FAB grade for class I never attended

[Zen]

This is actually my first post (been skulking around these boards for a while!). The forum is very informative, so kudos to all the contributors. Anyway, I'm a nontrad with a batchelors degree, who went back to school to fulfill the prerequisites. Two days ago, as I was nonchalantly checking out my online transcript at my alma mater, I noticed an FAB grade for a physics course. My first reaction was "what the heck is an FAB" and upon discovering that it was equivalent to an F, my next reaction was panic and a flurry of expletives!

I was approved for an e-permit at my alma mater (did my post bacc work at a more science orientated college) and registered for physics 2 for the summer of 2006. Anyway, I ended up cancelling the e-permit 5 days before the class was due to start. I received an e-mail from my home college, confirming cancellation of the e-permit and a statement saying that I may no longer attend the course at the host college. I also went into the host college registration site and dropped the course. I didn't discover the FAB grade until now because the host college never forwarded the grade to my home college, which they are required to do.

According to the host college, I didn't drop the course on their registration site. As of now, I only have furnishable proof that the permit was cancelled and also I have proof with respect to my bill. I had a total of 7 credits for the summer, which is what my bill reflects. I'm on financial aid, so the bill would have been for 11 credits had I indeed kept the physics and my other 7 credits.

This F will have a devastating effect on my GPA. I called the registrar's office of my alma mater. At first, I was abruptly told there was nothing that can be done. Only after I complained, did the woman at the registrar's office put me on hold. She came back to inform me that I had the right to file a grade appeal at the academic committee. I'm really paniced about this and excuse the long winded rant. I also hope people view this as a cautionary tale. Make copies and have furnishable proof of anything that can come back to bite you in the lower extremities. On an ironic note, I'm actually taking physics 2 right now at another college...got a a 98% on my first midterm.

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[Tired Pigeon]

I understand your panic, but a legitimate administrative screw-up on the part of the institution is highly unlikely to stand permanently on your transcript. Pursue the proper channels of appeal, have all your documentation in order, remain professional and polite, and insist that the matter be resolved to your satisfaction. Keep records of every conversation you have about this - their name, title, what was said, date/time of the conversation, etc.

IF you go through the whole process and still get nowhere, then consider telling them how much you "regret that they are forcing you to pursue legal remedies". This will definitely garner more attention.

 

[SupergreenMnM]

I understand your panic, but a legitimate administrative screw-up on the part of the institution is highly unlikely to stand permanently on your transcript. Pursue the proper channels of appeal, have all your documentation in order, remain professional and polite, and insist that the matter be resolved to your satisfaction. Keep records of every conversation you have about this - their name, title, what was said, date/time of the conversation, etc.

IF you go through the whole process and still get nowhere, then consider telling them how much you "regret that they are forcing you to pursue legal remedies". This will definitely garner more attention.

Always a plus in this case, as your initial reaction is to be pissed off, the nicer you are the more likely this will be resolved to your satisfaction. G'luck.

 

[Zen]

Thanks for the feeedback. I agree keeping a cool head and being polite is the best course of action. I'm trying to actually contact the professor before filing any paperwork and hopefully take it from there. I have never filed a grade appeal on my own behalf before. I however, assisted a foreign student last year in filing a grade appeal. She asked me to write a letter documenting her complaint, which I gladly assisted her with.

She had a legitimate complaint, as far as I could objectively ascertain. After a year (yes a year!) of playing tag and bureaucracy, her appeal was denied. Her instructor actually took points away and made errors tallying up her grade. I verified this by going through her past exams and documented it in a typed 1 page letter. Many students complained about the same professor (first semester teaching). After that semester, the professor mysteriously dissapeared, but not before damaging the GPA of some students. It seems, the college knew the professor was incompetent, but they didn't want to acknowledge this via the grade appeal process.Bottom line, even if you do have a legitimate case, justice isn't always served.

As such, given my previous experience with a grade appeal committee, I am somewhat tempered in my enthusiam in a satisfactory resolution. I, however, plan to behave professionally and hopefully things will be resolved to my satisfaction. Otherwise, I'll have no alternative but to seek legal advise. There is no way I'm accepting a F grade for a course that I dropped before classes even started...no can do!

 

[supersash]

i had to do an appeal, and i literally just wrote what happened, short and simple, and it worked. try not to stress, keep a cool head, and do everything tell you to do. good luck.

 

[sefago]

I swear I thought FAB was an acronym for fabulous. Sorry though...

 

[chickenlittle84]

I am so sorry that happened to you! A very similar thing happened to my boyfriend during his junior year. He dropped a class at the beginning of the semester, but at the end of the semester when he got his grades an F appeared. I hope this is not what happens to you, but in his case it was a HUGE pain to change. He had to file a petition with the academic review committee and get a letter from the Professor who knew he had dropped the class. After lots and lots of back and forth, they agreed to remove the F and change it to a W, but that obviously wasn't good enough since it was the registrar's administrative error. In any case, he filed petition after petition with the committee for nearly a whole year and they refused to remove the W. Finally, in a last ditch effort he just went to the head of the registrar in person (he had not gone until now because he was told that she didn't have jurisdiction) and basically explained what happened and everything he had been through and asked really nicely and she just took it off..I guess she did have the authority to do something....be REALLY diligent and aggressive (but nice) and it will probably work out okay....they should at least change it to a W....

 

[BloodySurgeon]

The letter thing is not always a good idea. It's easy for them to say 'no' to a paper and usually these letters are reviewed by a small commitee (or at least I was told to believe). And when it's reviewed by comittees, they are usually stone hard by the books. I suggest to try setting up a meeting with someone high in the administration ladder. It is a good idea to speak with your professor, since they would most probably ask for your professor's attendance sheet and your proof of withdrawing. Be polite and courteous. They will constantly say the process will take a long time and there is nothing you can really do, but its all BS.... They are just either trying to convice you to leave them alone, or you're talking to the wrong person.

It is a shame that you had realize your grade so late, but im confident that if what you say is all correct and you have proof, then you'll be fine. If not, read below.

My friends were always in these kinds of positions and so far im 10-0. PM if you got any more questions. Administrators are a bitch, but so are lawyers, DMVs, airports, etc.

Good Luck! and tell me how things went

 

[Zen]

Update. I took your advice and spoke with the head registrar. After several days of verifying my information, my F was deleted from my transcript. I've been breathing a huge sigh of relief....Whewwwwwwwwwwww!Thanks again for the feedback.

 

[Sondra]

I think you should go in person too.

I had to have a grade changed, and it was a pain. I ended up going in person and meeting with every person I could to tell them my story. I got turned down twice before someone agreed to do it. Each time someone turned me down, I asked who else I could speak to about the matter.