Online Final Grade Entry

All final grades are submitted via ESTHER. Online grade entry is available to Course Instructors and Department Coordinators.

If you are attempting to change an INC or OT grade, you will need to submit a Grade Change Request.

Online Grade Entry Support

If you have questions, requests, or problems with the online grade entry, please contact the Office of the Registrar by email at registrar@rice.edu or contact the Online Grade Entry Hotline at 713-348-8044 or the main office line at 713-348-4999.

Entering Online Final Grades

It is strongly recommended that you use Chrome or Firefox when entering grades.

  1. Login to ESTHER.
  2. From the Faculty tab, click Grade Entry.
  3. Select the Final Grades tab.
  4. Enter the course section (CRN) you wish to grade from your list of assigned courses.
  5. In the student roster below, locate students with blank grade fields and select the appropriate letter grade from the dropdown menu.
  6. Click Save at the bottom right of the page to submit your entries.
  7. When the grading status for the course updates to Completed, you have successfully entered all final grades for that course.

Please note the following grade entry limitations:

  • Grades can only be entered for enrolled students.
  • Only students still needing a grade entered will appear on the roster. If a student is not listed on a grade entry roster, that student is not registered for the course or a grade has already been entered for the student.
  • There can only be one grade mode per course. Therefore, you cannot enter grades of mixed modes such as standard letter grades and satisfactory/unsatisfactory grades for the same course.
  • You do not need to have all grades entered before submitting the grades to the Office of the Registrar. You can enter the grades that you know, and come back to the remaining ones later.
  • You will have to provide grades of Audit (AUD) or No Credit (NC) for students who are auditing your course.

Important Grading Information

Graduating Student Grades

  • You must report a letter grade for all degree candidates identified on your Degree Candidate Grade Roster, there are no grades of “Incomplete” (INC) or “Other” (OT). If the work of a graduating student is not complete, please assign a grade based on what information you have on the student.
  • Students on your roster who have not attended for some time, but have not dropped, should be given the grade they earned. If the student believes they have been unfairly graded, and/or if there were administrative errors, they can appeal to the Committee on Examinations and Standing (EX&S).

Non-Graduating Student Grades

  • In some very specific situations, students that have failed to complete the work of a course can potentially receive an “Incomplete” (INC) or “Other” (OT). Details on when the grade of INC or OT is appropriate is available in the General Announcements. For situations in which a grade of INC or OT is appropriate, the Academic Calendar details when this outstanding work must be completed.
  • Students on your roster who have not attended for some time, but have not dropped, should be given the grade they earned. If the student believes they have been unfairly graded, and/or if there were administrative errors, they can appeal to the Committee on Examinations and Standing (EX&S).

Reviewing Grades

Once you have submitted grades online, you can request to change them via the Grade Change Request application if no other grade changes have occurred for that student for the course. If you are unable to submit the request using the Grade Change Request application, you will need to complete a Grade Change Form available by request in the Office of the Registrar.