Office of the Registrar - Michigan State University
Instructor Systems - Upload Specifications
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Upload File Specifications

Instructions and file specifications are as follows. Please take care to note the file layout (order of fields, or columns, in the file) for each upload format. Files not containing the correct file layout will result in an unsuccessful upload. Fields must be formatted as text and left aligned. Click on upload format for detailed information and an example.

  • CSV-Simple
      Field Titles: Term, Subj_Code, Crse_Code, Sctn_Code, PID, Grade, Reason, Date
      Fields: Term(4), Subject(4), Course(5), Section(3), PID(9), Grade(3), Reason(3), Date(8)
      Example: SS02,ACC,101,001,A12345678,0.0,NO,09/25/02
  • Fixed Text
      Field Titles: Term, Subj_Code, Crse_Code, Sctn_Code, PID, Grade, Reason, Date
      Fields: Term(4), Subject(4), Course(5), Section(3), PID(9), Grade(3), Reason(3), Date(8)
      Example: SS02ACC 101  001A123456780.0NO 10/02/02
  • CSV Class List Please note: The first row of the upload file must be field names as specified. Only sections belonging to the same course may be uploaded in the same file. Distinct courses must be uploaded separately.

    File Sort Order

    File sort order is irrelevant. Files will be sorted when merged with validating class list and grade data.

    Administrator use of grade upload

    If you are an administrator loading grades for an instructor, you may not be able to "Submit final grades to the Office of the Registrar", due to missing information.  Instead, choose "Save for later". The instructor will be able to view the saved grades and supply any missing information by entering through the Grade Reporting Form on the main menu.  Once the instructor has supplied all missing information, the instructor will be able to "Submit final grades to the Office of the Registrar".


    CSV-Simple

    Field Titles Description Data Type Length Valid Options Example
    Term Current Term Text 4   FS02
    Subj_Code Subject of Course Text 4   MTH
    Crse_Code Course Code Text 5   101
    Sctn_Code Section Code Text 3   001
    PID Student ID Text 9   A123456789
    Grade Grade Received Text 3   0.0
    Reason If Grade is 0.0 or N, did student complete class? Text 3 YES, NO, NR NO
    Date Date of Last Attendance if student did not complete class Text 8 mm/dd/yy 10/02/02
    Remarks: The first row of the upload file must be field names as specified. Only sections belonging to the same course may be uploaded in the same file. Distinct courses must be uploaded separately. All fields must be formatted as text.

    Required Fields: All fields are required except Reason and Date. However, before grades can be finalized, the Reason field must be completed in the instructor system for 0.0 and N grades. The Date field must be completed when the Reason field is "NO". If they were not included in the upload file, the user will be able to complete these fields after upload. If Reason and Date values were submitted for a record, but the grade supplied was not 0.0 or N, the Reason and Date value will be ignored. A Reason field value of NR means No Record.

    Problems: If your grade values are not loading properly, please verify that the grade field was saved as TEXT.

    Example of a CSV Simple upload file:
    CSV example



    Fixed Text

    Field Titles Description Data Type Length Valid Options Example
    Term Current Term Text 4   FS02
    Subj_Code Subject of Course Text 4   MTH_
    Crse_Code Course Code Text 5   101__
    Sctn_Code Section Code Text 3   001
    PID Student ID Text 9   A123456789
    Grade Grade Received Text 3   0.0
    Reason If Grade is 0.0 or N, did student complete class? Text 3 YES, NO, NR NO_
    Date Date of Last Attendance if student did not complete class Text 8 mm/dd/yy 10/02/02
    Underscore: The underscore in the example column represents a blank space in the text file.

    Remarks: The first row of the upload file must be field names as specified. Only sections belonging to the same course may be uploaded in the same file. Distinct courses must be uploaded separately. All fields must be formatted as text.

    Required Fields: All fields are required except Reason and Date. However, before grades can be finalized, the Reason field must be completed in the instructor system for 0.0 and N grades. The Date field must be completed when the Reason field is "NO". If they were not included in the upload file, the user will be able to complete these fields after upload. If Reason and Date values were submitted for a record, but the grade supplied was not 0.0 or N, the Reason and Date value will be ignored. A Reason field value of NR means No Record.

    Problems: If your grade values are not loading properly, please verify that the grade field was saved as TEXT.

    Example of a Fixed Text upload file:
    Fixed Text example



    CSV Class List

    Field Titles Description Data Type Length Valid Options Example
    Term Current Term Text 4   FS02
    Subj_Code Subject of Course Text 4   MTH_
    Crse_Code Course Code Text 5   101__
    Sctn_Code Section Code Text 3   001
    Sctn_Id_Code Section Id Code Text 6   123456
    Course Title Course Title ID Text 50   Intro to Math
    Instructor_Name Instructor Name Text 35   Smith
    PID Student ID Text 9   A123456789
    Student_Name Student Name Text 35   Spartan
    MSUNet_ID MSUNet ID Text 8   sparta1
    Honor Honor classification ID Text 1    
    Student_Level Student Level Text 2   UN
    Class_Code Class Code Text 2   1
    Primary_Major Primary Major Text 10   Math
    Credit Credit Major Text 4   3
    Grade Grade Received Text 3   0.0
    Important: This upload format matches the class list download format exactly. Do not rearrange or delete any columns in your downloaded CSV class list file or the upload will not match the CSV - Class List format.

    Remarks: The first row of the upload file must be field names as specified. Only sections belonging to the same course may be uploaded in the same file. Distinct courses must be uploaded separately. All fields must be formatted as text.

    Note: Reason and Date fields as related to "0.0" and "N" grades are not accepted in this format and must be filled in if necessary after upload and before final submission.

    Problems: If your grade values are not loading properly, please verify that the grade field was saved as TEXT.

    Example of a CSV - Class List upload file:
    CSV - Class List example
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