<p>Yeah, given the plus/minus scale, it's possible to get 4.0 for a term or two but not consistently.</p>
<p>I did my undergrad at BU 2001-2004 (when I heard a lot about this supposed grade deflation) I'm applying to PhD programs now after receiving an MA at a different school (4.0 thank you!) but I'm super worried how admissions committees (especially the ivies that I'm applying to) will view my hard earned 3.28 (3.47 major GPA). Doesn't look like I worked hard, but I really did. </p>
<p>Does anyone have any inside knowledge about this actually? How admissions committee's perceive less than stellar GPAs from BU? In the humanities by the way.
And, that 3.28 was even the top 25% of the class. still graduated with latin honors. Yes, the average GPA at BU is just around a 3.0. At least it was when I was there.</p>
<p>Sorry, I thought this thread was under the Graduate School forum. Don't know how I got mixed up. (note for mod.)</p>
<p>it just all depends on what grad school youre applying for, what you scored on your gre's, etc.</p>
<p>im still an undergrad but i took grad level biochem last semester at bu, and got deflated from an A to a B+ :-D, wonderful right?</p>
<p>I know I can't really compare this with HS situations but here's my opinion. I would think that this deflation debate has been around so long that most graduate programs are aware of it. In my city, there is a private school that grades all their classes on the curve (they don't rank students either), consequently there are many students that in the B to B+ range (majority) that would wipe the floor up in a regular school system. They go in much greater numbers to the top 30 schools in the US. My point is that the admissions departments know this and the quality of their program. I am guessing that when you apply to grad school, the admissions depts. will look at the big picture (what have you done in your classes as compared to others from your U, how are your test scores) in much the same way we all go through this for undergrad...I could be wrong too.</p>
<p>Schools report their grade stats and the grad schools are all aware of the numbers. Each type of grad school is different; law, for example, is essentially numbers while smaller programs will look more closely. This is largely a function of the number of applicants. I know that law programs adjust gpa's. </p>
<p>My understanding is the average gpa at BU is somewhere above 3.1 now. The gpa rose quickly for some years as part of the national trend and the school, along with many other schools, took steps to rein in growth. The average gpa was in the 2's. </p>
<p>A few schools have dramatically inflated grades. The "prestige" Ivies have been doing it and one assumes they believe they can get away with it. As I've noted before, it's been calculated from honors stats that the gpa at Yale is over 3.6 and the numbers I've heard are that Harvard is similar. This will over time tend to erode the value of the undergraduate degrees but the truth is that these schools depend as much on their grad schools for their prestige and these schools are not filled with their undergrads but with high achievers from everywhere.</p>
<p>thanks for all the replies. It's comforting to know that at least grade deflation at BU is not all hoop-la, and graduate programs know that as well.</p>
<p>omg! BU’s not Ivy league!? What am I doing here!? FAIL!</p>
<p>BU Evaluator, do you work for every graduate program in the country? Clearly there is a rumor about BU grade deflation or there wouldn’t be a thread about it. Do you think other colleges are somehow ignorant of this rumor? Do you think they don’t read the NY Times? If you’re saying grade deflation is a fact, then fine, but it’s clear that a rumor like that can only work in a student’s favor when it comes to grad school.</p>
<p>All the posters on this board can say is that BU doesn’t have an official policy that deflates grades. We also can say that in our experience, we haven’t had grade deflation.</p>
<p>I will also say that when all of a sudden you just pop up and post 4 extremely negative posts about BU, people are going to think you have an ulterior motive. Do you go to BC or what?</p>
<p>
LOL, not even Brown is that inflated.</p>
<p>Harvard’s real average GPA is slightly below 3.5.</p>
<p>But you shouldn’t tell people not to go here because you individually may have experienced grade deflation.</p>
<p>I am proud of my BU gpa and feel like I earned the grades. They weren’t simply given to me.</p>
<p>Ah, now I see why everyone knew this nut had done poorly at BU. It’s not that grades are low but that you were over your head.</p>
<p>Some programs have lower average GPAs because of the courses, professors, and a lack of grade inflation. The average GPA in my college at BU, college of engineering, is a 2.8. This should say something about the lack of a large curve in the classes, but if you are pre-dental, this is not as much of a problem. One of my friends is pre-dental (or pre-med, i can never remember), and she told me that during a large presentation about the pre-dental (possibly med) program, the head of the program explicitly told them that dental (or med) schools know about the lower GPA at BU and take that into consideration when looking at applicants. Don’t let something like lower average GPAs at BU discourage you from going!</p>