Academic Policies

Not all courses are offered every semester or every year. Courses not offered this year are listed at the end of each department’s current offerings. Offered courses must enroll a sufficient number of students in order to run.

Students may begin the schedule change process one week prior to the start of the semester, continuing through the first week of the new semester. Generally, course changes are made only after consultation with the student, his or her advisor, parents/guardians, and the appropriate division director. Schedule changes made during this period will not be reflected on the student’s transcript. After the first week of the new semester, a student may not add a new course unless a teacher initiates a change from one level of a course to another. Course additions during the first week of a semester are subject to scheduling limitations. No schedule changes will be made as a result of teacher preference.

We believe that an accurate assessment of academic progress is an important part of helping students, parents/ guardians, faculty, and administrators identify each student’s strengths and weaknesses.

In the Upper School, letter grades and written comments are sent to parents/guardians midway through each semester. In addition, parents/guardians receive report cards at the end of each semester indicating quarter grades, the permanent semester grade, and a brief narrative explanation.

University Prep uses A through E marks with pluses and minuses. Grades are based primarily on student mastery of learning goals as provided by the faculty.

In Fine Arts classes, student work is assessed based on multiple-criteria grade reports, portfolios of student work, and narrative comments. The grade report assesses skills, technique, and artistic expression using the terms E = exceeds expectation, M = meets expectations, W = works to meet expectations, or N = does not meet expectations. Grades for Fine Arts classes are reported on student transcripts as Pass/Fail.

GPAs are used nearly exclusively in-house for such purposes as determining eligibility for school honors or awards; they are not generally reported to colleges or universities. We compute GPA’s by assigning a numerical equivalent to each grade, multiplying the numerical value by the number of credits the course carries, adding these grade points, and then dividing by the number of credits. Pluses and minuses add or detract from the grade below by .3 points. University Prep does not recognize a GPA of more than 4.0 regardless of numerical points.

A - 4 points
B - 3 points
C - 2 points
D - 1 point
E - 0 points
P - no points
I - no points

Incompletes

A student’s course of study includes minimum diploma requirements in English, history, math, and science, one of three world languages, fine arts, and physical education. To graduate from University Prep, a student must be enrolled at the school as an “on campus” student during senior year.

* In the case of completing the language requirement through two years of study of one language and two years of another, the language requirement equals 40 credits, and the total credits required for graduation equals 235.

Washington state law requires that credits toward graduation must be earned during high school. Washington state history and government is a non-credit graduation requirement, and the course is offered in seventh grade. Students who transfer from out of state after seventh grade have this requirement waived.

University Prep’s LaunchPad is a three-week, real world experience for students to step off-campus and work in an environment that speaks to their personal passions and/or their professional, vocational, or academic curiosities. As an evolution of UPrep's Senior Project, students may meet this graduation requirement in junior or senior year, independently or within a designated, LaunchPad-eligible course.

Students must also complete 20 hours of community service per year in the Upper School. School-wide community service days count toward that total. Students who do not earn at least 20 hours of service per year have a note “community service requirement not met” on their transcript for that academic year. Students who earn at least 20 hours of service receive a P each year. Students can graduate from University Prep without having earned P’s for every year of high school.

Students in grades 9 – 11 have a 12-month window to earn service hours for a particular grade level, beginning on the first day of summer vacation and concluding on the last day of school in June 2019. Seniors must complete their service during the school year to earn a P, and their hours must typically be completed and logged one week prior to commencement.

Enrollment Requirements

Students may earn a University Prep diploma only after completing four academic years of high school study and meeting all University Prep graduation requirements. While a portion of a student’s graduation requirements may be earned elsewhere, students must be enrolled and on campus for their senior year to graduate from University Prep.

High school credits earned at an accredited institution prior to enrollment at University Prep will be translated into University Prep equivalents on a student’s transcript. Once enrolled, students are expected to meet graduation requirements through University Prep. A student who wishes to obtain UPrep credit for courses taken outside of UPrep should send a written request to the appropriate department head and the Director of the Upper School. If approved, then the student should arrange for transcripts to be sent from the other institution to the registrar.

If an Upper School student wishes to pursue a topic beyond the offerings at University Prep, he or she may arrange an independent study with a University Prep faculty member. Students are eligible to request independent study only after graduation requirements have been met in the department of interest. Written arrangements must be made with the appropriate department, and the proposals must be completed no later than one week after the start of a semester. Forms are available in the registrar’s office.

Students enrolled at University Prep may study away in recognized semester programs and receive credit toward graduation. Programs that are less than a semester in duration will not be considered for credit. General information about our policies regarding student, financial, curricular, and program requirements for receiving credit while away from University Prep is available below. Further information can be obtained from the director of Upper School and the director of Global Programs.

Semester Away General Information

Upon special request, teachers may give permission to audit a class. Students taking courses for credit will take precedence over those wishing to audit. Credit is not awarded for auditing a class, and no permanent record of the audit is maintained.