Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter Late Grading Option Change Request

• Students enrolled for spring 2020 were emailed a link to the new Extraordinary Circumstances Late Grading Option Change form on June 17, 2020, to be able to convert S/NS graded courses to numeric or numeric grades courses to S/NS
• These changes to move from S/NS to numeric and numeric to S/NS for these extraordinary circumstances quarters can be made until the students degree is posted
• S graded courses from these quarters will count for graduation and major requirements
• There is no limit to the number of courses in spring 2020 and summer that may be switched from numeric to S/NS grading or from S/NS to numeric grading
• There is no $20.00 late grade change fee for these grade change requests for spring 2020 made after June 16, 2020

Students wanting to adjust their grade mode between S/NS and numeric must use MyUW and do this by the stated deadlines for summer on the Academic Calendar under the section labeled "Adding/Dropping Courses or Complete Withdrawal."

• A $20 Change of Registration Fee will be assessed for this request.
• Beginning August 26th, the link to the Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter Late Grading Option form will be activated. Students enrolled for summer quarter may use this to change their grade from S/NS to numeric or numeric to S/NS through to the point that their degree is posted.
• For Summer 2020 only, as an Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter, courses taken in Summer 2020 graded as "S" will count toward degree and major requirements.
• The $20 late grade change fee will be assessed for these late grade change requests for Summer 2020 after August 25, 2020.

Students wanting to adjust their grade mode between S/NS and numeric must use MyUW and do this by the stated deadlines for autumn on the Academic Calendar under the section labeled "Adding/Dropping Courses or Complete Withdrawal."

• Beginning December 23, 2020, the link to the Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter Late Grading Option form will be activated. Students enrolled for autumn quarter may use this to change their grade from S/NS to numeric or numeric to S/NS through to the point that their degree is posted.
• For Autumn 2020 only, as an Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter, courses taken in Autumn 2020 graded as "S" will count toward degree and major requirements.
• All changes to registration beginning October 7, 2020 will be charged a $20 late grade change fee. This fee will be assessed for these late grade change requests for Autumn 2020 after December 23, 2020.

Students wanting to adjust their grade mode between S/NS and numeric must use MyUW and do this by the stated deadlines for winter on the Academic Calendar under the section labeled "Adding/Dropping Courses or Complete Withdrawal."

• Beginning March 24, 2021, the link to the Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter Late Grading Option form will be activated. Students enrolled for winter quarter may use this to change their grade from S/NS to numeric or numeric to S/NS through to the point that their degree is posted.
• For Winter 2021 only, as an Extraordinary Circumstances Quarter, courses taken in Winter 2021 graded as "S" will count toward degree and major requirements.
• All changes to registration beginning January 11, 2021 will be charged a $20 late grade change fee. This fee will be assessed for these late grade change requests for Winter 2021 after March 24, 2021.

This email was sent to all undergraduates enrolled spring 2020 on June 3, 2020

Announcement about new S/NS and Former Quarter Drop Grading Options 

This email was sent to the full university community, including all student, faculty, and staff on June 5, 2020

Announcement about B-term courses - courses to be offered remotely

It applies to undergraduate and graduate students.

The global pandemic’s impact on course delivery mode caused the University to move from in-person to 100% remote delivery courses on March 9, 2020 and enough of the quarter had been completed that students had an option to finish out their coursework. Students entered spring 2020 knowing that all classes would be delivered 100% remote delivery and had the option to change to S/NS grading from numeric or from numeric to S/NS in MyUW by the end of the seventh week.

These changes also do not apply to winter 2020 because making changes to the Scholastic Regulations required a legislative process that began in spring quarter that required a full vote of the faculty. The Faculty Senate proposed and voted on Class B legislation during spring quarter and the Scholastic Regulations Chapter 110, Section 6, e was added on May 29, 2020 allowing for students to follow the new policy for any extraordinary circumstances quarter.

Quarters deemed by the University of Washington executive leadership to be subject to “extraordinary circumstances” as described in the Scholastic Regulations Chapter 110, Section 6, e:

“Under campus-wide extraordinary circumstances, the campus registrar, in consultation with the appropriate campus faculty body, may waive the restrictions in Sections a through c above so that undergraduates students may opt for S/NS grading for elective or required courses without a maximum credit limitation. S/NS grading for campus-wide extraordinary circumstances deemed quarters will meet graduation and degree requirements. Temporary modifications to the S/NS policies will be clearly communicated to the campus community by the campus registrar”.

