April 1, 2020
Dear SCU Community:
We are all facing unusual challenges as a result of COVID-19. We greatly appreciate the collective call to action from our faculty, staff, and students, who have all been impacted by our rapid pivot to remote instruction. We especially appreciate our students’ resilience and flexibility during this time. To support our students’ success during this period of disruption, the University is implementing a temporary change to the undergraduate pass/no pass grading policy during the Spring 2020 quarter.
For spring 2020, the following changes will be implemented:
- All undergraduates, regardless of class standing, may select the pass/no pass option for any undergraduate course.
- The deadline for selecting the pass/no pass option has been extended from the end of week 4 to the end of week 10 (Friday, June 5).
- The pass/no pass grading option is permitted for all core, major, minor, elective, and prerequisite courses.
- Courses taken pass/no pass in Spring 2020 will not count toward the limit of 6 pass/no pass courses taken in total at Santa Clara.
Per the Undergraduate Bulletin, a passing (P) grade is equivalent to a letter grade of "C" or better. Students who are considering a pass/no pass option should note that a pass/no pass grade is not factored into a student’s grade point average. Additionally, students who receive a letter grade of “no pass” (NP) will not earn academic credit for the course, whereas credit is earned for a letter grade between C- and D-. Finally, it is important to note that some external organizations (external funders, graduate and professional schools) have specific letter grade requirements.
P/NP grading may also have implications for international students, NCAA athletes, students with ROTC or GI Bill scholarships, and some privately funded scholarship students; therefore, we encourage students to consult with relevant offices (e.g. ISS, Athletics, ROTC, and Veterans Administration) before opting to switch from letter grades to P/NP.
Undergraduates who are considering the pass/no pass option and have questions should consult with the course instructor, the Drahmann Academic Advising Center, or the Office of the Registrar.
Requests for the pass/no pass grading option can be made at the Office of the Registrar website.
We are grateful to the faculty, staff, and student voices who provided input. This decision was made after broad consultation with deans, associate deans, and department chairs in the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, and School of Engineering, the Faculty Senate leadership, the Committee on Lecturers and Adjuncts, the Office of the Registrar, Drahmann Advising Center, Undergraduate Studies, Athletics, and the Academic Affairs University Policy Committee.
Sincerely,
Elsa Chen Vice Provost for Academic Affairs
Lisa Kloppenberg Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs