Freshman and transfer first-quarter grading system should be changed to reflect the difficulty of transition

There isn’t an inkling of doubt that, during our first year at UCLA, our lives are a time of colossal transitioning ““ academic adjustment subsumed. To mitigate the accompanying stress with such an adaptation, a student’s ­”“ whether a freshman admit or a transfer ““ first year grades at UCLA should be radically modified.

A pass/no-record grading system should be exclusive to a student’s first quarter grades, where transcripts will denote a passed course with a “P” and omit evidence of failed classes. And for the subsequent quarter, an A/B/C/no-record arrangement is appropriate, where students will be subject to the traditional grading structure.

UCLA boasts of accepting diverse individuals, but with variety comes inequality among academic backgrounds.

The admissions committee judges freshmen aptitude by, to list a few: high school 10th and 11th grade point averages, standardized test scores and the difficulty of previous scholarly regimen.

The context of how competitive admits’ high schools were, if they were California public schools, is assessed by their Academic Performance Index (API), which uses statewide, standardized test performances to rank schools academically. API ranges from a low score of 200 to a high of 1000; the state’s target API score for every school is 800.

Four high schools represented at UCLA are Crenshaw High School, Hamilton High School, Mills High School and Mission San Jose High School, with respective APIs of 547, 686, 845 and 948 in 2009. Private schools aren’t held accountable to API.

The disparity in API signals incongruity among high schools and their proficiency to adequately prepare students to confront the rigors of UCLA and emerge victorious.

Like freshmen, transfers often suffer from a transient slump in grades as well, known as “transfer shock,” following their move.

A 2001 study by Frankie Santos Laanan, faculty member in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Iowa State University, shows that transfer students tend to have comparably lower grade point averages and are more vulnerable to academic probation than native students.

Only 67 percent of transfer students rebound from their slip within their first year, according to the study.

UCLA has programs, such as the Early Academic Outreach Program and Vice Provost’s Initiative for Pre-College Scholars, that help college-eligible students, according to Charles Alexander, the associate vice provost for student diversity and the director of the Academic Advancement Program at UCLA. Through a process of assistance, UCLA strives to equip these students with skills that will help them gain admission to the university.

But all of these programs only precede admission to universities, and do not necessarily endow students with the academic caliber to tackle UCLA.

Others may claim student and transfer orientations do justice in educating prospective students of what to expect at their next few years at school. But can a schedule of events, workshops and speakers truly convey the level of academic expertise UCLA professors have come to expect in their students?

UCLA is responsible for ensuring that every student enjoys an equal playing field. This starts with implementing a black and white grading structure at the start of every student’s journey and gradually adopting the traditional grading system.

Even the Massachusetts Institute of Technology endorses the idea, utilizing a pass/no pass system coupled with ‘hidden grades’ to be used in counseling and for certain applications that require them.

When UCLA invested its faith in us to reach our potential for achievement, it also trusted us to be students who do not regard learning as a trivial or superfluous matter. Therefore, it should allow us to appreciate learning without the sidetracking burden of grades. And for the students who “cruise” without the incentive of letter grades, hopefully they will seize the extra time to immerse themselves in extracurricular activities.

Since graduate schools primarily scrutinize sophomore and junior grades, students may argue transfer students with a pass/no-record transcript during their first quarter at UCLA is at a huge disadvantage compared to a student who received a 4.0 during that same quarter from another institution.

But with the ubiquitous transfer shock, passes can shield students from unwanted grades. And with UCLA’s official backing, graduate schools will recognize that unanimous passes on an applicant’s transcript is due to the system’s principles ““ not the applicant.

I am in no way implying that UCLA students aren’t competent enough to handle this institution. In fact, I’m declaring that, without exception, every student is academically capable, but students manage the challenge of UCLA at varying proficiencies and that needs to be buffered.