How grading works at Laurel Ridge Community College
Laurel Ridge (formerly Lord Fairfax Community College) records your performance in each course as a letter grade. A, B, C, D, and F are the grade-bearing letters, worth 4.0, 3.0, 2.0, 1.0, and 0.0 quality points respectively — there are no plus/minus grades at all.
A separate group of notations — P (Pass), S (Satisfactory), U (Unsatisfactory), R (Re-enroll), I (Incomplete), W (Withdrawal), and X (Audit) — carry no grade-point credit and do not affect your GPA. S, U, and R are used only for developmental studies (course numbers 01-09) and ESL courses (11-16).
An Incomplete (I) is only assigned when a student has completed more than 60% of the course requirements and requests it; it must be resolved by the end of the following semester or it converts to the instructor's pre-set default grade.
Source: 2026-27 Academic Catalog — Educational Services, Grading System — verified Aug 2026
How your GPA is calculated
GPA is calculated by dividing the total grade points earned by the total credits attempted; the cumulative GPA includes all courses attempted.
Repeating a course: when a course is repeated, only the highest (most recent, under the semester system) grade counts toward the cumulative GPA and toward graduation requirements — students are normally limited to two enrollments in the same course.
Academic Renewal lets returning students exclude prior grades of D and F from their cumulative GPA. It's available once, after a break of at least three consecutive years from the College, followed by completing at least 12 credits back with a GPA of 2.0 or higher. Excluded grades stay on the transcript but no longer count toward the GPA or toward graduation requirements.
Source: 2026-27 Academic Catalog — Educational Services, Grade Point Average (GPA); Repeating a Course; Academic Renewal — verified Aug 2026
Good standing, probation, and suspension
Good Standing requires a GPA of at least 2.0 per semester.
- Academic Warning — a student's semester GPA falls below 2.0.
- Academic Probation — a student's cumulative GPA falls below 1.5 (only applied after 12 attempted credits); probation lasts until the cumulative average reaches 1.75 or better.
- Academic Suspension — a student already on probation earns below 1.50 again in a semester (only applied after 24 attempted credits); suspension lasts one semester. Reinstated students must earn at least 2.00 in their return semester, then at least 1.75 in every subsequent semester until their cumulative GPA reaches 1.75.
- Academic Dismissal — a reinstated student fails to meet the 2.00/1.75 reinstatement conditions above.
Source: 2026-27 Academic Catalog — Educational Services, Student Status (Good Standing, Academic Warning, Probation, Suspension, Dismissal) — verified Aug 2026
GPA and residency requirements to graduate
To graduate with an associate degree, a student must, among other requirements: earn a grade point average of at least 2.0 in all studies attempted that apply toward graduation, and complete at least 25 percent of the credits for their degree, certificate, or career studies certificate at Laurel Ridge itself.
Source: 2026-27 Academic Catalog — Educational Services, Graduation, Graduation Requirements — verified Aug 2026
Dean's List, President's List, and graduation honors
President's List recognizes students who earn a GPA of 3.8 or above with no F or U grades in a semester of 12+ completed credits; Dean's List recognizes a GPA of 3.2 or above under the same conditions.
At graduation, cumulative-GPA honors are awarded as: Cum Laude (3.2), Magna Cum Laude (3.5), and Summa Cum Laude (3.8). Students found guilty of academic dishonesty do not graduate with any academic honors.
Source: 2026-27 Academic Catalog — Educational Services, Graduation Honors; Academic Recognition (President's/Dean's List); Impact of Academic Dishonesty on Academic Honors — verified Aug 2026