Sorry if this isn’t directly related to this subforum, but I think you guys would have good responses. Also, after I graduate I do plan to try to get my MBA so it is related somewhat.
I would understand if it was school wide policy but this one class has on its syllabus that the highest grade is only A (despite giving B+/C+/etc). It’s a media studies class (I’m an Econ major if it matters), and as far as I can tell other class within that same department DO offer A+'s.
How is that fair? I have A+,A+,A+,A,A for this semester and my GPA is only 4.0 so I guess this school is capped at 4.0. But the A+ gives more ‘quality points’ than the A so wouldn’t that mean that if it will help if I get low grades in the future?
My grade is 98.3 in the class, I got an A, and grades have been submitted.
This seems petty but at the same time it seems important since I need my GPA to be as high as possible for professional jobs and/or Grad School.
Is there anything I can do here? I sent an email to the department head, but can I do anything else?
If it were in the syllabus as you mention, then you could have chosen not to take the class if the lack of A+s were a concern. BTW, I serve on a graduate admissions committee for a large graduate program and we rarely see an A+ grades and it never occurred to me that they would be worth more than a 4.0. Here is an example of a U that does offer A+ grades but assigns them a weight of a 4. http://www.las.illinois.edu/students/standing/grades/
I don’t see anything particularly unfair in this given situation, but not everything in life is fair. It’s best to get used to that as soon as possible.
Also an econ major planning on grad school (law) at a school where A+'s count as 4.0, but the LSAC (law school admissions peeps) counts them as 4.33. It’s something you have to live with. I’ve had classes like yours (scored >100% and still got an A, no +), and it doesn’t change. Look at the syllabus first next time; it’s all professor’s discretion.
I understand that you want to do your best and you feel shafted that your grades do not reflect the awesomeness that you are, but there is virtually no situation where getting an A instead of an A+ will keep you out of anything.
It’s probably even LESS relevant for someone who wants to pursue an MBA because work experience is so much more important for an MBA. A low GPA can keep you out, sure, but a high GPA isn’t going to get you in, especially when you’re comparing a 4.0 GPA to a… 4.0 GPA.
What on earth are “quality points”? Your school clearly does not weight an A+ as higher than an A (some schools weight an A+ as a 4.3, but most do not). So no, an A+ does not give you “brownie points” or make up for something in the future. An A+ will NOT make up for low grades in the future, in your GPA or in someone viewing your transcript. Getting an A+ will not invalidate a B+, for example (not that a B+ is a low grade).
It is petty. And your GPA is already as high as possible. It’s a 4.0. You clearly cannot get higher than that at your school. If you get an A- next semester, getting an A+ this semester won’t do anything to stop that from lowering your GPA. You want your GPA to be as high as possible, yes, but beyond a certain point, it’s not really going to make that much of a difference. A 3.9 vs. a 4.0 isn’t going to make or break you at a vast majority of schools (especially MBA programs), and it’s going to be even less important to employers. And in your situation, you’re not even comparing a 3.9 to a 4.0. You’re comparing a 4.0 to a 4.0.
You can let it go. I actually would have recommended against sending an email to the department head. There is no situation where it is beneficial to you. They either say no, and you are seen as a bit of a nuisance. Or they say yes, and you are seen as a bit of a nuisance. The A vs. the A+ doesn’t matter to you or your GPA, so really, you’re going through all this trouble just to be seen as a bit of a nuisance. You are being ridiculous. I usually try to be as understanding as possible, but this is, quite frankly, silly. Move on with your life. Spend more time getting work or internship experience because that is going to be more important for grad school or job applications than your GPA (since you’re GPA is already doing well). If it really bothers you so much, then next time figure out the grading system at the beginning of the semester and drop the class if you are not okay with it.
If you want something to complain about, then complain about how some schools weight an A+ as a 4.3 and you’re school doesn’t. So if someone at this other school had the exact same grades as you, they would have a higher GPA. It’s still petty and pointless, but at least, that’s something semi-legitimate to complain about.
This is petty and wrong on so many levels. Giving A+'s is at the discretion of the professor; you are not entitled to one just because the school says it’s allowed. At most universities (including mine), an A+ counts as a 4.0, so it doesn’t make a difference at all.
I hope you realize that grading scale is completely up to the professor and not standardized. For example, I had one professor this past semester that graded such that 93+ = A, 83-92=B, and 73-82 = C, etc, with no +/-. I thought it was unfair, but I sucked it up and worked hard to make sure my grade stayed above a 93. There are other classes (such as real analysis) where a 50% is a C. You never know how a curve is going to go until the end of the semester on some courses too, like in most of our CS courses. You just do the best you can and accept the grade you earned according to that individual course’s grading scale.
I would not have gone to the department if I were you; you’re just going to make enemies.
I think you are worrying too much about it. The department head is likely not going to be as concerned about this issue as you are, so I wouldn’t expect any solution. As the others have said, you should have considered an alternative (if at all possible) if the grading scale perturbed you. Professors do have the right to adjust the grading scale as needed. I wouldn’t be so worried about it. Be happy that you got a A.
As others have pointed out, there is virtually no situation at any point in life where having a 4.0 (with an A) instead of a 4.0 (with an A+) is going to even be seen as a point worth considering. The difference between a 3.9 and a 4.0 could be as small as getting a single B. Graduate programs and employers understand that there is no practical distinction between the two. The only B I’ve gotten so far was in General Chemistry II. I finished it with an 89.3%. That’s .02% below the rounding point for an A. This puts me in the same grade category as the person that got a 79.5% and in a different category from the person that got that extra .02%. One cannot seriously suggest that there is a practical difference between my own knowledge and the knowledge of the person that got an 89.5% and rounded to an A. This difference could come down to something as simple as me accidentally plugging something into my calculator incorrectly or making some stupid arithmetic error. However, the cutoff has to fall somewhere.
The problem here is that you aren’t even referring to a situation like this. You are complaining about your 4.0 not being good enough. If I were you, I wouldn’t have even sent that email. Your complaint is petty, and it doesn’t even make sense. Move on and avoid this professor in the future if you’re that bothered by it.