Spring 2020 Undergraduate Grading Policy

Due to the unprecedented nature that the COVID-19 pandemic and the university, city, state, and federal mandates associated with it are having on the student body at UIC, and with the consent of the UIC Senate Executive Committee and the College Deans, the Office of the Provost is enacting the following modifications to the grading policy for undergraduate students at UIC for the Spring 2020 Semester:

1. Grading Modifications for Undergraduate students for Spring 2020 
   • Instructors will report a letter grade for every student in the course as normal.
   • Students may elect whether they want to take any course in which they are currently enrolled as Credit/No Credit (CR/NC).
     • Once the election is made, it cannot be reversed
     • The student will not receive a grade for any course taken as CR/NC
     • A course taken as CR/NC will not be calculated into the student’s GPA
   • For every course, and regardless of whether a student elects to take the course as Credit/No Credit, a grade of D will automatically be recorded on the student’s transcript as Credit (CR), and a grade of F will be recorded as No Credit (NC). In other words, no student will receive a D or F on their transcript for any Spring 2020 course.
   • The deadline for students to elect to take any course under the CR/NC option is Wednesday, April 29, 2020. This selection does not require instructor, Departmental, or College approval.
     • Students will receive instructions in early April about how to make this election
     • Students are strongly encouraged to consult their academic advisor in their college before making this election.
   • Students who do not affirmatively elect to take a course CR/NC will be graded in the usual way, except that a D will appear on their transcript as CR, and an F will appear as NC, as stated above.
   • Instructors will not be informed that the CR/NC option has been elected and will assign a letter grade in the usual manner, as required by the CR/NC Credit Option policy.
   • For Spring 2020 only, courses graded as CR/NC can be used to satisfy major, minor, General Education, foreign language, and Quantitative Reasoning requirements. Exclusions may apply to programs with licensing agency and/or accreditation board requirements and students in such programs should consult with their academic advisors.
   • A student may elect to take as many courses as they wish for CR/NC grading and these courses will not count toward the number of courses or credit hours students can earn under the CR/NC option in one term or in total.
   • Any change in grading policies for graduate and professional students are NOT covered in this policy and will be treated by a separate policy that is forthcoming.
2. Courses with Prerequisites
   • Courses that require a particular grade in a previous course in order for that previous course to serve as a prerequisite will allow the CR grade as fulfilling that requirement if that previous course was taken during the Spring 2020 semester.
     • However, students should be aware that it is not the grade, but what is learned in prerequisite courses that is necessary for success in a subsequent course.
3. Incompletes and Academic Probation
   • Students who received an Incomplete grade for courses taken prior to Spring 2020 will be given an additional semester to fulfill the requirements of their Incomplete grade.
   • Students on probation who do not get off probation based on their college requirements in Spring 2020 will have an additional semester to fulfill their probation requirements and will not be penalized for taking courses CR/NC.
4. Financial Aid Implications
   • Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) will still be assessed at the end of Spring Semester for all enrolled students.
   • CR/NC courses will not count in the students cumulative GPA for SAP purpose
     • Students must still maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA after 60 attempted credits.
   • Courses recorded as NC will count as an attempted/not completed course in a student’s overall completion rate and maximum time frame calculation.
     • Students must maintain an overall completion rate of 67% to remain financial aid eligible.
     • Students must not have exceeded 180 attempted credits to remain financial aid eligible.
     • Students failing SAP at the end of Spring semester can still appeal the decision after cancellation occurs.
5. Academic Deadlines
   • Registration for Fall 2020 semester opens March 30.
   • Course late drop deadline has been moved to April 3.
   • Registration for Summer Sessions I & II begins on April 15.
   • The deadline for students to elect to take a course under the CR/NC is April 29, 2020.