CORe Grading Information

This page contains everything you need to know about grading for CORe. Please take care to review all content thoroughly. We recommend bookmarking this page as an important resource while you progress through the program.

If you still can't find what you are looking for, please visit the HBS Online Support Portal.

Grades Overview

CORe grades are provided at both the individual course level (i.e. Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting) and the program level. You must complete and pass all three courses to receive a passing grade for CORe and earn the Credential of Readiness.

Course Grades
Course grades are based on the following three components, with the approximate weighting of each component:

Your CORe final exam score (50% of final course grade),
Your module quiz score average (35% of final course grade), and
The quality of your participation contributions (15% of final course grade), see Participation Grades for full details

Please keep these weights in mind as you consider how to best allocate your time and effort.

Program Grades
Your mastery of program materials will be assessed based on your scores on module quizzes and final exams, as well as the quality and extent of your participation. CORe program grades are assigned on the following scale:

Pass with High Honors
To pass CORe with High Honors, you must:

Meet all requirements to pass CORe (referenced below)
Demonstrate a superior level of mastery of course content
Make exemplary contributions to the program through your engagement and participation

Pass with Honors
To pass CORe with Honors, you must:

Meet all requirements to pass CORe (referenced below)
Demonstrate a strong level of mastery of course content
Make strong contributions to the program through your engagement and participation

Pass
To pass CORe, you must:

Demonstrate mastery of course content
Satisfactorily complete all quizzes, exams, and required participation elements

Fail
You will fail CORe and will not be awarded a Credential of Readiness if you do not meet these requirements in one or more courses:

Complete all module quizzes and final exams
Demonstrate content mastery on module quizzes and the final exam
Satisfactorily complete all required participation elements

All participants, whether they are taking the CORe program for credit or not, will be graded under the same Fail/Pass/Honors system.

Note: A passing exam score on all three final exams (Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting) is required to pass all three courses and earn the CORe credential. The final exam is the most weighted component of one's CORe grade, so having lower scores on the exam can outweigh quiz performance and participation. If you only pass one or two courses, you will not be eligible to receive the CORe credential, nor will you be eligible to receive individual certificates for the courses that you did pass.

Past Participant Averages
Below are average scores from past participants for each grade on the Pass/Honors scale.
Important note: these are averages collected from previous cohorts and should only be used as a reference as you consider how to best allocate your time and effort throughout the program. Please note that you are not guaranteed a Pass or Honors grade if you achieve the averages indicated below.

Past participants who earned High Honors generally completed with the following averages:

748 exam average (out of 800)
97% quiz average
113 exemplary participation contributions

Past participants who earned Honors generally completed with the following averages:

712 exam average (out of 800)
94% quiz average
61 strong participation contributions

Past participants who earned Pass generally completed with the following averages:

594 exam average (out of 800)
75% quiz average
36 participation contributions

To learn more about exam logistics, please see the Final Exam section of this page. For complete details on how quiz averages are determined, see Quiz Grades & Deadlines. To learn more about how participation contributions are considered, see Participation Grades.

All grades are reviewed within 60 days of the end of the exam period. You will be notified via email regarding your credential eligibility once this review is complete. HBS Online will not be able to provide any grade information prior to this deadline.

Keep in mind these are general averages. Your combined performance across the exams, quizzes and participation is what ultimately determines your final grade. It is certainly possible to pass CORe with a quiz average less than 75% if you have stronger exam scores. Similarly, having lower scores on the exam can outweigh strong quiz performance.

Quiz Grades & Deadlines

Quiz Grades
The learning materials for CORe are organized into 17 modules – 5 modules for Business Analytics, 5 modules for Economics for Managers, and 7 modules for Financial Accounting. Please refer to your CORe calendar for details on module openings and deadlines. Each module ends with an untimed, twenty-question quiz that tests you on the important concepts covered in that module. You will earn a score out of 100, based on the number of questions you answered correctly, upon completion of each module's quiz.

After completing the quiz, you will be able to review which questions you answered correctly and incorrectly with detailed explanations for each question. You may also view all your quiz scores and progress through the courses at any time from the “My Progress” tab on your course dashboard.

Late Quizzes and Missed Deadlines
Each module, including the module quiz, must be completed by its stated deadline. If you do not complete a module by the deadline, you must still access and work through the module materials and complete the module quiz. If you complete a module after the deadline, your quiz score will be recorded as 0 for that module, regardless of your reported quiz score. In calculating your overall quiz average for each course, we will exclude your lowest score (or late quiz marked 0). Therefore, if you complete one module quiz late in a course, it will not affect your course grade. However, missing more than one quiz deadline per course will adversely affect your course grade and your eligibility for the CORe credential. Note that the post-quiz surveys do not affect your quiz completion status, you may complete the surveys at a later time.

