End-of-term regulations remain unchanged
End-of-term regulations remain unchanged
A motion to bring end-of-term academic regulations for graduate courses in line with those for undergraduate course was voted down at the April 20 faculty meeting. The motion proposed changes to Sections 2.52, 2.53, and 2.54 of the Rules and Regulations of the Faculty, which address regulations for final examinations and assignments after the last class date. Sections 2.53 and 2.54 differentiate between undergraduate and graduate coursework regulations, respectively. The motion was sponsored by Adam Albright, chair of the Committee on Curricula; Stephen C. Graves, chair of the Committee on Graduate Programs; and Steven R. Hall ’80, chair of the Committee on the Undergraduate Program.
During the March faculty meeting, Albright explained that instructors have always raised questions about tests and assignments due during the last week of classes and that the regulations are worded somewhat differently for undergraduate and graduate situations. The motion aimed to clarify the rules and resolve the differences in language for undergraduate and graduate regulations.
While the motion received the majority of the votes, it failed to receive the 30 votes needed to amend the rules and regulations. As a result, the motion did not pass.
Among those who opposed the motion was JoAnne Yates, deputy dean of the Sloan School of Management. “Rules governing undergrad courses are designed to protect students from having too many deliverables or any tests in the last week of class,” Yates said in an email to The Tech. “I believe these protections are appropriate for undergraduates, but not necessary for graduate students.”
Yates also had concerns that the changes would restrict the options of faculty and graduate students in designing end of the term coursework.
—Derek Chang