What You Need to Know About Final Grades for Spring 2021

As we wrap up the first term of spring 2021, there are a few new features in CarmenCanvas and a new emergency grading policy you should be aware of as you prepare to submit final grades:

View Ungraded as 0

At the end of last year, Canvas introduced an option to View Ungraded as 0 when accessing grades for an individual student. This feature has now extended to the full Gradebook view. As an instructor, this allows you to view the Gradebook and grade totals as if all ungraded assignments were given a score of zero. It is a visual change only and does not assign zero grades to ungraded assignments. If you would like to enter zeros for these assignments, consult the Teaching and Learning Resource Center for strategies.

Final Grade Override

Starting this term, you will also have the ability to override individual final grades. This allows you to make manual adjustments to students’ final scores instead of using various extra credit strategies. To use this new feature, click on the gear menu in the Gradebook, click the Advanced tab, and check the box. The override column will appear at the far-right side of the Gradebook. It will be visible for all instructors and teaching assistants.

Spring 2021 Grading Policy

Keep in mind, a new Emergency Pass grading policy is in place for spring 2021. The primary difference from previous terms is that certain student grades will be converted to a “PE” mark and not included in the grade point average (GPA) calculation (grades D and D+ for undergraduates and grades C+ through D for graduates). The Office of Academic Affairs outlines these changes in more detail. You do not need to do anything different in your CarmenCanvas course this term. You can enter your grades normally and transfer them using the final grades transfer option. Any grades converted as a result of this policy will appear in a Converted Roster Grade column in SIS.


If you’re looking for assessment strategies or need some help with various eLearning tools, be sure to check out the Teaching and Learning Resource Center. This site houses information and learning opportunities from across the university.