Spring 2020 CICS Academic Program Rule Changes in Response to COVID-19

For the Spring 2020 semester, applicants on contract may elect Pass/Fail grading on any course.

For the Spring 2020 semester, the contract requirement of a minimum of 12 letter-graded credit is waived. Students will need to complete 12 credits, but can use any number of elective Pass/Fail credits.

For the Spring 2020 semester, a grade of P (pass) can be used to satisfy any contract grade requirement.

Yes, all of the accommodations listed in the next section that apply to students currently in the CS major will also apply to current CS applicants on contract who are admitted to the CS major following the Spring 2020 semester or in a later semester.

For students on contract in the Spring 2020 semester who are not successful, the spring 2020 contract will not count against the limit of 2 total contracts.

For students on contract in the Spring 2020 semester who are not successful, the five-semester rule will be waived. Students will be allowed to submit an application in their 5th semester and must be admitted before their sixth semester. Further, students will be permitted to be on contract while in the second half of the 200-level CS core courses.

The deadline to request pass/fail grading in an undergraduate course is April 29th, 2020.

Undergraduate students can request Pass/Fail grading on Spire.

CS AOCs should contact csapply@cs.umass.edu for more information about AOC rule changes and their specific contract. For general advising, please contact the CICS Advising Office at cicsadvising@umass.edu or 413-545-4822.

For the Spring 2020 semester, students may elect Pass/Fail grading on any course, including undergraduate courses that were previously letter-graded only.

For students who elect Pass/Fail grading on a Spring 2020 course that is a prerequisite for another CICS course,  a grade of P (pass) will be accepted as meeting the prerequisite requirements for the later course, regardless of when that later course is taken. 

For students who elect Pass/Fail grading on a course taken this semester that satisfies a CS or Informatics major requirement, a grade of P (pass) will be accepted as satisfying that major requirement, regardless of when the student completes their major. 

For students who elect Pass/Fail grading on a course taken this semester that satisfies a CS minor requirement, a grade of P (pass) will be accepted as satisfying that minor requirement, regardless of when the student completes their minor. 

If a 500-level course would normally be transferrable into the CS graduate program, it can be transferred with a P (pass) grade so long as the underlying letter grade is a C or above. This is due to the fact that a graduate SAT grade corresponds to a C or higher.

For students who elect Pass/Fail grading on a course taken this semester that satisfies a CS or Informatics departmental honors requirement, a grade of P (pass) will be accepted as satisfying that requirement, regardless of when the student completes the honors program. 

A letter grade of D or higher corresponds to a pass.

Students can elect Pass/Fail grading in any 500-level CS course. For 600+ level courses, Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading is available by arrangement with the instructor. A grade of SAT in a graduate course is similar to a P in an undergraduate course.

As in all semesters, an F (fail) grade earned in a Spring 2020 course taken Pass/Fail will result in an F on your transcript and will be reflected in your GPA. Not earning a SAT in a 600-level course taken under Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading will also result in an F on your transcript and will be reflected in your GPA.

The deadline to request pass/fail grading in an undergraduate or 500-level CS course is April 29th, 2020. The deadline to arrange SAT grading in a 600+ level course is May 7th, 2020.

Undergraduate students can revoke a P grade at any time during their degree and up to six months after degree completion. See the University's FAQ on Pass/Fail grading for more details.

• Bay State Master: The requirements to qualify for the level of a Bay State Master Scholarship are a minimum grade of a B+ in COMPSCI 311 and a 3.4 GPA. A "Pass" grade will not be accepted for COMPSCI 311.
• Bay State Scholar: The requirements to qualify for the level of a Bay State Scholarship are a minimum grade of a B+ in COMPSCI 311, a 3.6 GPA, and an advanced math course with a minimum grade of a B. Please see our  webpage for a list of acceptable math courses. A "Pass" grade will not be accepted for either COMPSCI 311 or the math course. 
• Bay State Fellow: The requirements to qualify for the level of a Bay State Fellow Scholarship are a minimum grade of a B+ in COMPSCI 311, a 3.7 GPA, an advanced math course with a minimum grade of a B, and a one semester independent study such as an honors project. A "Pass" grade will not be accepted for COMPSCI 311 and the math course. However, the independent study can have a Pass" grade for the Spring 2020 semester enrollment only.

Undergraduate students can request Pass/Fail grading on Spire for CS courses up to the 500-level. For 600-level and above courses, please submit a request using this form.

Majors who have additional questions about these program changes can reach out to the CICS Advising Office at cicsadvising@umass.edu or 413-545-4822. 

CS minors who have additional questions about these program changes can reach out to askCSminor@cs.umass.edu.

For the Spring 2020 semester, students may arrange for Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading on any graduate course, including graduate courses that were previously letter-graded only.

A SAT (satisfactory) grade earned in a CS graduate elective course taken in Spring 2020 will satisfy an elective requirement. 

A SAT (satisfactory) grade in a CS MS or PhD core course taken in Spring 2020 will satisfy a CS MS or PhD graduate core requirement and can be used as part of the PhD portfolio process (admission to PhD candidacy) in this or any later semester. That includes satisfying conditional passes of the portfolio process from earlier semesters.

A SAT (satisfactory) grade earned in a CS graduate certificate course will satisfy the corresponding CS graduate certificate requirement. This includes courses taken toward the Certificate in Statistical and Computational Data Science and the Certificate in Information Security.

Courses taken under Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading in Spring 2020 will not count toward the total number of Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory credits a student can take as part of their degree. 

A letter grade of C or higher corresponds to a SAT.

As in all semesters, a grade of F (fail) will be assigned when students do not earn a SAT (satisfactory) grade. The F grade will appear on your transcript and will be reflected in your GPA.

Graduate students can request Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading by submitting this form.

The deadline to arrange SAT grading in a graduate course is 11:59pm on May 11th, 2020.

Master's students can email Elizabeth Parolski, MS program advisor at eparolski@umass.edu, and/or make an advising appointment.  

PhD students should contact their faculty advisors or email Eilleen Hamel (ehamel@cs.umass.edu), graduate program manager.