Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UMD allowed students the option to choose between P/F and normal letter grades for each of their classes. Students have until the last day of classes (May 12th, 2020) to decide which option they want for their semester grades. 

However, this means that most students have to choose without knowing what their final grade in a class may be because final exams have not taken place. Grades posted on Canvas, are not necessarily an accurate representation of a student's class standing because the final exam has not occurred. Final exams are a big determinant for students knowledge on where they stand in a class, which is important to know in classes that curve. 

This means if a student chooses to stick with letter grades (which is the recommendation from many academic programs and departments), they may experience a negative impact on their GPA if they do not earn the grade they expected in the class, and can cause difficulty later on for students applying to graduate/professional schools. Most departments are telling their students to continue with letter grades without knowing how a student is performing in a class and what the student might want to do after graduation. This is creating stress among students because they feel pressured to continue with a grading option that could have an unfortunate outcome on their GPA. If the student does choose to apply for graduate/professional programs later, their GPA could play a big factor in the application process. 

With that in mind, if the student was able to choose P/F after course grades were posted then they could have prevented lowering their GPA if they did not do well in a class. May 12th is very early and professors may struggle to put in grades on time for students to have an idea of what the best grading option is for them. Penn State, William & Mary, Stevenson University, Wingate University, and many other schools are allowing students to choose P/F after final grades are posted, letting them make informed decisions. Please sign if you think that UMD should do the same. This is a stressful time for everyone, and allowing students to choose a grading method after final grades have been posted will ease a lot of student anxiety.