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Exams and Grading

Grading Support, Managing Grades and Grade Approvals Process (GAP)

Overall/Final Module Grades

As outlined in the university’s Academic Regulations in Section 4.14, assessment in the university shall be graded.
The following scale should be used for module grades (Regulation 4.28):


Where module outcomes cannot be assessed at this level of detail, the results may be returned as pass/fail, or distinction/pass/fail, and the following scale should be used (Regulation 4.29).

Other Final/Overall Grades

The following grades may also be approved by the Programme Examination Board to signify particular circumstances or outcomes (Regulation 4.31):

For Resit modules the following grades are applicable (see 6.6 b of the Academic Regulations)

MODULE GRADE GRADE POINT DESCRIPTION
PR 2.0 Passing Module Grade for Resit Attempt
FR 0.0 Fail for Resit Attempt
NM 0.0 No grade- work submitted did not merit a grade for the Remediation Attempt
ABS 0.0 No work was submitted by the student or the student was absent from assessment for the Remediation Attempt

Component Grade Scales 

The Academic Regulations state that all assessment at the University shall be graded (Regulation 4.14).

The following scale should be used for module component grades (Regulation 4.24)


In Brightspace, this conversion scale is the default scale and it is entitled (Default) 40% Pass Standard Letter/Numeric. For more information on this, please see Brightspace Help Guides

Where an assessment component cannot be assessed at this level of detail, the results may be returned as pass/fail and the following scale should be used (Regulation 4.25).

In Brightspace, this conversion scale is the default scale and it is entitled (Default) Pass/Fail. For more information on this, please see Brightspace Help Guides

Numeric Marks to Component Grade Conversions Component Grade Scales

Download the Mark to Grade Conversion Component Grade Scales


Where assessment components are objective and quantitative, a suitable numerical scale may be used to establish performance in the component. However, if a numerical scale is used to establish performance, marks must be converted to grades before they are entered into Gradebook (Regulation 4.14). The University has approved Mark to Grade Conversion Scales that can be used, however if desired, Module Coordinators can use whatever rubric is appropriate. Students must be informed in advance about the rubric that will be applied, to ensure there is transparency around how grades are arrived at.

The default conversion scale for the university is the Standard Conversion Grade Scale 40% Pass and the calculation points are as follows:



In addition to the default standard conversion scale, the following scales are university approved and may be used:





There is a new 21-point linear grade scale to calculate and convert component grades to module grades, as approved by the University Programme Board in November 2018. This is a change from the previously used percentage-based calculation point scale. Component grades will be aggregated to module grades in Gradebook using the new 21-point linear scale. This change has no effect on how stage and award GPAs are calculated in Banner.


Calculation Example:

Grade Entry guidebook and videos can be found here

The Online Module Grade Calculator is available to assist module coordinators in calculating the impact potential component grade changes would have on an overall grade. 

Please note that module coordinators should no longer use any previous Excel versions of the Module Grade Calculator, as their accuracy is not guaranteed. The Online Module Grade Calculator should be used for any such calculations.

To access the Grade Calculator

  • From InfoHub go to Assessment and Grading and select (opens in a new window)My Module Grades
  • Navigate to the Grade Information report of the module for which you wish to check 
  • Click on Grade Calculator icon on the line of any particular student you wish to calculate an overall module grade for
  • Enter the new component grade(s) and Recalculate Final Grade

Note: The calculator does not make any change to the grading record of the student; it is purely a calculation tool.

Contact UCD Registry

University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
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