<p>It is much easier to get a 3.8+ if you are not a science major, where grades given in some science depts. have apparently yet to hit 3.0 (like chem, bio, and physics) I would estimate that maybe 2-300 have 3.8+ among the 1350 (okay, 1500ish+counting Oxford, which supposedly grades harder or simply has lower grades) freshmen so it is a lot, but a majority of them do not make those grades (I would not say 50%). I am willing to guess that the freshmen grades are somewhat bimodal. Assuming that Emory follows a similar trend to other schools, freshmen grades are lower than other years. I saw somewhere (I don’t know how I found it, but it was a while ago, take it w/a grain of salt) that Emory’s freshman gpa average was a 3.07. This was maybe 07’, so let’s account for the grade inflation in the next years (there hasn’t been a significant increase in HS stats. if any since then, so I’ll call it a grade inflation), and it maybe more like 3.12-3.2. Given this, a good amount of freshmen are not doing well at all (I’ve met many that have done maybe sub 3.0), and it’s more than likely in the sciences. I mean think about it. If most of the freshmen classes for the sciences are sitting at between a 2.5-2.9 grade average, and many freshmen are doubling up in say chem. and bio and probably have fluff classes after those. A 3.1-3.2 (more on the 3.2ish end) average makes sense assuming they get about a a B+/A- (I would say somewhere between it) average in the freshmen writing requirement and freshman seminar.<br>
Also, PACE leaders and stuff is kind of a self-selecting process and probably has the tendency to draw the freshmen with the highest GPA anyway. How many freshmen PACE leaders are there? Are any of them cross-listed among those in the honor society?</p>
<p>Again, I don’t think Emory follows different grading patterns from similar universities and peers. Take MIT for example, where the average GPA is a 3.26. It is estimated, that if you unmask the pass/fail freshman year, it would become about a 3.17, about a tenth lower. Given this, the freshman gpa is like a 2.8-2.9ish. Is it unreasonable to guess that Emory’s freshman gpa is a 3.0-3.2 considering the average graduating GPA is a 3.38-3.4 (This past year, it was 3.39.it’s getting kind of high, Emory should consider pulling a Princeton, we’re already viewed as one of the less rigorous schools in the top 20 twenty, the grade inflation doesn’t help)? I’m betting that in general, grades throughout Emory CAS have an upward trend as the years pass (as in for an individual, from freshmen to sophomore year, and so forth. Though for science majors, it’s possible some later courses could be tougher, but keep in mind there are less science majors after freshman year). Also, Deans list does indeed include everyone, so you’re competing against lots of people who have likely experienced an upward trend in their grades. You’re also competing against a lot of non-science majors and those w/less rigorous schedules. I wouldn’t use that to judge the freshmen class as you may indeed have lots of rising juniors and rising seniors applying for it. Again the GPAs are probably not uniform throughout the years.
I think that, for a myriad of reasons, even non-science intro./freshmen popular courses are grading harder than lots of the upperlevel courses in those depts.
As for curving: I think bio and gen. chem naturally come out to B-/B despite the lecture average so they don’t have to curve. The lab grades are very high, so if the lab average is 90+ and the lecture, about a 77, the course average will probably come out to near a B- after the smoke clears. Also, in the case of say, physics 141, where with exception of Bing, there are many really easy teachers where the exam average is maybe in the low mid-80s consistently (not really the case in 142 where grades may naturally be lower because of the subject matter), the average could be a solid B among physics 141 sections overall.
Orgo. is sketch: Most professors don’t curve as generous as the say. The “average” (let’s say the raw average test score and those near it) ends up “around” a B-, but the actual course gpa may usually end up a little lower, so that it’s not quite a 2.7, and is more 2.6ish (one year, Blakey did a bell curve, and it came out to like a 2.6). Soria doesn’t curve. Some years could be bad, and some could be good. Generally, 1st semester I’m betting is a B-/B average. Soria’s grades are generally much higher before the final, and the final lowers them to about a bell-shaped curve around the B-. 2nd Semester is a lot trickier w/him, as it is kind of self-selecting (1st semester weed-out effect b/c of lowered confidence from the final among some students, or those annoyed by simply not getting a solid A or having a B grade). But in a good year, the final does its job and gives the same average as 1st semester, even if it is the best students continuing to orgo. II w/him. In a bad year, like mines, it had to be like a C+ (or maybe even a high C). Their a reasonable amount of C and D grades (and maybe an F or 2. He told me one year, where 5 people earned Fs, so there really isn’t a true curve or grading pattern in his class. If there’s a bell-shaped curve, it just happens naturally in a sense. Some years, it’s skewed up a lot and some down. He’s gotten complaints for both directions, so no grade inflation/deflation there) in a class of 45-50. But w/a class like last year’s w/about 33 people (down from 50 first semester), it’s probably a B- after the final (or a B, they were really good). Soria’s grades normally reflect the quality of the class, moreso than an “invisible hand” and test averages.
You also have cases like Eisen for 141, where he curves regardless of the test averages. He curves to adjust for the actual difficulty/time commitment to the course vs. other sections (and yes, sometimes for grade discrepancies). Basically, grading at Emory, even in intro. and difficult pre-med courses is really up to the professor. There is no uniform policy. Despite all of the differing policies, the average gpa among many of the pre-med courses w/several sections, somehow comes out to a B-/B.
I think they can handle 221 w/a 4. Gen. chem is irrelevant to orgo. In the past (before my year), people in INSPIRE w/no AP credit got at least a B in 221-Z.</p>
<p>By the way, I think freshmen can definitely do it. Your numbers prove it. However, I really don’t like the idea of students feeling as if they are inferior or failing when they don’t have a “3.8” or a “3.7” for that matter. That is unhealthy. Strive to do your best, and don’t beat yourself up for getting a solid GPA that is not a 3.7-3.8. And certainly don’t water down your coursework to achieve it when you know you can do fine w/a reasonable challenge.</p>