A new message from the Provost’s Office on Thursday announced the creation of a support group and encouraged schools to adopt flexible grading policies as a part of the university’s new guidelines for graduate students in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The support group, which includes the Academic Senate and features student participation, will serve to observe and solve issues unique to graduate students.
Meanwhile, the message stated that each school will determine their own grading policy for graduate students as the semester finishes. The university said this is because academic assessment for individualized, graduate programs is often more nuanced than that for undergraduates.
Provost Zukoski encouraged each school, however, to adopt a grading policy similar to that of USC’s undergraduates, who have the option to take classes “pass, no pass” until May 27, after their final grades will be submitted. No graduate school, however, is required to follow this.
Instead, grading decisions will be decided by a faculty vote within each school before a final choice is made by their dean. It is unclear when those decisions will be made. The Dornsife College of Arts and Science, for example, was unable to comment on their plans for a new grading policy when contacted by Annenberg Media on Friday.
Graduate students can still choose to drop a class until the extended deadline of May 1 and receive the mark of “W” for “withdrawn.”
The message was USC’s latest update from their resources page - the first to specifically address graduate and professional students. It is part of the university’s continued efforts to provide up-to-date, accessible information for students whose entire semester has been warped by the virus’ spread. Graduate student representatives see this as a step in the right direction.
“I think there has been many improvements over the last month in terms of transparency,” said Melisa Osborne, a PhD student in molecular biology and the Vice President of Administration for Graduate Student Government, via email. “The Provost’s memo from yesterday makes it clear how grading policies will be finalized by school, the guidance they’ve received, and justification for doing so.”
Osborne highlighted the support group as a clear example of USC taking swift measures to help its graduate students.
“This is critical for immediately recognizing and responding to the unique needs of graduate students in response to COVID-19,” Osborne said. “I hope that this group continues to be active in the future as a lasting, positive change resulting from our current circumstances.”
The message also announced that qualifying exams can be delayed by one semester without academic penalty. Students may also take qualifying exams during their regularly scheduled time, however, if they are able to do so.
For students who have finished the majority of their scholastic requirements, the announcement also stated that USC will give graduate students letters confirming that they completed their degree if they meet certain criteria. This includes if a student has a postdoc officer, if they have an Optional Practical Training (OPT) or visa issue that requires a completed PhD, or if they submitted their dissertation or thesis and are waiting for it to be processed.
Similar to undergraduates, graduate and professional students in need were also encouraged to fill out an application to receive financial aid from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. At most, students can receive $3,000 in CARES aid if their application is approved. Students can access the portal to submit their form by logging onto their my.usc account, accessing the financial aid page and finding the form in their “document library” under the “links and resources” page.
Graduate students were also urged to reach out for other resources for help, such as the USC Student Basic Needs Fund. Students can also submit a message to the graduate student relief fund by sending an email to vpgp@usc.edu.