Haslam College of Business
 

 

AIM Students,

As you have probably heard, the university has decided to allow undergraduate students in most classes to select the option of taking their class on a Satisfactory / No Credit (S/NC) grading scale instead of the traditional A – F scale.

As an accounting major, you are not just completing the courses required for a degree and a job, but you are preparing for a profession that, like the medical and legal fields, offers a licensure exam as well as a number of prestigious certifications. We are committed to our students during their preparation. Our goal is to advise you in ways that help you best leverage the knowledge presented in our classes such that you can pass the licensure exam and position yourself to have a successful and long professional career. 

I realize that this semester has been unusually stressful for our students, and this is part of the rationale for the university’s decision to allow students to elect the S/NC grading option. However, while it is ultimately your decision to make, I didn’t want you to make this important decision without being more fully informed of its potential impact on you. While S/NC may seem like an attractive option for many of you, I wanted to make you aware of the consequences (some potentially negative) that you may encounter if you choose the S/NC option for some accounting and information management classes.

So how could this decision impact you? As you consider your options, we wanted to address some questions you may have.

1) How will choosing the S/NC grade in some accounting major courses impact my ability to graduate on time? The choice will not impact your graduation progress. An accounting major course taken in the spring semester of 2020 with a grade of S will fulfill graduation requirements.

2) How will choosing the S/NC grade in some accounting major courses impact my resume as I prepare to apply for graduate school (hopefully admittance into UT’s Department of Accounting and Information Management Master of Accountancy Program)? When we evaluate a student’s academic performance we will consider an “S” grade to be equivalent to a “C”. So, while an “S” won’t hurt the student’s GPA on his/her official transcript, it will affect their GPA that we use in our evaluation within AIM. Thus, taking an “S” could have a negative impact on a student’s application for the MAcc program, and would likely significantly lessen their chance of being awarded a GTA position or any scholarship dollars. This is particularly a concern for any AIM student who is currently taking AIM classes but has not already been admitted to the MAcc and have not been notified that they will be receiving a GTA or scholarship award.

3) Which accounting major courses are most impacted by this decision? Although this decision is ultimately up to the student, the AIM faculty wanted to let you know that we would strongly advise our students to continue with the A – F grading scale in the following classes (Acct 203, Acct 311, Acct 411, Acct 431, Acct 414, INMT 341) to avoid potentially negative, unintended consequences of the S/NC option. 

4) How will choosing the S/NC grade in some accounting major courses impact my progress toward fulfilling the requirements to sit for the CPA exam in Tennessee? Right now, we cannot provide a definitive answer on that. COVID-19 is already having an impact on the licensure process. Prometric, the CPA Exam testing services provider, closed test centers in the United States and Canada for a period of 30 days, starting March 18. AIM faculty have reached out to the Executive Director of the Tennessee State Board of Accountancy to inquire how degree candidates will be impacted at schools that offer the S/NC grading option. The Board is reviewing the matter and will use their authority and discretion to determine the impact of such grade changes on whether a degree is “acceptable to the Board” (TCA 62-1-106). The Board may use their discretion to allow S grades. We will of course keep you posted on their decision making.

5) How will choosing the S/NC grade in some accounting major courses impact my preparation for the CPA exam? You have control over the answer to this question. Often the mindset and goal to strive for more than just a passing grade can impact your commitment to your studies. If choosing the S/NC option would lessen or negatively affect your level of commitment to your studies, then choosing this option could adversely affect your preparation for the CPA exam. Regardless of your decision, we encourage you to continue to strive to gain as much knowledge as possible in each of the accounting major courses. This knowledge is important for successfully demonstrating mastery of material covered on the CPA exam, and it is essential for preparing you to pursue a graduate degree to fulfill the 150 hour requirement to sit for the CPA exam.  

If you are giving serious consideration to electing to use the S/NC grading option in your AIM classes, I would strongly encourage you to reach out to your faculty to discuss this with them before you commit to doing so. Your AIM faculty are here to help you in any way that we can and helping you to make a more informed decision is just one way in which we can help you. We will also keep you updated as additional guidance is needed. 

Go Vols!

Dr. Neal
Department Head, AIM

Haslam College of Business

Student Engagement
Email: haslamengaged@utk.edu
Phone: (865) 974-8901
Big Orange. Big Ideas.

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