University of Michigan Pauses Grade-Masking Plan for 3,500 Freshmen as Backlash Builds
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Sep 30
University of Michigan Pauses Grade-Masking Plan for 3,500 Freshmen as Backlash Builds
3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Sep 30
Summary
President Domenico Grasso halted the University of Michigan’s plan to mask first-semester grades in its liberal arts college, a pilot announced in August for fall 2027.
Grasso said widespread coverage created “distorted narratives” that could unfairly portray students as coddled or unprepared, prompting the pause after talks with the dean and provost.
The proposal would still have assigned letter grades but shown only “P” or “NC” on official transcripts and excluded first-semester marks from GPA calculations.
Michigan had framed the change as a mental-health measure, citing a Healthy Minds study showing 32% of college students report anxiety symptoms and 11% seriously considered suicide in the past year.
Similar first-year pass/no-credit systems already exist at MIT and Swarthmore, underscoring that Michigan’s now-paused plan was not unprecedented.
Why did Michigan freeze its freshman pass/no-credit transcript plan after backlash, despite citing alarming student mental-health data?
If first-semester grades stay internal, can transcript reform reduce stress without weakening academic rigor or hurting students outside the classroom?