Summary
We review instructors’ end of semester tasks and considerations including submitting grades, processing Honors options, and handling requests to postpone grading including Incompletes.
by Ellie Louson and Katie Peterson (CTLI) and Kari Stone-Sewalish (AACC)
As we approach the end of semester, here are some key considerations for course instructors to support a smooth and successful conclusion of the term for both you and your students.
Grades
The deadline to submit or upload your grades is the Tuesday following exam week at 4 PM. You can access your grade submission or grade upload page near the end of the semester within the Registrar Website’s Instructor Systems. You will have to submit or upload your grades (typically using MSU’s 4.0 scale); your grades aren’t automatically posted from your course’s D2L gradebook. It’s important to submit your grades on time to prevent administrative delays for you and your students including potential impacts on their financial aid. You can also save your grades before submitting them.
You will receive reminder emails about grading once grades can be submitted for your course and the day before grades are due. You’ll also receive an email confirming that your grades have been submitted.
Instructor Systems has a FAQ for Instructors which includes sections about grading and grade uploads, as well as detailed instructions for submitting grades and for uploading grades (including screenshots and animations). You can also consult this guide to D2L grades.
The Student Perceptions of Learning Survey (SPLS)
You will receive an email describing the date range where the SPLS will be available for your students. You can remind your students to complete the form and even set aside class time for them to complete it (when you are not present); the SPLS email will include a link to SPLS resources including a course-specific QR code and URL for your students to encourage feedback. Since links and reminders are sent to each student and the survey is online, you don’t have to distribute or collect surveys. You can consult the SPLS overview and instructor FAQ for more details.
End-of-Semester Honors Options Tasks
If you have students who have been approved for an Honors Option, or if you are teaching an Honors section of a course, you have some required administrative tasks at the end of the semester.
You get to approve students’ Honors Options in the Student-Instructor Forms System if the work was completed and the department’s requirements satisfied. The quality of an Honors Option project does not affect the grade assigned for a course; however, in some cases a minimum grade must be earned in a course before the Honors credit associated with the Honors Option can be awarded.
You will receive an email with a link to an Administrative Action form for your Honors students in the Student-Instructor Form System of the Registrar’s website. There, you will indicate whether students have earned the Honors credit for your course. If approved, this will initiate the system processing their Honors Option and eventually will lead to the H appearing on their transcript.
You may be contacted by students inquiring how long it will take for their H to appear. You can assure them not to worry but that it is out of your control once you’ve approved their Honors Option, and direct further questions to the Honors College.
Options for Postponement of Grading
Instructors have a few options to postpone submitting grades for a student. We recommend that you discuss these with the student in question and with your department/college or student success & advising administrator as they’re only available in specific situations and/or courses, and can have implications for students beyond their performance in your course. MSU’s postponement options include I-Incomplete, DF-Deferred, and ET-Extension.
Deferrals and Extensions are available for particular courses and allow students additional time to complete their work.
- Deferrals are available for graduate courses, where work must be finished within 6 months (with a possible 6-month addition)
- Extensions are available only for approved graduate, undergraduate, or professional courses which tend to involve field experience or thesis work and courses in which work normally extends beyond one semester; they require specifying a time period for completing the work.
For either a Deferral or Extension, should the student not complete the specified work, there are consequences for the posted grade ranging from receiving a U-Unfinished to a 0.0, NC, or N depending on the course. More details can be found at the link above.
I-Incomplete: Conditions
Students who have attended and participated in your course but who aren’t able to complete their coursework within the semester deadlines may request or be eligible for an Incomplete. This allows them additional time to complete components of their coursework, through an agreement with their instructor. Eligibility details from the policy specify that:
The I-Incomplete may be given only when: the student (a) has completed at least 6/7 of the term of instruction, but is unable to complete the class work and/or take the final examination because of illness or other compelling reason; and (b) has done satisfactory work in the course; and (c) in the instructor’s judgment can complete the required work without repeating the course.
Provided these conditions are met, the instructor electing to give an I-Incomplete files an Agreement for Completion of (I) Incomplete at the time course grades are due. This agreement specifies what the student must do, and when. The department or school office gives a copy to the student, and retains a copy for at least one year.
Additional policy details can be found in the Academic Programs Catalog.
You may get requests or questions from students about the possibility of taking an Incomplete in the following or similar situations:
- A student might ask about their options after missing significant coursework or the final exam due to illness or emergencies
- A student might want clarification about how long they have to complete work for an Incomplete
- A student might want to know if they can have more time after missing a deadline for an assignment within the semester
However, not all situations meet the conditions for an Incomplete, and it’s worth asking your college or department’s teaching or student success & advising leadership if you have any questions. The following situations would probably not meet the conditions for an Incomplete:
- A student who has not been attending class or who has missed more than 1/7 of the term without taking an approved leave
- A student wants to redo an assignment to improve their grade and wants time outside the semester to achieve this
- A student has not submitted satisfactory work in the course so far
- In your judgement, the student won’t be able to complete the required work by the deadline, due to the volume of work or for another reason
- Other situations are possible! Consult with your unit if you aren’t sure.
We recommend that you encourage the student to consult with their academic advisor before you process an incomplete request for them, as this may have larger implications for their future enrollment.
If a student’s situation allows them to take an Incomplete, you need to describe the not-completed coursework that the student will be responsible for completing, with a deadline of the midpoint of the next Fall or Winter semester. This deadline will appear automatically in the Incomplete agreement. Discuss the required coursework and the deadline with your student. Clear expectations and an awareness of this deadline will help to support the student through their progress.
Incomplete Process, including screenshots from the Office of the Registrar website’s Student-Instructor Form System
The screen shots below provide step by step guidance in accessing and submitting incomplete requests.
Step 1: Access the Student-Instructor Form System page by going to reg.msu.edu, selecting the Faculty & Staff menu, and then selecting Student-Instructor Form System.
Step 2: In the Student-Instructor Form System page, and after reading the Incomplete policy, locate the heading titled Agreement for Completion of (I) Incomplete and select it to complete a new Incomplete form.
Step 3: Enter the student’s PID and then select Find Student. Then select Proceed.
Step 4: In the Agreement for Completion of (I) Incomplete form, review the student’s current grade, ensure that the student has completed 6/7 of the term and has met all criteria of the Incomplete policy before proceeding. Then enter the student-instructor agreements in the text box. This should include expectations for completing assignments and the required due date.
As a reminder, the required work must be completed, and a grade must be reported to the Office of the Registrar, no later than the middle of the student’s next semester in attendance (summer session excluded) if that semester is within one calendar year following receipt of the I-Incomplete. This date will auto-populate into the form.
Once all required form sections are complete, select submit. The department or school office gives a copy to the student, and retains a copy for at least one year.
