Incoming freshmen at the University of Michigan's largest college will see only "pass" or "no credit" on their transcripts starting fall 2027, under a pilot program that eliminates first-semester letter grades for all new students in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts.

LSA, which enrolls approximately 18,000 to 19,700 undergraduates across popular majors like economics, computer science and psychology, posted details of the program on its website. All incoming LSA freshmen will be automatically enrolled. There is no opt-out.

Transfer students and freshmen admitted to U-M's other 18 colleges will not be affected.

Students will still receive letter grades and feedback from instructors throughout the semester, but those marks will not appear on official transcripts or factor into GPA calculations. Standard letter grading resumes in the second semester.

The university will keep internal records of first-semester grades for academic advising, scholarship and internship applications, athletic eligibility, financial aid and degree progress tracking. If a student switches to a major outside LSA, those internal grades follow.

Why no opt-out

College officials made participation mandatory, according to Michigan Public, reasoning that an optional system could stigmatize students who declined covered grades as underperformers.

"Freeing students from worrying about their grades — letting them experiment in that first semester — might open them up to ideas that they hadn't thought about," associate vice provost for learning and teaching Matthew Kaplan told Michigan Public on Tuesday, Aug. 11.

Kaplan cited the concept of "early momentum" in higher education research, which links meeting academic milestones early in college to on-time graduation and degree completion.

Rosemary J. Perez, an associate professor in U-M's Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education, described the grade pressure she observes in students. They arrive convinced one bad mark will derail internships, graduate school or careers, she told Michigan Public.

What families should know

For Ann Arbor families with students headed to LSA, the practical upshot: a first-semester C won't tank a GPA, but it also won't disappear entirely. Internal records mean advisers and scholarship committees can still see actual performance. The pilot applies only to the first semester, so second-semester grades carry full weight.

The college has not announced how long the pilot will run or what metrics will determine whether it continues, expands or ends.

Broader context

U-M is not the first school to try grade covering. MIT has used pass/no-record grading for fall-semester freshmen since 1968. Caltech, Swarthmore College and Wellesley College run similar programs. Johns Hopkins University once had a grade-covering policy but later repealed it.

LSA already allows first-semester students to drop courses late without penalty, and the Ross School of Business also eliminated curved grading.

What's next

College leaders plan to hold public engagement sessions this fall before the program launches. U-M spokesperson Chris Sebastian said in a written statement that the pilot is still in its development phase and that faculty, staff and students in LSA will continue to shape the final design.

No dates or locations for those sessions have been announced.

Note: Michigan Public, which first reported this story, holds its broadcast license from the University of Michigan.