Undergraduate Grading Process 

IE University follows the Spanish Grading System, which consists of a numerical and a qualitative grade. The qualitative grade must be assigned according to the following mandatory criteria:  

• Suspenso (Fail): From 0 to 4.9                 

• Aprobado (Pass): From 5 to 6.9 

• Notable (Good): From 7.0 to 8.9                  

• Sobresaliente (Outstanding) or Sobresaliente with Matrícula de Honor: From 9.0 to 10            

Professors can give if they consider so (is not mandatory) Honor Grade (Matrícula de Honor) to those students who achieve a grade equal to or higher than 9/10, up to 5% of students from the class.  

There are 4 calls to pass a course: first an ordinary call and an extraordinary call (resit), and then it is needed to retake of the course with two calls again ordinary and extraordinary. Below you can see the four chances to pass any given course through two academic years’ ordinary and extraordinary calls:

• If a student fails the first or third call (ordinary) of a course, that student will need to take the exam again on the extraordinary call, and the maximum grade will be an 8/10. 

• When a student fails the 2nd extraordinary call of a course, they need to enroll in the course again the following year. 

• If a student fails all four calls, he or she will need to leave the program. In extremely rare circumstances, the university authority may grant a fifth call if this is supported by the program management.

• Students who fail the course because of lack of attendance (attending less than 80% of sessions) will need to directly enroll and retake in the course again the following year  

ACADEMIC RECOGNITION: HONOR DISTINCTION 

The Honors Distinction (“Matrícula de Honor”) is established by Spanish law (Real Decreto 1125/2003) and refers to the highest academic grade that can be given in the Spanish official evaluation system. 

The legal terms and conditions for awarding an Honors Distinction are: 

• Honors Distinctions are granted at the sole discretion of the professor. Professors are under no obligation to grant such distinction even if one or more students in a given class fulfill the conditions to receive it. 

• The Honors Distinction may be awarded to students who have obtained a grade equal to or greater than 9.0. 

• A professor can only award such distinctions to a limited number of students. Their number must not exceed five per cent (5%) of students enrolled in a course in the respective academic year (the number of distinctions is rounded up if the decimal is equal to or greater than 5). Furthermore, only one Honors Distinction can be awarded in courses where there are less than 20 students enrolled in each teaching group. 

• Honors Distinctions are awarded automatically by the professor. Therefore, it is not necessary for students to apply to them. 

Spanish Law does not establish any special treatment for those students who demonstrate high academic performance. However, because of its educational model, IE University decided that students who receive Honors Distinctions could benefit from a fee deduction, provided by the University. 

As a general policy, students who receive one or more Honors Distinctions will not have to pay tuition fees for the equivalent number of credits during the following academic year at IE University. For example, if a student receives an Honors Distinction for 6 credits course in one academic year, the price of those 6 credits will be deducted from the tuition fees for the following academic year. Such credits and their respective deductions are calculated at the end of each academic year.

Example BBA grading