For each course, we will drop your lowest module quiz score and average your remaining quiz scores to determine your overall quiz score. This means you will have a total of 3 dropped quiz scores (one for Business Analytics, one for Economics for Managers, and one for Financial Accounting). This does not mean that you may skip a module quiz: all modules and quizzes in CORe must be completed by the final deadline in the program to be eligible to take the CORe final exam and receive the CORe credential.

The “knowledge check” questions throughout the modules are meant to serve as practice questions that test your understanding of the course material and do not factor into your quiz or participation grades.

Planning Your Time
If you are enrolled in an extended 17-week CORe program, you should expect to spend 8-10 hours per week to complete the modules - and the program - on time. If you are enrolled in a 12- or 10-week CORe program, you should expect to spend 12-15 hours per week.

All course deadlines are shown in Boston’s local Eastern Time. It is your responsibility to convert these deadlines to your local time zone as needed. Modules are due on Thursdays at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time, and you will typically have at least 2 weeks to complete each module. CORe Connections are due on select  Fridays at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Note that the three courses run concurrently, so there is a deadline for a different course each week. Please check the schedule on your Course Dashboard regularly so you can plan your work. We also recommend using our Subscription Calendar, which will load important program dates into your personal calendar, via the link in your Announcements. Please check against your local time zone to ensure you complete your coursework before the deadlines.

Participation Grades

Your participation score will be based on the quality of your contributions across four areas:

Required in-course elements, such as in-course reflections, cold calls, and shared reflections
Questions and answers you contribute in Peer Help
Completion of CORe Connections assignments
Your comments on others’ in-course responses and CORe Connections

We expect a basic level of engagement by everyone on these participation elements. Beyond this basic level of contribution, the quality of your contributions will be the most important determinant to assess how deeply and productively you have engaged with others, and hence will have an impact on your program grade.

Reflections and Cold Calls
The highest grades go to answers that demonstrate high effort and deep understanding of the key concepts. It is also very important that your answers are complete: addressing all parts of a multi-part question, taking a position or stance when one is requested, and explaining why when asked. Creativity is also appreciated when applicable.

Peer Help
To demonstrate active engagement with your peers, ask questions, share your observations, and respond to others' ideas while you are working through the course. While we do not have a specific number of comments that we expect from each participant, we value the quality of each contribution through consistent, thoughtful and thorough responses.

Please note that the following do not count toward your participation grade: contributions made in the Community Networking Group, the articles you share, your reactions to others' posts, and the number of stars you give or receive from others. Your Participation grade is assessed based on your written contributions in the Course Platform. While giving or receiving stars is a great way to show appreciation for a peer's comments, they do not count toward participation.

We will consider all participation made from the first day of the program through the final deadline. Any contributions made after the final deadline or during the exam period will not be considered. Participation is reviewed only at the conclusion of the program. As a reminder, Participation is 15% of your final grade, so your priority should be on strong performance on the quizzes and final exam, as these represent the large majority of your grade. Having lower exam and quiz scores can outweigh strong participation.

CORe Connections
The optional CORe Connections assignments are a quantifiable way in which you can demonstrate your engagement with the course content. There is no expectation on length on these assignments, and we encourage participants to focus more on the content of their assignment. We are looking for interesting and insightful answers to the questions that show that you invested some time and thought in seeking an answer or example and explaining its significance. Completing all of the CORe Connections demonstrates high engagement, completing most demonstrates average engagement, and completing none demonstrates low engagement. All CORe Connections assignments can be found by clicking on the Assignments tab on the Course Dashboard.

Originality of Responses and Use of Outside Sources
Though we do not expect that participants will always be able to provide a correct response to every question, you are expected to answer in your own words and to the best of your ability, which is an essential component of the HBS Online learning process. Skipping questions by providing insufficient responses such as Yes, Okay, or other one-word responses is considered incomplete participation. Citations are expected to be applied to your responses whenever you include outside information that is not from your personal knowledge, such as a website or Generative AI. This includes facts, statistics, definitions, and company information such as descriptions, earnings, and accounts. Please review the HBS Citation Guide for assistance with citing your sources. Improper citations or unauthorized use of Generative AI are considered a violation of the HBS Online Honor Code and are strictly prohibited. For more information regarding responses, properly cited sources, and acceptable Generative AI use, please consult the Academic Honesty Guidelines page.

Final Exam

The CORe final examination is offered to participants after successful completion all three courses by the final deadline of the program. The CORe final exam is a three-hour, closed-book, multiple-choice, assessment created by HBS faculty and is offered to participants during defined time periods following the last module deadline. The exam is currently delivered via the HBS Online course platform.

Exam Eligibility
To be eligible to sit for the final exam, you must complete all 17 module quizzes by the final deadline of the course. You do not need to meet a minimum quiz average. CORe Connections and any post-quiz surveys will not impact your exam eligibility. Participants that do not complete all module quizzes by the final deadline will not be eligible to take the final exam. Ineligible participants will not be awarded a CORe Credential and will not be eligible to take CORe again. If you do not complete all three exam sections, you will not be eligible for the CORe Credential.

