Proposal in Support of a Resolution to Eliminate a Transcript Notation for a Grade of Incomplete When the Instructor has Substituted Another Grade
The “Cornell University Grading System” and the notation requirement for a grade of incomplete
The university’s requirements regarding the grade of incomplete derive from the Cornell University Grading System, which the Faculty Senate adopted in 1965. This policy sets forth specific criteria governing the issuance of every grade in the system. It also specifies several transcript notations, including a required permanent notation when a student initially receives a grade of incomplete, even when another grade is later substituted, for example, when a student has completed an incomplete.
The policy’s criteria governing the issuance of a grade of incomplete are as follows:
The grade of ‘incomplete’ is appropriate only when two (2) basic conditions are met:
- The student has a substantial equity at a passing level in the course with respect to work completed.
- The student has been prevented by circumstances beyond the student’s control, such as illness or family emergency, from completing all the course requirements on time.
A grade of incomplete may not be given merely because a student fails to complete all course requirements on time. The ‘incomplete’ privilege is open to abuse; by deferring completion of some major course requirement, a student can gain advantage over his or her classmates by obtaining additional time to do a superior job. This is not an option that can be elected at the student’s own discretion . . . .
The “reasons for requesting an incomplete must be acceptable to the instructor, who establishes specific make-up requirements.” An incomplete must be completed within a time limit established by each college/school or a shorter period when the instructor wishes. If a student fails to complete the incomplete by the specified deadline, the incomplete will be converted to a grade of F, or it will stand as a permanent incomplete on the transcript, depending upon the college/school policy. “In either case, the option to make up the work is lost.”
The policy’s requirement for a transcript notation in the case of an incomplete is as follows: “[t]he symbol INC becomes a permanent part of the student’s transcript, even when a grade is later submitted.” Presently, instead of the transcript notation of “INC,” an asterisk is entered in the grade field next to the final grade. The transcript legend explains the meaning of the asterisk: “* in the grade field [i]ndicates that the course was originally graded INC and has subsequently been completed.”
When a student has completed an incomplete, a permanent transcript notation for a temporary incomplete is punitive and may be prejudicial and misleading
Based upon the strict limitations that an instructor may not issue a grade of incomplete unless it is necessitated by “circumstances beyond the student’s control,” and the instructor finds the student’s justification “acceptable,” by definition, a student is not at fault for needing to receive temporarily a grade of incomplete. The student should not be punished for this setback that is beyond their control by having an incomplete notated permanently on their transcript when the student has completed the incomplete and another grade has been substituted.
Moreover, because an incomplete must result from uncontrollable, perhaps unforeseeable, circumstances, which, presumably would derail any student, a temporary incomplete does not reveal anything relevant to a transcript reader. It is not intended to signify either an academic or conduct violation for which the student is blameworthy and about which the reader should know.[1] It is also not intended to signify academic laxity. A student is not permitted to receive an incomplete unless they have demonstrated sufficient achievement – obtained “substantial equity” – to pass the course based upon work already completed. Yet, certainly, there is a risk that a transcript reader will see significance and culpability where there is none. In this sense, the incomplete notation is both prejudicial and misleading.
Sometimes, the “circumstances beyond the student’s control” involve private matters, such as a Policy 6.4 case, a serious illness, or a pregnancy. A student should not be put in a position to feel obliged, perhaps even pressured, to reveal such information. A transcript notation does just that by flagging the incomplete for the reader.
Whether or not the student is asked to account for the incomplete, a student understands, implicitly, that a reader’s curiosity may have been piqued and the student must make a calculation whether to disclose the private information or to remain silent and possibly be prejudiced by the reader discounting the student’s final grade and/or otherwise drawing a negative inference from the grade of incomplete.
Regardless of whether a student has completed an incomplete, a permanent transcript notation for a grade of incomplete is unwarranted
Without the required permanent notation for a temporary incomplete, a transcript reader has all necessary information about a student’s academic performance. Once a student receives an incomplete, if they are unable to complete the specified make-up requirements by the specified deadline, this failing will be made evident to a transcript reader through either the grade of F or a permanent incomplete on the transcript, depending upon the college/school policy. If the student has completed the incomplete, the substituted grade will reflect the student’s accomplishment in the course.
Cornell is an outlier in its practice
Cornell is the only Ivy league institution that includes on a transcript any reference to a grade of incomplete where another grade has been substituted. Moreover, the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Offices (AACRAO) does not consider such a notation a best practice. In its most recent recommendations on transcript content, set forth in its 2020 Academic Records and Transcript Guide, AACRAO identified transcript notations that are “must have” or “optional.” A notation for a grade of incomplete subsequently completed was not referenced in either section. [2]
There is both lax and inconsistent implementation of the required notation across Cornell colleges and schools
Notating transcripts with an asterisk to show that a student received a temporary grade of incomplete is a manual process. The asterisks are input manually by college/school registrar offices. The registrars are required to perform this function throughout the semester, frequently at times, such as near the end of a semester, when they have many other immediate demands and deadlines. Data collected from fall 2018 through winter 2023[3] reveal that during this period, input of the asterisk was inconsistent across colleges and schools. Average input ranged from a low of 15% to a high of 85%. Moreover, three colleges/schools input the asterisk at an average rate of 50% or less. According to the University Registrar, the process of notating transcripts cannot be automated, even with advanced technology. Nor is it possible to verify compliance in any efficient manner (e.g., through technology). Given that implementation is and will remain labor intensive and burdensome and is easily subject to error, it is unrealistic to expect that implementation would improve sufficiently to become consistent across colleges/schools. As a result, the policy is inequitable.
Recommendation and rationale
In sum, given the stringent limitations governing the issuance of a grade of incomplete in the first place, there is no good (non-punitive) purpose served by including on a transcript any reference to an incomplete once another grade has been substituted. Students who have completed the incomplete may be harmed by the notation itself and by their real or perceived need to explain a private matter that prompted the incomplete. Because Cornell is an outlier in this practice, our students may also be prejudiced when transcript readers are comparing Cornell students to students from other institutions. Given that Cornell colleges and schools do not evenly follow the requirement, and that is unlikely to change, the practice is inequitable. Finally, through new functionality in Peoplesoft, Cornell colleges/schools can view “grade audit” screens that show a student’s historical grade information such as all the grades of incomplete that a student received throughout their academic career.
Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons, the university faculty sponsors recommend that the Faculty Senate adopt its accompanying resolution to revise the Cornell University Grading System policy by eliminating the clause that states: “[t]he symbol INC becomes a permanent part of the student’s transcript, even when a grade is later submitted,” and substituting the text: “[t]he symbol INC becomes a permanent part of the student’s transcript only when another grade is not later submitted.”
[1] If a student has an academic integrity violation under the Code of Academic Integrity or a finding of responsibility under Policy 6.4 or the Student Code of Conduct, Cornell has specific rules governing disclosure to various interested parties and entities via transcript notations. See https://registrar.cornell.edu/grades-transcripts.
[2] The above information about AACRAO’s practices regarding transcript notations was provided by the Cornell University Registrar who recently served as president of AACRAO’s Board of Directors.
[3] Fall 2021 data were excluded from the analysis as anomalous because that semester there was a huge spike in Covid-19 cases on campus due to the Omicron variant, which resulted in a significant increase in the number of incompletes and an attendant relaxation of the notation requirement.
