1 point away from a B

College Confidential Community
1

I took Molecular Biology this semester as a major requirement. This class was ridiculously hard for me, and I’ve never studied this much before in my life. I didn’t get consistent exam scores. There were 3 exams and the final. I went from a C to B to A to an F on the final. There were really short quizzes here and there that I never did well on due to the specificity of them, but I did excellent on the Dry Labs. Anyways, I landed at a final grade of 78.95% and he curved so that 79.1% was a B after the final grades were rounded up >.5. To put it simply, 78.95% = 79% rounded = C with curve. That leaves me basically 0.1% away from a B. Point-wise I am one point from a B with the curve. Should I dispute the grade?

I’m a Conservation Biology major, not a Molecular Biology major, so odds are I won’t have a class with him again, but the department is small so I will see him around frequently. I went in to see him before every exam, and I was very friendly with him. I did the book homework (even though the book wasn’t even required), and I had study groups. I did everything I could all semester but bombed the non-cumulative final.

His syllabus basically says you get what you get and you don’t throw a fit (including no curve), yet he still gave a curve. He also only had one review session during the semester and that was for the exam I got an A on because it was the only time he explained everything clearly and slowly, so his own teaching methods aren’t consistent.

I’m just afraid that he won’t take criticism well and I’m going to burn a bridge with him.

Thoughts?

2

You got an F on the final. I’m surprised your school doesn’t have +/- grading, but I don’t think a C is out of line.

3

Did everyone else fail the Final?

4

Don’t dispute it. If you wish to ask if there is something extra that you can do in order to earn that last point, I think it’d be viewed more positively than whining/complaining/criticizing/begging. It’s constructive and demonstrates that YOU are the one willing to do something to get a B… But you need to be able to walk away if he leaves it a C. There are many, many things in life in which there is a cut-off, and in this case, close as you came, you missed it. I know if seems lousy – it would have been easier to have missed it by more – but so it goes.

5

Has the grade been issued yet? He might give you the B, given that you are so close. Is there no B- option?

6

As a professor, I absolutely HATE when students do this. Just sayin’. And no, I never give them “something extra” to do.

7

All he can say is no. I needed that boost once and got it and I’ve seen students ask and not get it.
I’d ask if it makes a big difference in getting into a future program.