Exam Logistics
The exam is divided into three sections: Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting. You will have 60 minutes to complete each section. Each of the three sections will feature 45 questions, most of which will be multiple-choice or multiple-selection. You may complete the exams in any order, and do not need to complete all sections in one sitting.

You'll be required to complete each question on the exam before you can proceed to the following one, and you may not edit your answers once submitted. You will not be permitted to use your personal notes or any other study aid, nor will you be permitted to access the CORe course content while taking the exam. You may only take the exam once. We do not offer the opportunity to retake the exam.

You will not receive a score at the end of the exam. Once the exam window concludes, we'll calculate your final grade based on the exam, module quizzes, and participation. Final grades are determined within 30-60 days of the end of the exam period. A passing exam score on all three courses is required in order to earn the CORe credential. Complete exam details are available on our CORe Final Exam Information page.

CORe Exam Integrity Policy
During this exam, you are required to complete all questions yourself without assistance or collaboration. You may not use any external sources to obtain answers. You may not use the CORe courses, the exam review materials, or your personal notes. The only materials you may use during the exam are a calculator and blank paper. When you enrolled in CORe, you committed to upholding the HBS Online Honor Code throughout the CORe course and the CORe examination.

Please note that HBS Online closely monitors your answers to the CORe examination using advanced technology.
If HBS Online detects abnormal and/or irregular activity in your own work or with another participant during the CORe examination, your final grade will be finalized as Fail.

Participants who violate the HBS Online Honor Code will not be eligible for a Credential of Readiness, and will not be eligible to join other programs with HBS Online.

Credential Requirements

To pass CORe, you must pass all three courses - Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting - to receive a passing grade for CORe and earn the Credential of Readiness. You must demonstrate mastery of all course content with:

Satisfactory, timely & thoughtful completion of all coursework by required deadlines
- All work in all 17 module quizzes must be completed by their deadline as indicated on the course calendar
Active engagement and contributions in required reflections and cold call responses
- Comment on other participants' postings
- Post to Peer Help to ask questions and engage with your peers' posts
Passing the final exam
- A passing exam score on the final exams of all three courses is required in order to pass all three courses and earn the CORe credential

A passing exam score on all three final exams (Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting) is required to pass all three courses and earn the CORe credential. The final exam is the most weighted component of one's CORe grade, so having lower scores on the exam can outweigh quiz performance and participation.

If you only pass one or two courses, you will not be eligible to receive the CORe credential, nor will you be eligible to receive individual certificates for the courses that you did pass. For example, if a participant fails the Financial Accounting exam, but passes the Business Analytics and Economics for Managers exams, they will not receive individual certificates for Business Analytics and Economics for Managers. You must complete and pass all three courses to receive a passing grade for CORe and earn the Credential of Readiness.

Credential of Readiness eligibility is determined within 60 days of the end of the exam period.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I retake quizzes or the final exam if I did not perform well?
Unfortunately, we do not allow quiz or exam retakes, under any circumstances.

What percentage of participants earn Honors or High Honors?
There are no pre-determined percentages of participants who will receive Honors or High Honors.

Can I receive partial credit for quizzes?
We do not grant partial credit for quiz questions. If you feel a quiz question contains an error, please contact us at the HBS Online Support Portal.

We also do not grant partial credit for quizzes started before the deadline but incomplete at the deadline, so please budget your time carefully to ensure your quiz is fully completed before the deadline.

Can my CORe final grade be converted into an A-F scale?
HBS Online provides the following grades for CORe: Pass with High Honors, Pass with Honors, Pass, and Fail. We cannot draw equivalencies between our grading scale and an A-F grading scale. If you are an organization that requires proof of satisfactory completion to process reimbursements, any employee who earns a Pass (or higher) has met our requirements of mastery and should be considered eligible for reimbursement.

If I do not pass CORe, may I retake it again?
Unfortunately, we do not offer the opportunity to retake the exam or any parts of the course. Participants who do not complete CORe or fail the program will not be eligible to take CORe again, or enroll in Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, or Financial Accounting as individual certificate programs. If you are concerned about your ability to complete a portion of the program, please reach out to us in advance to discuss our exception request process.

Can I receive individual certificates for 1 or 2 courses if I do not pass all three courses? Can I receive a participation certificate?
A passing exam score on the final exams of all three courses is required in order to pass all three courses and earn the CORe credential. Unfortunately, participants are not able to receive individual certificates for the subjects that they did pass.

If you do not pass CORe, you will not be awarded a credential for the program. However, we do offer Course Verification Forms, which can confirm your participation in the program. Please note that this document will indicate that you did not earn the credential, but will confirm your participation in the program. You are welcome to download a Course Verification Form directly from your dashboard.

Still can't find what you're looking for? Please refer to the HBS Online FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions), or visit the HBS Online Support Portal for any questions, comments, or concerns about your Harvard Business School Online experience.

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