Does Cornell deflate grades?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
21

<p>First of all, I like you norcalguy.</p>

<p>Second of all, yeah, the slow cap, it's tough, and it's what I call a selection process. If you can't hack it, you're not M.D. material. My friend's father graduated from a CUNY college (you guys know SUNY, in New York CITY, we have CUNY) with a 2.something because he bombed all his lab classes because he thought they were pointless and pedantic. He annihilated his medcats with astronomical scores. He ended up being denied by all his med schools in his 1st round of applications but then on a stroke of luck, Rutgers granted him an interview on his 2nd round. He blew them away when he visited and they accepted him. He's currently a board certified neurologist and well-ranked in NYC in his field. GPA is not the only battle, but it is one of the important ones.</p>

22

<p>One only has to look at the median grade reports to see that there are plenty of GPA-padders on the course roster.</p>

<p>That said, you shouldn't choose majors simply because it's easy. I'm a bio major and wouldn't have it any other way. My non-science GPA is 4.0+ while my science GPA's only 3.8 but it's worth it me to sacrifice a little of my GPA to major in something I'm actually interested in for 4 years of college. </p>

<p>I've actually talked to you, slowclap, over both PM and AIM and you're a nice guy but I think you've acquired the "bball syndrome" where you start regretting your choice of school before you even attend. No one knows how well you will do but it's best to come to Cornell with an optimistic attitude.</p>

23

<p>According to <a href="http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/archives/10436%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/archives/10436&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>So why do people keep hearing the otherwise? I think because the grade deflation apply to the science/engineering classes and those science/engineering majors cry about it LOUD to other people while the non science/engineering people <em>quietly</em> enjoy the grade inflation. Few people would acknowlege they get good grades because the curve is easy but people would cry about tough curves to justify how they are smarter than their grades suggest and how they should deserve better grades.</p>

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<p>that article doesn't say classes are getting any easier ... it says that students are picking easier classes for electives to boost their GPA's. </p>

<p>Note to incomming students: work hard, that's most important. Dont worry about being screwed out of a grade in a class due to grade deflation. Worry more about doing you very best and putting alot of time and effort into it. I think that the chance of a person bombing a class due to lack of effort is much more likely than the chance of somebody bombing a class due to grade deflation.</p>

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<p>I agree with that gomestar.</p>

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<p>Sorry about my pessimism everyone, I guess I should try to fix that. I think I'm just a little nervous with all this talk about grade deflation at Cornell.</p>

<p>If med schools do in fact adjust the gpa to match the school's difficulty then there really is nothing to worry about, right?</p>

27

<p>gomestar,</p>

<p>The average is for overall average, not just for the easy electives. It's not like you can pull your GPA up to 3.3 by getting As in a few electives if you have bombed most of your major/required classes since electives usually account for only a small fraction of all your classes.</p>

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<p>theslowclap, that's what I'm hoping ;)</p>

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<p>I hate to break it to you, theslowclap, but I honestly don't think that med schools recalibrate Cornell GPAs. Cornell has a longstanding reputation for grade deflation in the sciences and I assume that this produces some leniency in how your GPA will be considered by med schools but the truth is med schools don't care where you went for undergrad.</p>

30

<p>i know what the article is saying, it seems to be brought up everytime somebody talks about Cornell and grade deflation. </p>

<p>I agree - you cannot save a 2.1 by taking easy electives. However, the article isn't suggesting a dramatic increase in overall grades ... it would be entirely possible to raise your grade from a 3.1 to a 3.3 by trying to throw in a bunch of easier electives.</p>

31

<p>Read the report for youself: <a href="http://www.arts.cornell.edu/econ/azussman/quest.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.arts.cornell.edu/econ/azussman/quest.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>
[quote]
In our examination of course selection and grade inflation, we employ a large dataset containing student grades in courses taken at Cornell’s College of Arts and Sciences in the period 1990-2004. Our analysis shows that prior to the online publication of grades course enrollment was not sensitive to past median grades; the two variables have become positively and significantly correlated since then. As predicted by our model we find that the most talented students tend to be less drawn to leniently graded courses than their peers. We then show that the change in students’ behavior following the online publication of grades may have contributed to grade inflation, a decrease in the information content of grades, and an increased bias in the ranking of graduating students.</p>

<p>Grade inflation is a subject of concern in the academic world. Over the past few decades students’ grades have increased considerably in many institutions of higher-education, most notably in the Ivy League. Since grades are bounded from above, grade inflation is accompanied by a compression of grades at the top. The resultant reduction in the information content of grades is a major cost of grade inflation.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>The report only examined the students in the College of Arts and Sciences. It notes that "the most talented students tend to be less drawn to leniently graded courses than their peers". The GPA increase noted was from 3.11 to 3.34 GPA from 1990 to 2004. Their concern about "Grade Compression" was that its made the sorting function of Grades less meaningful.</p>

<p>Here's the Actual Grade Listings : <a href="http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/Student/mediangradesA.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/Student/mediangradesA.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The rationale behind posting median grades
[quote]
Rationale</p>

<p>Students will get a more accurate idea of their performance, and they will be assured that users of the transcript will also have this knowledge. A grade of B- in a course of substantial enrollment in which the median was C+ will often indicate a stronger performance than, e.g., a B+ in a large course in which the median is A. More accurate recognition of performance may encourage students to take courses in which the median grade is relatively low.</p>

<p>Outside users of the transcript will have more information on which to base their assessment of a student's performance in his or her courses.

[/quote]
<a href="http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/Student/mediangrades.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/Student/mediangrades.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Apparently the Faculty expect that users of the transcript (Grad Schools) will take the time to see the difference in the "value" of the grades by seeing the median class grade and class size listed on the transcript along with the grade the student received. </p>

<p>But employers are less likely to examine or care about this level of detail, if they even bother to ask to see a transcript.
The Students Major and GPA is all they would be looking at.</p>

32

<p>gomestar,</p>

<p>I am not really clear what your point is. Do you agree Cornell has grade inflation?</p>

<p>According to
<a href="http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/St...iangradesA.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://registrar.sas.cornell.edu/St...iangradesA.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>It's pretty clear to me there's a grade inflation across many classes, not just some baby courses/electives. That's in agreement with what norcalguy has experienced. Even the science/engineering aren't all that deflated after all. Or am I misreading something? I was a chemE major at a school known for grade inflation but the grades given by Cornell chemE dept are definitely better. For example, chemE thermo was a weeder class when I took it but at Cornell, the median is B+. </p>

<p>The point is there seems to be no need to fear Cornell. It's not as inflated as Harvard but it's much better than many think.</p>

33

<p>i dont believe that Cornell is grade deflated nor inflated ... it's still hard no matter what. I think that the overall student body quality has been increasing, and as a result grades have gone up a pinch. Those that work hard are rewarded with good grades (as it should be). </p>

<p>Even if the median grade in a class is B+ this doesn't mean it's an easy class. You may very well have to work your butt off to even get a B, sometimes it's alot about how well the other students in yoru class are doing. If they're working nonstop, they'll get the A's and you'll be stuck with a C: it's all relative.</p>

<p>I agree that people shouldn't fear Cornell, but i'd also like to say that getting a 4.0 will be alot of hard work for the average Cornell student.</p>