4.3 Policy on Disputed Grades

The presumption in the administration of grades at Scripps is that the professor alone is qualified to evaluate the quality of the academic work of the student in her or his course.

When a student has grounds for believing that, apart from questions of academic quality of an individual piece of work, a particular final grade was assigned by the professor in a manner that was arbitrary or discriminatory, or that crucial evidence was not taken into account, the following procedure is available:

1. The student must first discuss the matter with the professor.
2. If the outcome of that discussion is not satisfactory, the student should consult with the Dean of Students.
3. If there appear to be grounds for further investigation of the situation, the Dean of Students will consult with the Dean of Faculty, who will then contact the professor involved in an effort to bring the issue to a satisfactory solution.
4. If, following these discussions, the claims of the student and professor are still unreconciled, the Dean of Faculty will arrange for a group meeting including himself, the Dean of Students, the professor and the student.
5. If no satisfactory solution results from this informal meeting, the student will be advised to petition the Committee on Academic Review, which will meet with the student and the professor individually.
6. Should the Committee on Academic Review wish to consider the case further, it will determine its own procedures according to each case. If the committee decides that a grade change is warranted, it will establish procedures for determining the new grade. Procedures could include working with the faculty member on an appropriate change or reassessing the student’s work overall through the semester. In no case will the committee be involved in reevaluating individual papers or examinations. Any issue on disputed grades will usually be settled in the following semester, but in no case later than a year from the time the disputed grade was given. The committee decision is final, and the student and the professor will be notified by mail. The committee, at its own discretion, may accede to a faculty member’s wish that it consult colleagues in the discipline.

Please refer to Section 4.4  for policies governing academic dishonesty and grade disputes in cross-registration situations.