Uncovering success

Thursday marks the last day for Barnard College students to take advantage of Barnard’s pass/D/fail option this semester. Under the policy at Columbia College and the School of General Studies, students have the choice of later uncovering grades so they are included on their transcripts. Barnard students, however, must keep the “passes” on their transcripts regardless of how well they did in a course. Barnard’s Committee on Instruction should look to Columbia's other undergraduate schools and emulate their policies.

The CC and GS guidelines permit students to uncover the grades received in courses taken pass/D/fail for up to two weeks into the following semester. The option allows students to take classes outside of their areas of expertise without the risk of such classes bringing down their GPAs. Barnard’s Committee on Instruction elected against implementing a similar policy to prevent students from manipulating their grades and unnecessarily fretting over marks. As a result, Barnard students are not allowed to uncover grades in courses they have opted to take as pass/D/fail, regardless of the circumstances surrounding their decision or how well their final grades turned out. By opting to take a course under the current policy, a Barnard student forfeits her right to have a good grade on her transcript should she perform better than expected. The policy limits on how she can structure her coursework and pursue her intellectual curiosities.

By adjusting its policy, Barnard could encourage more of its students to extend themselves beyond their academic comfort zones. It is not always easy for a student to anticipate their grades before the pass/D/fail declaration deadline, as marks of most classes consist of only a few exams or papers. The policy would encourage students to continue with classes that initially appear difficult but later prove easier to handle. Offering the option to uncover a “pass” may also draw more Barnard students to departments in which they have traditionally been underrepresented, such as the computer science department. The change would help put Barnard students on equal footing with their Columbia counterparts in the classroom. Every student, regardless of his or her college, should have uniform access to the University’s resources.

Independent thinkers are highly valued in today's world, and Barnard can better help its students become freethinking individuals if it gives them the liberty to take intellectual risks. Amending its pass/D/fail policy would give Barnard students the tools to take such risks, and reach their full potentials.