Grading Policy

Fail Grade and Reassessment

Seldom assigned, this grade represents a failure of achievement and/or commitment that results in the student falling below the minimum standards of the course. This grade will be assigned to all those students whose performance is below the minimum required which is two standard deviations from the mean of his/her section. [minimum required = mean – (standard deviation*2)].

When students receive a Fail in a course, they have the opportunity to present themselves for reassessment in order to earn the necessary credits toward graduation. The reassessment, including content and evaluation, is the responsibility of the course professor in agreement with the Academic Course Coordinator (appointed by the Dean of Faculty). The re-sit should take place between 5 and 10 working days after the date of the review session,
giving the student sufficient time to prepare for the reassessment of the failed subject. Grades for the reassessment are limited to a Low Pass and Fail, both of which fall outside of the normal grade distribution. In the case of a Low Pass, the student receives the corresponding academic credit (sessions/weight) associated with the Low Pass grade that carries a grade point of 1.0. In the case of a Fail, the student would be required to leave the IMBA Program for failure to meet the academic requirements of the program.

Review sessions

As soon as the final grade of a course is published, students will be informed about the date, time and place via IE Campus (under the section page on the left-hand menu). This session must take place within 10 business days of the grade being published. During this review session, students have the right to receive feedback from the professor in order to better understand the rationale behind their evaluation. If during the review session the student is contesting a grade, the professor may review the entire work, not only the assignment in question, and the final grade can be adjusted accordingly (either up or down). If following the review session the student believes there has been an objective error in the evaluation of their performance, he/she may proceed with a formal grade appeal to the Vice Dean of the Program.

The student can ask for a review of the qualification obtained in the final Master’s exam. In the case that the final Master’s exam is group work with individual assessment, the request will have to be made by all the members of the group to the Program Director, who will provide the feedback.

After receiving feedback, the student/group may request a review session with the Examining Board Secretary. During the review session, if a student/group does not agree with a section of their grade, the Examining Board Secretary may review all of their work and adjust the final grade accordingly – up or down.

If, after the review session, the student / group is not satisfied, they may appeal to the Vice Dean within a maximum period of 3 days after the review session – by the process described in a previous paragraph.

The arguments that support the appeal must be submitted in writing using the existing specific questionnaire to make the appeal.

Grade Appeal

It is understood that each professor has the right to determine the specific assessment parameters for their subject and has sufficient experience to evaluate the work done by each student. In the event that a student does not agree with the awarded grade and wishes to appeal the result based on objective and substantive evidence, these steps must be followed:

If you are considering the submission of a grade appeal, please review the specific requirements and instructions below.

• If a student receives a Fail at reassessment, or they disagree with their grade after reviewing it with the professor, they may appeal the grade. Accordingly, they must apply the assessment criteria and appeal to the Vice Dean of the Program via email within 5 working days of being informed of their grade.
• Regarding requests must be done in writing, using the questionnaire, outlining the specific areas of the work that they feel were incorrectly graded (based on the content of the course syllabus) and explaining why they feel it merits reassessment. Arguments based on subjective opinions of a student, or requests for reassessment by another professor, will not be considered as grounds for reassessment
• The Vice Dean, having considered the course professor´s opinion, and if necessary, those of the course coordinator, should decide whether the appeal is justified and, if so, reassess the contested work. The Vice Dean must provide a response to the student, outlining the outcome of the appeal and whether the grade has changed. The decision of the Dean of Academic Affairs is final. There is no option for a third party appeal to resolve grading disputes.

Attendance and Participation

Attendance is a critical aspect of the IE commitment. IE students are admitted in part because of the experiences they bring to the community and what they can add to class discussions (participation). Without attending, learning as a collaborative process cannot exist. In accordance with this belief, IE has implemented a policy to address excessive absences with escalated repercussions based on the percentage of class missed for a given course. Below you will find the full text for the Attendance Policy. Please bare in mind the IMBA is a 100% face-to-face Program.

Attendance is mandatory throughout the entire academic program

With such a complex curriculum packed into less than a year’s time, missing academic classes and activities puts students at a significant disadvantage.

Please plan to stay on top of your classes and any related deliverables, as professors are not obligated to “excuse” absences or give assignments to make up for participation.

For planning activities outside of the class schedule, please use these resources:

1. The overall calendar for the year:

IMBA 11 Months

IMBA 15 Months

2. Your specific class schedule, posted on IE Blackboard 1 week before the beginning of each period.

3. Contact the IMBA Team at imba@ie.edu for any questions about class timing far in advance.

Be punctual

Professors have the right to mark students absent and/or not let them in their class if a student arrives late (regardless it is just by a few minutes).

In order to limit disruptions during class, we ask students to make the most of the breaks between classes (restroom break, fill water bottle, etc.).

REGARDING EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

At IE, we believe that the benefits of engaging in extracurricular activities are endless. They complement the academic curriculum and are a key tool to the one’s personal development.

Extracurricular activities at IE can be student initiatives or sponsored and/or promoted by our school. We understand that students are attracted to these activities not merely for entertainment but the key here is to find a healthy balance between one’s academic responsibility and extracurricular engagement.

While we encourage and promote extracurricular activities, students will not be excused from class to participate in extracurricular activities. Those who choose the latter over the former will have to coordinate with their professors and cope with the potential consequences of missing class (i.e. negative impact on participation).