How to Conduct Princeton Undergraduate Courses: Regulations Governing Course Deadlines, Examinations and Grading
 

     Princeton’s procedures for conducting courses, including tests, exams, and grading, are institutionally specific. These procedures guide faculty in course administration:  how midterms and final assessments are scheduled and administered; the importance of University-established deadlines; how faculty can change a previously submitted grade; and when course evaluations are available.

  1. Tests during the term are given during the assigned class period. Many courses give tests during midterm week; however, faculty develop their course-specific testing schedules during the term. Faculty must submit midterm grades for all 100-200 level courses Monday following the midterm break and are encouraged to submit midterm grades for all courses.

    Several departments that offer large multiple-hour courses (Chemistry, Computer Science, Economics, Physics, and Mathematics) combine sections for specially scheduled midterm exams during the evening hours of midterm exam week. If a midterm exam scheduled outside normal course hours conflicts with a regular class meeting of another course, the midterm must be rescheduled to accommodate the regularly scheduled course. If you would like to schedule a midterm exam outside of normal class hours, contact your department office.
     
  2. The final assessment schedule is developed by the Registrar, acting for the Faculty Committee on Classrooms and Schedule. The assessment schedule is published following the registration period for that semester. This schedule dictates when your course’s final assessment is held. Final assessments are scheduled in every available block across the seven-day period, including the morning, afternoon, and evening slots Friday through Sunday. There are four assessment slots per day. Any assigned final assessment, whether paper, project, presentation, take-home exam, or seated exam, must conclude by the end of the assigned assessment time slot. All courses must adhere to the final assessment schedule to minimize conflicts for students. A take-home exam may be assigned instead of a seated final exam provided the submission deadline is the end of the assessment time assigned to the course. No take-home exam may be scheduled before Dean’s Date or after the conclusion of exam period.
     
  3. Extensions of more than 24 hours beyond the end of the assigned assessment time slot for final papers, projects, or take-home exams may be granted only by students’ residential college deans or assistant deans for studies, in consultation with course faculty. Rescheduling or postponement of a seated final examination may be made by the Registrar. 

    Do not make special arrangements of your own with your students for late submission of work. Individual arrangements of this kind cause difficulties and are unfair to other students. Applications for late completion of a course are available from the deans and directors of studies in the residential colleges. The Registrar records unauthorized incompletes as an “F.” For a more detailed account of policies governing end-of-term work and extensions, see the Undergraduate Announcement.
     
  4. Final grades are reported electronically to the Registrar. Failure Statements must be submitted for all failing final grades; A+ Statements must be submitted for all undergraduate final grades of A+. Procedures for reporting grades are available online. Faculty receive grading instructions in November.
     
  5. Requests for grade changes may be made online only by the instructor in charge of the course. Requests will be reviewed by the senior associate dean of the college acting for the Faculty Committee on Examinations and Standing. Grade changes are approved only to correct a miscalculation or a data entry error and should not be used as a mechanism to address student grade appeals. The process by which students may appeal a grade is found in the Undergraduate Announcement.
     
  6. Members of the faculty should discuss results of final assessments with any student who so requests. Many instructors return exams to students immediately after grading them. Instructors should keep unreturned exams for one year.
     
  7. Students who have completed the online course evaluation process will have electronic access to final grades as soon as faculty submit them. Faculty will have access to their course evaluation results after submitting grades

     Thanks for your attention to these many important details. We appreciate your willingness to make the course conduct experience consistent for all our undergraduate students. If you have questions, contact the Office of the Dean of the College (8-3040) or the Office of the Registrar (8-3361) or email us at [email protected] or [email protected].