performance met or surpassed the minimum standards required by the faculty.

F (Failure) Should be assigned to a student whose performance failed to meet the standards required by the faculty.

Courses graded on a Pass/Fail basis will be noted as such on the official transcript.

IV. Clinical (T3/T4) Elective Courses

A. Each department or teaching program shall determine for each course the most appropriate method for evaluation of student achievement, based on the nature of the course and on defined course objectives. Such methods as written examinations, oral examinations, literature reports, case reports, problem solving, or other reasonable means by which the student may demonstrate his or her knowledge of the subject under consideration may be employed at the discretion of the Course Director. Each Course Director shall present to the students, in written form on the first day the course meets formally, a statement describing course requirements, evaluative methods to be used, and criteria for awarding specific grades.

B. A letter grade describing the student's performance shall be awarded to each student enrolled in each course. Depending on the nature of the course, this grade may simply reflect the student's achievement on objective evaluative instruments or may also include evaluations of non-cognitive qualities and skills. Grades are awarded on as an H (Honors), HP ( High Pass ), P (Pass), C (Condition), or F (Fail) basis.