Academic Policies and Procedures
It is real University life: In Summer Session, a normal 16-week course is concentrated in shorter sessions with more meeting times per week. For every hour in class, you can expect to spend another two hours outside of class reviewing materials, completing assignments and studying. Summer Session is a full academic semester at UC Merced. Deadlines reflect the condensed nature of the program. All University academic standards, rules and regulations apply. These are specified in the UC Merced General Catalog, available at the UC Merced Bobcat Bookstore or on line at registrar.ucmerced.edu.
You need to attend all classes: Things move quickly in the summer and a lot is covered during each class meeting. Failure to attend class for even a single meeting can have dramatic, negative effects on your grade. If you know you are going to miss the first class meeting, contact the instructor or the appropriate School if one has not been assigned.
Grades count: All grades earned during Summer Session become part of your permanent academic record. In addition, Summer Session grades will be counted in your overall grade point average. Academic standing is not calculated during Summer Session so UC Merced students will find that Summer Session is a valuable time to improve their academic standing calculated at the end of Fall semester.
Access to Records: Students are entitled by law and University policy to examine and challenge most of the records that the University maintains on them. These records are confidential and in most circumstances may be released to third parties only with the student’s prior consent.
Max Units in Summer: Students are advised to take a maximum of 12 units during Summer Session. Additional units are allowed only with permission of your academic advisor.
Courses, Units and Grading System: All UC Merced courses are approved under the semester system. The result of the student’s work in each course is reported to the Office of the Registrar in one of the following grades: A, excellent; B, good; C, fair; D, barely passing; I, Incomplete; and F, not passing. Courses numbered 099 and below are lower division; 100 to 199 are upper division; 200 and above are graduate level courses.
Grade points are assigned to each grade as follows:
A+ 4.0 A 4.0 A- 3.7
B+ 3.3 B 3.0 B- 2.7
C+ 2.3 C 2.0 C- 1.7
D+ 1.3 D 1.0 D- 0.7
F 0.0 I 0.0 S/U or P/NP N/A
Visiting Students Grading Options: It is always best to consult with your home campus regarding their grading requirements before electing a grading option.
Course Repetition: An undergraduate student may repeat only those courses in which a grade of D+, D, D-, F, U, or Not Passed was received. Undergraduate courses in which a grade of D+, D, D-, or F has been earned may not be repeated on a passed/not passed basis. Similarly, a graduate course in which a grade below a B, or a grade of U, was received may be repeated only once and may not be repeated on a S/U basis. Repetition of a course more than once requires approval by the appropriate dean in all instances. Degree credit for a course will be given only once, but the grade assigned at each enrollment shall be permanently recorded. For questions contact the Office of Summer Session.
Incomplete Grades: The grade of I may be assigned when the instructor determines that a student’s work is of passing quality and represents a significant portion of the requirements for a final grade, but is incomplete for a good cause (good cause may include current illness, serious personal problems, an accident, a recent death in the immediate family, a large and necessary increase in working hours or other situations of equal gravity). It is the student’s responsibility to obtain written permission from the instructor to receive an I grade as opposed to a non-passing grade. An Incomplete form is available from the Office of the Registrar’s Web site and must be filed prior to the end of the final examination period. If, however, extenuating circumstances exist where submission of the I grade form is not possible before the end of the final examination period, an instructor may submit an I grade; however, the form, including student and instructor signatures, must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar before the first day of instruction of the next semester (which would include the summer sessions). If the form is not received by the Office of the Registrar before the first day of instruction of the next semester, then the I grade will revert to an F, NP, or U.
If an I grade is assigned, students may receive unit credit and grade points by satisfactorily completing the coursework as specified by the instructor. Students cannot re-enroll in the course to complete an I grade. Doing so would result in the course being recorded twice on the transcript.
I grades are not counted in computing the grade point average. Except as noted below, any I grade that has not been replaced within the deadlines will revert to an F, NP, or U. The grade will retroactively be counted in computing a student’s grade point average. For questions contact the Office of Summer Session.
Undergraduate Council-Approved Courses: All courses offered by UC Merced Summer Session have been reviewed and approved by the UC Merced Undergraduate Council (unless otherwise noted). This means UC Merced Summer Session students take the same courses offered during the regular academic year and non-UC Merced students will find it easy to transfer their units to other accredited colleges and universities.
