Policy on Incompletes

Students must complete all course work within the bounds of a semester unless they petition for and are granted an Incomplete by the CSA Committee on Academic Standing. Students may be granted an Incomplete only in rare circumstances such as an incapacitating illness as certified by Health Services at Columbia, serious family emergency, or circumstances of comparable gravity which prevent the completion of work specifically due at the end of the semester.

To be granted an Incomplete, it is expected that students will have completed all work in the class except for the final project or exam, and students must provide official supporting documentation certifying the reasons for the request. Please note that final authorization of all Incompletes requires approval of the Committee on Academic Standing; individual faculty members and instructors are NOT authorized to grant Incompletes.

Students who wish to petition for an Incomplete must do the following:

A) Contact/make an appointment with their Advising Dean to discuss the request. If the circumstances appear to warrant an Incomplete, they will be provided with an application to request an Incomplete. This petition includes a form to be completed by their instructor(s).

B) Request that the instructor(s) complete the instructor form. Instructors will be asked to provide a contingency grade in the event that the student does not finish the assigned work. The completed instructor form must be provided in order for the Incomplete application to be reviewed by the Committee on Academic Standing.

C) Obtain supporting documentation from Health Services or other source(s) appropriate to the reason you are requesting an Incomplete.

D) Submit all completed forms and supporting documentation to CSA for consideration by the Committee on Academic Standing.

Petition Deadlines:

For final papers or other course work due at the end of the term: Thursday, December 11, 2008

For final exams: No later than a day before the final examination for which students are requesting the incomplete.

Upon receipt of all forms and supporting documentation, the Committee on Academic Standing will meet to review the petition.

Students will be informed of the decision via email. Students who are granted an Incomplete are assigned a deadline for completion of the overdue work, or a date on which a deferred exam must be taken. The deferred exam dates for Fall 2008 are Friday, January 23, 2009 and Monday, January 26, 2009.

Please contact your Advising Dean with any questions.