Related Sites

Office of the Registrar
Campus Address
Hanover, NH
03755-3529
Phone: (603) 646-xxxx
Fax: (603) 646-xxxx
Email: reg@Dartmouth.EDU

Organization, Regulations, and Courses 2024-25


Contents
Catalog Links

Non-Recording Option

To support and encourage students who would like to elect courses that may pose greater than usual academic risk, the Faculty offers the Non-Recording Option to undergraduate students.

 

Eligibility - Students

Available to all students who are enrolled and taking courses except for students on Probation, Warning, or the first term following assignment of Risk.

 

Description

  • Students may elect to receive an NR in one regularly graded course per term except for any courses departments or programs have indicated as “out-of-bounds”. The faculty member will submit a letter grade which will not be shown on transcripts or included in the calculation of students’ grade point averages.
  • Students may either indicate that they wish to receive an NR, regardless of what grade the instructor assigns, or indicate the lowest grade they wish to display on their transcript.

 

Grades and GPA

  • A regular letter grade is assigned by the instructor and recorded internally.
  • If a student receives an NR:
    • The letter grade submitted by the instructor, while not used in computing any recorded grade average, is available for internal use (e.g., in connection with the limit on the number of D’s allowable).
  • A ‘non-recorded’ D will be counted toward the maximum of eight D’s allowable in the minimum course count for the degree
    • It will make the student liable for academic action by the Committee on Standards.
  • If an E grade is recorded it displays on the transcript and is averaged in the calculation of students’ GPA.

 

Eligibility – Courses

  • Various departments and programs, or instructors, believe certain courses are unsuitable for use of the option. They are considered “out of bounds”.
    • A list of courses that are “out of bounds” is maintained and published by the Registrar on the Timetable of Class Meetings each term.
    • In addition to individual “out of bounds” courses, students may not use the NR option for any:
      • First-Year Seminars
      • Courses studied off-campus
      • Courses taken in satisfaction of the Language Requirement or prior thereto
      • Graduate courses

 

Restrictions - Faculty

  • Departments and programs may not make any change to or from the out-of-bounds status for their course(s) following the publication of the Timetable of Class Meetings for a given term.
  • Departments and Programs may not grant an exemption from the out-of-bounds status to an individual student.
  • Instructors assign a regular letter grade.
    • Instructors are not informed which members of their class have elected the option.
    • Instructors may, however, know how many students elected the option.

 

Restrictions – Students

  • Each undergraduate is allowed one NR in a term.
  • Students may have up to a maximum of three total uses of the option that result in a standing of ‘Non-Recorded’ (NR) over their Dartmouth career; For exceptions to the limit of three uses, see the section on Language Requirement Waivers.
  • A course that receives NR is included in the student’s sum of credits toward graduation.
  • A standing of NR prevents the course from being used to satisfy:
    • Distributive requirements
    • The World Culture requirement
    • Major requirements.
  • An NR may, however, be used to satisfy:
    • Prerequisite courses to the major
    • At most one course in the minor, including prerequisite courses.
  • Uses of the option resulting in the standing of NR or the grade of E (up to the maximum of three) are included in the total of eight courses that may be taken Credit/No Credit or under the Non-Recording Option.
  • Students should note the crucial NRO dates published on the term calendar for selecting the option, changing the course chosen, withdrawing from the election of the option, and for altering the choice of grade.
    • The Registrar does not grant extensions of NRO deadlines for any but the most extenuating and compelling circumstances.
    • Should a student withdraw from the course selected for NRO after the end of the initial fifteen days, they do not use the eligibility associated with the designated course but are not able to make use of NRO in that term.
  • Students sometimes desire the release of the concealed letter grade, for example for use in a major, for general education credit, or for admission to a graduate school. Such requests are not considered.

 

Procedure

  • Within the first fifteen days (usually eleven class days) of a term a student may indicate use of the Non-Recording Option for one course each term.
  • The student indicates the lowest letter grade they are willing to have recorded and used in averaging for each course.
  • The student may also, instead of a letter grade, indicate the intention to have a final standing in the course of NR (Non-Recorded).
  • At any time after this initial period, but not later than five class days before the last day of classes for the term, a student may revise the choice of lowest acceptable grade or of NR.

 

Outcomes

  • There are three possible outcomes for a course under the option:
    • If the grade assigned by the instructor matches or surpasses the student’s final choice, it is entered and serves in all respects as a regular letter grade.
    • If the grade is not an “E” but otherwise lower than the student’s final selection, or the student chose to receive an NR, the entry on the student’s permanent record and on transcripts is NR.
      • The standing of NR is permanent: requests to revoke it and reveal the letter grade originally assigned by the instructor must be refused.
    • Should the assigned letter grade be E, this grade is recorded and averaged in the normal fashion no matter whether the student chose a grade or NR. The student receives no course credit.