For a complete listing of UC Merced’s Academic Policies and Procedures, please visit The Office of the Registrar website and click on Policies.
You need to attend all classes: Things move quickly in the summer and a lot is covered during each class meeting. Failure to attend class for even a single meeting can have dramatic, negative effects on your grade. If you know you are going to miss the first class meeting, contact the instructor or the appropriate School if one has not been assigned.
Grades count: All grades earned during Summer Session become part of your permanent academic record. In addition, Summer Session grades will be counted in your overall grade point average. Academic standing is not calculated during Summer Session so UC Merced students will find that Summer Session is a valuable time to improve their academic standing calculated at the end of Fall semester.
Access to Records: Students are entitled by law and University policy to examine and challenge most of the records that the University maintains on them. These records are confidential and in most circumstances may be released to third parties only with the student’s prior consent.
Max Units in Summer: Students are advised to take a maximum of 12 units during Summer Session. Additional units are allowed only with permission of your academic advisor.
Courses, Units and Grading System: All UC Merced courses are approved under the semester system. The result of the student’s work in each course is reported to the Office of the Registrar in one of the following grades: A, excellent; B, good; C, fair; D, barely passing; I, Incomplete; and F, not passing. Courses numbered 099 and below are lower division; 100 to 199 are upper division; 200 and above are graduate level courses.
Grade points are assigned to each grade as follows:
A+ 4.0 A 4.0 A- 3.7
B+ 3.3 B 3.0 B- 2.7
C+ 2.3 C 2.0 C- 1.7
D+ 1.3 D 1.0 D- 0.7
F 0.0 I 0.0 S/U or P/NP N/A
Visiting Students Grading Options: It is always best to consult with your home campus regarding their grading requirements before electing a grading option.
Course Repetition: An undergraduate student may repeat only those courses in which a grade of D+, D, D-, F, U, or Not Passed was received. Undergraduate courses in which a grade of D+, D, D-, or F has been earned may not be repeated on a passed/not passed basis. Similarly, a graduate course in which a grade below a B, or a grade of U, was received may be repeated only once and may not be repeated on a S/U basis. Repetition of a course more than once requires approval by the appropriate dean in all instances. Degree credit for a course will be given only once, but the grade assigned at each enrollment shall be permanently recorded. For questions contact the Office of Summer Session.
Incomplete Grades: The grade of I may be assigned when the instructor determines that a student’s work is of passing quality and represents a significant portion of the requirements for a final grade, but is incomplete for a good cause (good cause may include current illness, serious personal problems, an accident, a recent death in the immediate family, a large and necessary increase in working hours or other situations of equal gravity). It is the student’s responsibility to obtain written permission from the instructor to receive an I grade as opposed to a non-passing grade. An Incomplete form is available from the Office of the Registrar’s Web site and must be filed prior to the end of the final examination period. If, however, extenuating circumstances exist where submission of the I grade form is not possible before the end of the final examination period, an instructor may submit an I grade; however, the form, including student and instructor signatures, must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar before the first day of instruction of the next semester (which would include the summer sessions). If the form is not received by the Office of the Registrar before the first day of instruction of the next semester, then the I grade will revert to an F, NP, or U.
If an I grade is assigned, students may receive unit credit and grade points by satisfactorily completing the coursework as specified by the instructor. Students cannot re-enroll in the course to complete an I grade. Doing so would result in the course being recorded twice on the transcript.
I grades are not counted in computing the grade point average. Except as noted below, any I grade that has not been replaced within the deadlines will revert to an F, NP, or U. The grade will retroactively be counted in computing a student’s grade point average. For questions contact the Office of Summer Session.
Undergraduate Council-Approved Courses: All courses offered by UC Merced Summer Session have been reviewed and approved by the UC Merced Undergraduate Council (unless otherwise noted). This means UC Merced Summer Session students take the same courses offered during the regular academic year and non-UC Merced students will find it easy to transfer their units to other accredited colleges and universities.
For a complete listing of UC Merced’s Academic Policies and Procedures, please visit The Office of the Registrar website and click on Policies.