The purpose of this InfoPost is to articulate the Applied Linguistics department policy on course "incompletes" or "INC"
A grade of Incomplete (INC) is not automatically awarded when a student fails to complete a course. Incompletes are given at the discretion of the instructor. They are awarded when satisfactory work has been accomplished in the majority of the course work, but the student is unable to complete some course requirements as a result of circumstances beyond his/her control. These might include serious illness or extreme personal circumstances. The student must negotiate with, and receive the approval of the course instructor in order to receive a grade of incomplete as soon as they know they will not be able to complete course requirements; a copy of a written agreement between the faculty member and the student specifying the work to be completed and the terms and deadline for completion must be kept on file in the program office. This form is also submitted to the Registrar’s office so that the INC can be processed.
IMPORTANT: The student must have completed a significant portion of the course requirements and assignments (at least 70% of the required work, including course participation, term papers, and other course assignments) in order to be considered for an Incomplete.
If the student’s course record is such that they would fail the course regardless of the missing work and the emergency falls within the Withdrawal deadline, the student should consider withdrawing from the course in order to avoid the negative impact on their GPA.
If you are receiving the grade of incomplete (INC), depending on the contract you signed with your instructor, you are allowed up to one year in which to complete the course. The deadline will be set by your instructor, taking into consideration your circumstances, the amount of missing work that needs to be completed, as well as university deadlines. After a one-year period, if a grade is not submitted by the faculty member, a Failure will be recorded, turning the grade on the transcript to an IF. After the end of this period, the student must re-register for the course, pay for it again, and complete all its requirements in order to receive credit and a grade. The new grade must be submitted to the Registrar by the grading deadline for that semester, i.e., by the end of the next fall for the fall semester incompletes. The grade for any course not completed by this deadline will be converted to the grade of 'IF'. You may only sign up for, and receive a grade for, the same course twice.
Please Be Aware that:
- It is your responsibility to contact and/or meet with your professor as soon as an emergency arises that prevents you to meet the course requirements. Your professor is not responsible for “offering” you an INC because you “disappeared” from the course.
- It is also your responsibility to fill out the necessary paperwork, collect signatures and turn it to the Main Office.
- Make sure the contract and terms of completing the course are determined. Two copies of the Incomplete Contract Form must be returned with proper signatures to the Applied Linguistics Department Main Office, one for department records and one for the Registrar’s office.
- Incomplete grades in graduate courses are processed by the Office of the Registrar after receipt of the signed Incomplete Contract.
- You should follow up with faculty to make sure the terms of the contract have been met and a grade has been submitted within the proper time limits.
- Individual faculty members have the right to set more stringent timetables for completion of course requirements than the general one-year. Your professor is not required to offer the full year for you to complete the missing work.
INC/IF Registration Policy
Any graduate student who has accumulated 4 or more INC or IF grades will be considered not to be making satisfactory progress toward the degree, will be placed on probation, and will normally be barred from registering for additional classes until the INC/IF grades are cleared. Additional registrations may, however, be approved by the graduate program director and Dean of Graduate Studies.
Your instructor will have copies of the Incomplete Contract form that they can share with you. The department of applied linguistics (applied.linguistics@umb.edu) also has blank forms if you need them
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