Guidelines Regarding Extra Credit/Bonus Assignments

While recognizing the wide range of courses taught on our campus and the right of individual faculty members to design their courses in whatever manner they believe is appropriate, there remain professional standards, which should be maintained by all faculty. Grades in a course should be determined based on students' performance on assessments which are based on their mastery of course material. In general, use of “Extra Credit” or “Bonus” assignments is discouraged. However, if extra credit must be assigned, the following guidelines should be applied:

1.    Extra credit assignments should only be given if they are directly related to the course material.

2.    Extra credit assignments should allow students to acquire knowledge related to the course that would not be practical to obtain in the classroom.

3.    Extra credit work should not account for a significant portion of students' grades.