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Interim Provost Teresa Sullivan shared the latest draft of the proposed Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory grading policy at the March 24 University Council meeting. Read it here.

Interim Provost Teresa Sullivan shared the latest draft of the proposed Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory grading policy at the March 24 University Council meeting.

While some changes to the document are expected—including the introduction of provisions dealing with transfer credits—the official policy is expected to look quite similar to this draft.

Interim Provost Teresa Sullivan. Photo via MSU Today.

When asked whether the draft policy could be shared broadly, Provost Sullivan responded, “Absolutely.” She also indicated that her office would officially announce the final policy “as soon as we can.”

The broad strokes of the policy are as follows:

Undergraduate and graduate students in every college except Human Medicine, Osteopathic Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, and Law will be eligible (note that the College of Law has its own policy).

Colleges will be able to identify courses that are ineligible for S/NS grading, subject to the Provost’s approval.

Grades of 1.0 for undergraduates and 2.0 for graduate students will constitute “Satisfactory” grades.

Individuals can choose to opt into the S/NS grading on a class-by-class basis. Students will have until midnight on May 20 (i.e., after they see their numerical grades) to choose credit/no credit grading.

Faculty will not know whether a student has elected to use S/NS grading.

The numerical grade will still be recorded by the registrar, but it will not appear on transcripts, affect a student’s GPA, or be used by the University for purposes of secondary college admission, probation status, or merit-based financial aid.

The numerical grade behind the S/NS grade can be used by colleges to enforce major progression policies. However, colleges are “strongly encouraged to take into consideration the unusual circumstances of the current situation when interpreting and applying such policies.”

However, colleges are “strongly encouraged to take into consideration the unusual circumstances of the current situation when interpreting and applying such policies.” It is highly recommended that students speak with an advisor before making the decision to choose S/NS grade.

At yesterday’s meeting, Faculty Senate overwhelmingly endorsed the proposal. Every member of Faculty Senate is also a member of University Council. Faculty Senate also approved language related to accepting transfer credits, though it is unclear how exactly the issue will be addressed in the final policy.

The presidents of both ASMSU and COGS also indicated their support for the policy.

Tyler Silvestri Tyler Silvestri is a third-year law student at MSU who received his bachelor’s degree in Political Theory & Constitutional Democracy from MSU’s James Madison College in 2017. He spent one year as the Assistant Director of ASMSU’s Student Rights Advocates and two years as a Resident Assistant. He is the Chairperson of the University Committee on Academic Governance. He can be reached at Tyler@onthebanksmsu.com. See author's posts