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- This is part of the new flexible grading option that will replace the long-standing Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) system.
- Under the new system, students can choose to convert their grades to a pass or be ungraded for a module.
Text by Lok Bing Hong
Photo by Eugene Goh
Students can now exercise the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) option after their examination results are released, giving them more say over which modules affect their Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).
From academic year 2024/2025, the new flexible grading option (FGO) will replace the long-standing S/U option, which could only be exercised before results were released, said the university in an email circular on Wednesday (Aug 28).
Under the new system, students can choose to convert their grades to a pass or be ungraded for a module – similar to the S/U option.
As with the previous system, students who exercised the S/U option and passed a module would see a “pass” grade on their transcripts, while those who failed would not see a score.
All undergraduates admitted to the school from AY24/25 and current students graduating from January 2025 onwards can exercise the FGO.
Students doing the three-, four- and five-year degree programmes can exercise the option for up to 12 academic units. Meanwhile, those in the direct entry and biomedical sciences programmes can do so for nine academic units.
In the email, Prof Gan Chee Lip, associate provost of undergraduate education at NTU, said that the changes were made to “encourage students not to be too focused on grades” and to explore modules outside their core discipline.
He also highlighted that students do not need to declare their FGO at the end of each semester. Instead, they can wait until their final year to make declarations.
However, the new system will not be extended to part-time students, those from the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, exchange students, and non-graduating students studying in the university.
Additionally, for existing students admitted before the latest academic year, their past S/U declarations will be converted to FGO grades.
They will also have a one-time opportunity to review their declarations and see the grades they got. Subsequently, the students can choose to either retain their S/U declarations on those courses or change them back to letter grades.
The school said that if students choose the latter option, they can still exercise the FGO on those courses during the declaration period before they graduate.
However, as all FGO declarations are irrevocable, students who decide to keep their FGO options will not be allowed to change them in future semesters.
This new S/U grading system is in response to students’ feedback, which the school received through a survey and from student leaders.
Final-year philosophy student Ria Bakri, 23, said she appreciated the ability to reclassify some of her past results to improve her CPGA.
“I had a module where I got a C+ and did not S/U, and a module where I S/U-ed but had a feeling I did well,” she said. “I would have been 100 percent more inclined to try other modules outside my comfort zone if this was in place initially.”
Others, such as final-year computer science student Bernice Koh, 20, were sceptical that the new system would encourage students to try modules outside their home discipline.
“My modules in the upcoming semesters are more or less fixed, so this does not make me feel more inclined to try classes outside of my comfort zone. But even if I was a junior, I think it would make no difference; I would just take whatever modules I find interesting or useful,” she said.
Some alumni lamented that the change was implemented only after they had graduated but approved of it.
Mr Toh Fu Hai, 26, who graduated last year from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, said: “I wish we had this option, as it would allow us to explore modules from other disciplines without the risk of lowering our GPA.”
He added: “I’m glad that current batches of students are benefiting from this change — it’s a step forward from what we had. It’s a positive thing that shows the school hears our feedback.”
