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How does the grading system work in grad school?

halik

halik

Lifer
I'm applying to grad school for econ MA program and it just occured to me I've got no idea... is the grading system as undergrad?
 
yup, standard letter grades with attached gpa.... which, of course, nobody cares about since youre already in grad school
 
GPA is recorded and calculated the same.

As LS20 noted grading by the professor is generally much lighter (most people receiving at least A-) because almost everyone in class was near the top of their class as an undergraduate. If you have a class full of A/B students then giving half of the class a C makes no sense.

Also, in a Ph.D program the classes are not the most important part of your work anyway. You're there to choose a specialty, learn to do research, write papers and eventually come up with a thesis. Classes are just to round out your education and help you choose your specialty.
 
In many programs you are allowed 1-2 B's in your program, and then you are on academic probation.


/me is dreading grad school next year
 
Depends on your major and school. My CS friend at Berkeley says averages on his midterms are in the 40s, and these are some of the brightest and most talented students in the world.
 
Pretty much, you'll get mostly As in grad school. A few Bs are ok too. Any C or below is basically considered a failure.

My grad school didn't even calculate or keep track of GPA in any shape or form. GPA is for two things (1) getting your first job or (2) getting into grad school. Since you have already done at least one of those two things, GPA is now meaningless. What now matters is your degree, what you did for research if applicable, and in some career tracks where you got your degree/who is your advisor.
 
It really depends on the program. In places like law and medical school, I believe GPA is at least fairly important in terms of class ranking and what not.

In other disciplines, and especially when going for a Ph.D., it's much less crucial. I know in my doctoral program--and this is generally the same for clinical psych programs around the country--anything below a B is considered failing. You're allowed one C, after which you're removed from the university. The grades themselves, beyond that, aren't very important, even when it comes to placement for internships. What's more important is the material of the course, and being able to use that material in an applied sense. Beyond that, as others have mentioned, there is also great importance placed on your research projects and clinical practicum experiences.

Edit: I should mention that if you're going for your Master's with the hopes of transferring into a doctoral program afterwards, then grades become a bit more important. Basically, you want to show that you can earn as close to a 4.0 as possible, after which you should be alright.
 
Originally posted by: halik
Originally posted by: LS20
A = Average
B = Below average
C = Catastrophic
D = Does not belong (in grad school)
Click to expand...

really? Do you get GPA and all?
Click to expand...

You do get GPA, but if you don't get an A, then you are in trouble.

People get put on academic probation for getting Cs and they sometimes kick you out for a few Ds.
 
Originally posted by: Whisper
It really depends on the program. In places like law and medical school, I believe GPA is at least fairly important in terms of class ranking and what not.

In other disciplines, and especially when going for a Ph.D., it's much less crucial. I know in my doctoral program--and this is generally the same for clinical psych programs around the country--anything below a B is considered failing. You're allowed one C, after which you're removed from the university. The grades themselves, beyond that, aren't very important, even when it comes to placement for internships. What's more important is the material of the course, and being able to use that material in an applied sense. Beyond that, as others have mentioned, there is also great importance placed on your research projects and clinical practicum experiences.

Edit: I should mention that if you're going for your Master's with the hopes of transferring into a doctoral program afterwards, then grades become a bit more important. Basically, you want to show that you can earn as close to a 4.0 as possible, after which you should be alright.
Click to expand...


I'm doing MA because I need more hands on skills to get into the revenue generating part of my industry (top tier financial services); I've got no plans for a PHD. I am planning on getting an JDMBA/MBA later on, so the GPA thing will be helpful.
 
Depends on the program. My brother is in chem-phd program right now, all he gets are High Pass/Pass/Fail. However, the M.ChE programs he was considering did give you grades, similiar to undergrad.
 
Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf
In many programs you are allowed 1-2 B's in your program, and then you are on academic probation.


/me is dreading grad school next year
Click to expand...

Not true. In most programs under a 3.0 is probation; when you get close to that you'll probably get a nice talking to by your advisor.
 
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