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Administrator Guide
Last Updated: 2025-11-14
Steps: Set Up Course Repeat Policies

Steps: Set Up Course Repeat Policies

  • Define student grading. See Steps: Set Up Student Grading.
  • Security:
    Set Up: Academic Policies
     domain in the Academic Foundation functional area.
You can configure course repeat policies to determine:
  • The maximum number of times a student can attempt a course for grade improvement.
  • How to treat repeated coursework in calculating the grade point average (GPA) and units earned by students.
Workday applies course repeat policies when a student attempts:
Workday doesn't apply course repeat policies to:
Workday considers registrations for repeat attempts in this priority order:
  • Registrations with a
    Completed status
    .
  • Registrations that have a grade with an
    Incomplete
     or
    Withdraw
     grade category type.
  • Registrations that have a grade with a
    Missing Grade
     grade category type or
    Audit
     grading basis.
Workday counts the course attempt with the highest priority. When multiple attempts have the same priority, Workday then applies the course repeat policy to determine which attempt to count.
  2. Access the
    Create Course Repeat Rule Set
     task.
    As you complete the task, consider:
    Option Description
    Repeat Processing
    Select which of the repeated course attempts to use to calculate credit.
    When you select
    Best Attempt
    , Workday looks for the best course attempt based on this criteria, in this order:
    • Highest earned grade points.
    • Highest number of earned units.
    • Earliest academic period start date.
    • Earliest course section start date.
    When there are multiple attempts that match all criteria, Workday selects the latest attempt as the best attempt.
    When you select
    Last Attempt
    , Workday looks for the latest course attempt based on the most recent academic period start date. You can select the
    Use Repeat Limit
     check box to configure a repeat limit.
    Example: A student took Biology 101 in Spring 2021 and received a B- grade. They retook the class in Fall 2021 and received a B- grade again. When you configure the repeat processing as:
    • Best Attempt
      , Workday uses the earlier course attempt from Spring 2021, since both grades are worth the same grade points.
    • Last Attempt
      , Workday uses the course attempt from Fall 2021.
    Include All Repeat Registrations in GPA
    Select to average all repeated course grades when including them in cumulative GPA calculations.
    When the check box is unchecked, Workday uses the best or last course attempt based on the
    Repeat Processing
     configuration.
    Include Repeated and Replaced Registrations for Academic Period Statistics
    Select to continue to exclude units earned and GPA units from replaced registrations.
    Workday calculates the statistics for the academic period based on the courses taken in that period, regardless of any repeated attempts that might replace them.
    Use Repeat Limit
    Workday displays this check box when you select the
    Repeat Processing
     of
    Last Attempt
    .
    Select to configure a repeat limit for the course repeat policy. Specify:
    • Max Repeatable Units for Grade Improvement
      : The total number of units that Workday forgives when a student repeats courses. When a student exceeds this number of units, Workday includes all subsequent repeated courses in their GPA.
    • Unit Type
      : The type of units that Workday uses for this policy.
    Leave Past Academic Periods Unchanged
    Select to prevent retroactive updates of the student’s past period and cumulative statistics based on the attempt that counts. This leaves student statistics, such as period and cumulative units and GPA, unchanged.
    When the check box is unchecked, Workday updates the student’s cumulative statistics retroactively for past academic periods based on the attempt that counts.
  3. Access the
    Maintain Course Repeat Policy
    task.
    Assign the course repeat rule set to an academic unit and academic level.
    You can only select:
    • Academic units and levels configured to offer courses.
    • Rule sets that are unused or belong to your institution.
Workday enforces the course repeat policy:
  • When students register for courses.
  • In calculating the GPA, units, and grade points that students earn.
  • In evaluating transfer credit towards academic credit for students.
  • On the
    Academic Progress
     report for the student.
Workday applies the policy that’s effective as of the student’s primary program of study declare date, based on the primary program of study on the academic period record start date.
On the
Academic History
 report of the student, Workday displays notes for the repeat and equivalent courses impacted by:
  • Course attempt limit policies.
  • Course repeat policies.
You can view these policies on the
Academic Unit Policy Viewer
 report
To apply any changes on a course repeat policy to existing repeat records, access the
Mass Refresh Academic Statistics
 task.
You can use the
Override Repeated Courses for Student
 task to:
  • View which repeated course attempt that Workday counts.
  • Select a different repeated course attempt to count.