The University has deemed Spring 2020, Summer 2020, Autumn 2020 and Winter 2021 as extraordinary circumstances quarters. If additional quarters are added, that information will be posted on this website.

No, there is no limit during an extraordinary circumstances quarter. Students may request changes to their grade mode for spring 2020 as many times as they like until their degree has been posted.

When you take a course S/NS, your grade is converted to an S if you earn at least a 2.0 (if you are an undergraduate) or a 2.7 (if you are a graduate student). Your grade is converted to an NS if your grade is below 2.0 (if you are an undergraduate) or below a 2.7 (if you are a graduate student). If you earn an NS, you do not receive credit for the course.

Yes. If you do not want it to count toward your graduation and major requirements you may request that your advisors work with the Office of the University Registrar to not have it count toward your degree or major requirements for spring 2020, summer 2020, autumn 2020 and/or winter 2021. Will these S/NS credits count towards my 25 S/NS credit maximum? Not for the extraordinary circumstances quarters (Spring 2020, Summer 2020, Autumn 2020, Winter 2021), but yes for all of the other non-extraordinary circumstances quarters (not Spring 2020, Summer 2020, Autumn 2020, Winter 2021).

Neither an S nor an NS grade affects your grade-point average. Your GPA will be calculated on the basis of numerically-graded courses only.

 The S/NS policy, whether for an extraordinary circumstances or non-circumstances quarter is related to graduation and degree requirements. There is no connection to this policy and departmental admissions’ policies. Check with departmental staff to see how a grade of S/NS will impact your admissibility to a UW academic program/major.

Yes, if generally speaking if you earn an S which is the same as a 2.0. It is also safest to consult with the department offering the course to verify how choosing the S/NS option will impact the prerequisite applicability for any particular course.

It shouldn’t, but it is best to check with your advisor for your major.

Switching from numeric grading to S/NS for spring 2020 could have a positive impact on your academic standing. If you have been dropped for low scholarship or placed on academic probation, and you switch to S/NS, your academic standing will be reassessed for spring 2020.

Yes. There have not been any changes to the 60 numerically graded credit requirement for baccalaureate honors, so you would still need 60 numerically graded credits to qualify for baccalaureate honors according to Scholastic Regulations Chapter 110, Section 3. Honors Awards.

Each student’s financial aid situation is unique, please check with your Office of Student Financial Aid advising team for this answer for you.

Contact your campus registrar team.

6) S/NS

a. An undergraduate may earn up to 25 elective credits of the 180 minimum credits required for graduation on a satisfactory/not-satisfactory (S/NS) basis. Each instructor shall report numeric grades to the Registrar, who shall convert satisfactory grades (2.0 or greater) to S, and not-satisfactory grades (less than 2.0) for NS for the student’s transcript. S/NS shall not be considered in the computation of the grade-point average.

b. An undergraduate student may register for up to a maximum of 20 credits under the satisfactory/not-satisfactory basis, with exceptions possible by approval of the campus Registrar.

c. Subject to the maximum credit limitation above, the student may indicate at the time of registration if she or he elects to take a course on an S/NS basis. The student can change to and from an S/NS option through the seventh week of the quarter through electronic registration. There is no limit to the number of S/NS credits that a student can register for in a given quarter. Withdrawal from an S/NS course is subject to the same regulations as any other course.

d. An instructor may not submit an S or NS in a course. S/NS grades shall appear on the transcript only in the event that the student is registered on an S/NS basis

e. Under campus-wide extraordinary circumstances, the campus registrar, in consultation with the appropriate campus faculty body, may waive the restrictions in Sections a through c above so that undergraduates students may opt for S/NS grading for elective or required courses without a maximum credit limitation. S/NS grading for campus-wide extraordinary circumstances deemed quarters will meet graduation and degree requirements. Temporary modifications to the S/NS policies will be clearly communicated to the campus community by the campus registrar.

6) The Grade S/NS

A graduate student, with the approval of the graduate program advisor or supervisory committee chair, may elect to be graded S/NS in any numerically-grade courses for which he or she is eligible. If a student does not so elect, he or she will be graded on a numerical basis. If approval is granted, the student must elect the S/NS option when registering or no later than the end of the seventh week of the quarter. Numeric grades will not be subsequently be converted to S/NS grades (or vice versa). The instructor shall submit a numeric grade to the Registrar, who shall convert grades of 2.7 and above to s and grades lower than 2.7 to NS for graduate students.