Registrar

Academic Policies

Taking Courses for Pass/Fail Credit

Students may elect to take some courses in which they can receive the grade P (Pass). This grade is entered for a student enrolled under the P/F option who is awarded the grade D– or higher. The record of a student enrolled under this option who fails the course will show an F.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the P/F option, the student must have been admitted to sophomore, junior, or senior standing and must not be on academic probation. No student may offer toward the degree more than 18 hours graded P. No more than one course per term may be taken on a P/F basis. The P/F option does not apply to courses in the following categories:

  1. Courses counted toward AXLE requirements;
  2. Courses in the major field(s), or other courses that may be counted toward the major(s);
  3. For students with an interdisciplinary major, courses listed in the student’s plan of study;
  4. For students planning an optional minor, courses in the minor or those counting toward an interdisciplinary minor;
  5. Courses taken previously, whether for a regular grade A through F or under the P/F option;
  6. Courses that have been specifically excluded from the P/F option. Such courses are designated in the Schedule of Courses.

Students taking a course on a P/F basis must be enrolled for at least 12 hours on a regularly graded basis. If a student drops a course and falls below 12 graded hours, the P/F course is converted automatically to a regularly graded basis. A small number of courses are offered in which only the grades P/F are possible. These courses cannot be converted to a regularly graded basis.

The limit of 18 hours on grades of P applies to all credit of this type, including any received in another school of the University, in an affiliated institution, or by transfer. Candidates for teacher licensure should be aware that part of the Teacher Education program is offered only with the grade P or F. These candidates should, therefore, plan their programs so that the total hours of P, including student teaching, will not exceed 18.

Grading

All P/F students are expected to meet normal course requirements (e.g., reports, papers, examinations, laboratory attendance) and are graded in the normal way. At the end of the semester, students enrolled on a P/F basis are awarded a regular grade. Any grade of D– or above is converted in the Student Records System to a P, while other grades remain as awarded. A student taking a course on a P/F basis must meet the course prerequisites as set forth in this catalog.

The grade P is not counted in the grade point average nor used in the determination of honors. The grade of F earned under the P/F option is included in the calculation of grade point average just as it would be when earned on a regularly graded basis.

Exceptions for Graduating Seniors

A graduating senior who has permission to take fewer than 12 hours on a graded basis may take one course on a P/F basis in addition to the courses required for graduation. If the student does not graduate at the end of that semester, the grade P is automatically converted to the grade actually earned.

Registering for a Class on a Pass/Fail Basis

Students register for a class on a P/F basis through OASIS within the change period of registration during the first week of classes. Instructions are printed in the middle section of the printed Schedule of Courses. After the end of the change period, students may change from a P/F basis to a regularly graded basis—but not vice versa—until the end of the eighth week of classes. These deadlines are published in the calendar. When a student wants to complete a major or a minor in a field in which the grade P has been received, the Office of Records and Institutional Research converts this grade to the regular grade originally earned.