A few thoughts on the move to pass/fail grading systems at many law schools and what that requires of us as law professors. 1/a few

I think that pass/fail grading systems mean that other indicators -- extracurriculars, journal, interview, references, and letters of recommendation will matter more to many employers. 2/

I have concerns about some of these -- for example, there's all sorts of research that interviewers tend to favor people who remind them of themselves, which risks disadvantaging underrepresented groups. 3/

And the students who are struggling to find the time to study are the same students who have zero time for extracurriculars right now. 4/

I think it's faculty members' responsibility to help address some of these disparities. So I hope that the faculty members who are advocating passionately for P/F on Twitter and in faculty meetings are *also* planning ahead for this responsibility. 5/

This might mean things like: making extra effort to get to know your students or keeping detailed records of what your students say in class or office hours -- that is, setting yourself up to write a good letter for a student with a transcript full of "pass". 6/

It *doesn't* mean things like this: https://twitter.com/nancyleong/status/1176935795380244480?s=20 7/

My basic concern is that privileged students are *always* fine when unexpected hardship arises. Let me tell a quick story. 8/

I had a classmate in law school who was a third generation lawyer. Their grandfather was managing partner at one of the biggest law firms in NYC. Tons of family financial support, connections, and social capital. 9/

This person was set to clerk for a federal appellate judge. Tragically, the judge passed away in April of our 3L year. Suddenly my classmate had no clerkship and no job prospects. 10/