OX Guidelines
A student may be excused from a scheduled final examination or coursework during the last two weeks of the semester if he/she was progressing satisfactorily and has verifiable medical or personal issues. A student is expected to initiate the request for an Excused Absence.
If a student is requesting an Excused Absence, s/he should first contact the course professor and also set up a meeting with one of our deans (Room 5-104; 617-253-4861). In extraordinary circumstances (e.g., serious medical or personal emergency), a dean in S3 will initiate the conversation about an OX with a professor. Faculty assign the grade of O to denote the absence, and deans in S3 excuse the absence by assigning the grade of X.
Deans in S3 excuse (X) absences (O) for the following reasons:
- Verifiable medical issues
- Verifiable personal issues
- An emergency or crisis that makes it impossible for the student to complete work or take the final exam
It is the student's responsibility to negotiate with faculty what needs to be accomplished to resolve the OX and receive a grade. This may involve scheduling a make-up final exam or finishing other assignments as determined by the instructor.
Upon completion of a subject for which an OX was assigned, the final grade will replace the OX on the transcript. Should a student fail to complete a subject with an OX, the OX will remain on the record. A grade of OX is not included in the GPA. If a student receives an OX in a subject s/he has designated as Exploratory, the student may change the subject from credit to Listener status through his/her next Registration Day (Fall or Spring) after the final grade is posted.
