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Grade Exclusion

First Year Grade Exclusion Policy

A fully admitted, currently enrolled Texas A&M undergraduate student who is "first time in college"* as defined by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board may elect to exclude from his/her undergraduate degree and cumulative GPR calculation grades of D, F, or U. This exclusion shall be permitted for up to a maximum of three courses taken for credit at Texas A&M University during the twelve month period beginning with the student's initial enrollment at Texas A&M. Currently enrolled is defined as a student who is registered for one or more semester credits and has made financial arrangements for required tuition and fees for the semester or term in progress. Current enrollment is certified after the state designated census day.

*First time in college: an undergraduate, degree seeking, student who applied and enrolled in college for the first time regardless of whether the student has acquired college level credit through testing, advanced placement or summer enrollment.

All courses chosen for first year grade exclusion shall remain on the official transcript and be designated on the transcript as excluded.

First year grade exclusion cannot be invoked after a baccalaureate degree has been conferred upon the student.

First Year Grade Exclusion requests for degree candidates must be received in the Office of the Registrar not later than the day midterm grades are due when the student is graduating in a fall or spring semester; not later than Friday of the 3rd week of class for the second summer session when the student is graduating in August.

First year grade exclusion will affect student classification if excluding a course lowers total completed hours below 60, or 30 hours.

Grades for courses in which the student was found to have committed academic dishonesty will not be excluded from the GPR calculation, regardless whether or not the student completed remediation.

A course for which the grade has been excluded will not be used to satisfy degree requirements unless it is repeated by the student for an acceptable grade.

Once a grade in a course has been excluded from the GPR calculation, the student will not later be permitted to have the exclusion removed or otherwise changed.

Courses for which grades have been excluded will be counted as attempted hours when determining eligibility for tuition rebates, calculating excess credit hours, and determining third-time repeats.

Courses for which grades have been excluded will not be taken into account when determining eligibility for a change of major, scholarships, or achievement based awards.

Courses excluded under this policy are NOT excluded when determining whether a student is meeting satisfactory academic progress requirements (hours completed) for federal and state financial aid programs.

While excluded courses will not be factored into Texas A&M University GPR, students should be aware that employers, professional schools, and graduate schools may recalculate the GPR to include such grades.

University rules regarding Q drops remain unaffected, but students should consult with their undergraduate associate dean or his/her designee.

Students are directed to contact their academic advisor to obtain the necessary form.

First Year Grade Exclusion Policy FAQs

I want to exclude a class I took my first year. I was admitted to TAMU as a Blinn TEAM student, am I eligible to use first year grade exclusion?
Blinn TEAM students are eligible to use first year grade exclusion for courses taken at TAMU during the twelve month period beginning with their first semester in TEAM. See your academic advisor.

I was admitted as a freshman provisional student and took my first courses at TAMU in the summer. Am I eligible to exclude any of my courses?
You may exercise first year grade exclusion on courses taken during your first twelve months at TAMU. Your first twelve months began with your enrollment in the summer and if you meet the other qualifications you may exclude up to 3 courses. See your academic advisor.

I want to know what my GPR would be if I excluded a course. How do I do that?
The Office of the Registrar has developed a Grade Exclusion GPR Calculator for you to use to determine the impact of first year grade exclusion on your cumulative GPR. This calculator, available at https://myrecord.tamu.edu, will also indicate which of your courses are eligible for exclusion. You may use the calculator to try out grade exclusion; once you determine grades to be excluded, you must complete the First Year Grade Exclusion Policy Form and obtain the approval of your academic dean.

I want to exclude two courses from my GPR. One of the courses is a required course to graduate, will I have to take that course again?
A course for which the grade has been excluded will not be used to satisfy degree requirements unless it is repeated by the student for an acceptable grade.

I attended TAMU Galveston for my freshman year, am I eligible for first year grade exclusion?
Yes, since Galveston is a TAMU branch campus, you are eligible to use first year grade exclusion.

I attended another college and transferred to TAMU my sophomore year. Can I use first year grade exclusion for my first year at TAMU?
You are not eligible to use first year grade exclusion because you did not attend TAMU as first time in college. A first time in college student is a first semester undergraduate, degree seeking student who applied and enrolled at TAMU for his/her first time in college. Your first time in college was at the college you attended your freshman year.

While I was a high school senior, I took two courses at my local community college which counted as college credit and fulfilled high school requirements. Am I eligible for grade exclusion?
Dual credit courses taken before high school graduation will not disqualify you.

I am a graduating senior and am considering excluding a D I received my first semester in order to raise my cumulative GPR. What should I consider before doing this?
You should review this with your academic advisor as you may not want to exclude a course that meets a core curriculum or degree requirement or counts toward total hours needed for graduation.

If I exclude a course, will the hours excluded be counted as total hours attempted when determining eligibility for the $1000 tuition rebate?
Yes, the hours will be counted.

Am I considered "currently enrolled if I am not attending summer school, but I want to exclude the grade for a course I took in the spring? You are considered currently enrolled if you were enrolled in the spring semester and are preregistered for the coming fall semester even if you are not enrolled for a summer term.

If I started in the fall of the year, did not attend spring semester and returned the following fall, what semesters count toward my twelve months of eligibility for first year grade exclusion?
Your calendar began with your initial enrollment in the fall semester and continued through spring and summer.

During my first year I failed both Biology 113 and the corresponding lab course, Biology 123. Do I use one or two grade exclusions?
To exclude grades from Biology 113 and the lab, Biology 123, you will use two of your allotted three grade exclusions.

GPR Grade Exclusion Calculator

The GPR Grade Exclusion Calculator is available at https://myrecord.tamu.edu and interfaces with the Student Information Management System (SIMS). It will first check if you qualify under the first time in college rule. If TAMU or TAMUG was your first college/university enrollment, it will then show you any courses which are eligible to be excluded (taken within 12 consecutive calendar months of first enrollment and received a grade of D, F or U). You may check which course(s), a maximum of three, and the GPR Grade Exclusion Calculator will show you what your GPR is without the excluded course(s). You may try different scenarios. Using the GPR Grade Exclusion Calculator does not change your GPR in SIMS. You must print the Grade Exclusion Form and follow the instructions to actually exclude courses from the official GPR.

Grade Exclusion Form

If you are eligible to exclude grades, print the Grade Exclusion Form, enter the required information, obtain the required signatures and turn it in to the Records Section, Office of the Registrar, General Services Complex, 750 Agronomy Road, Suite 1501, College Station, TX 77843 by the published official deadlines.