Getting a 4.0

<p>im gonna be a first year at BU this fall. Im taking chem 101, math 121, psych 101 , and WR 100. If I work really hard, is it possible to get all A’s?</p>

<p>Well, considering grade deflation, I'm afraid that you are going to have to do more that just get good grades on tests and homework(because of the deflation). I urge you to really get to know your professors on a personal level, go to their office hours weekly, you know, make a presence. I got an A in math 121 pretty easy though. Good luck this fall!</p>

<p>Yes BU is not the best place to go if you want a 4.0 ;) But it is possible, just very hard.</p>

<p>im taking chem with professor dill, and i heard he is pretty tough. what should i expect from that class? im deffinatley gonna go to office hours for sure. Make the professors know that i really do care about the material. But is Dill really hard?</p>

<p>getting an A at BU is very hard. a lot of people put lots of time into their classes and still get B+'s or A-'s. so getting 4 A's would be extremely difficult, but definitely still possible. not probable, but possible.</p>

<p>Going into any college, I think you have to get yourself used to the fact that you are probably going to come out with an A- or B once in a while. I do not know one person who got all A's this year (I was a freshman), and you have to remember that even an A- is not a 4.0 but a 3.7. What I mean is, BU is a tough school and people know that. Any high grade point average is good, so don't be upset if you don't get a perfect 4.0. I worked way harder in a class I ended up getting a b+ in than I did in a class I got an A in. It is weird. Definitely talk to your professors. Let them know you are putting in time and effort. It really does help.</p>

<p>From a parent's perspective, I can tell you that the current students are correct. Don't sweat it. Do your best. You're at college to learn.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that the vast majority of students at BU are comparable to you in terms of intelligence and ability, yet the average grade given out is still usually a B or a B+ (which also means that there are quite of few kids who receive Cs and Ds...especially in weed-out courses like the introductory science courses). </p>

<p>You'll also find that your ability to get high grades vary with each college, class, professor, subject and TA/TF.</p>

<p>As an alumnus, I can tell you that working hard does pay off. I can also tell you, however, that it's a bit silly to expect to have a 4.0--it's an unreasonable goal and it's rather unnecessary.</p>

<p>i think i have a new writing teacher, her last name is kinraide, I don't know her first name, but I would rather buy the writing books from half.com. For the pocket wadsworth, we need the latest publication correct? My professor for psych 101 hasnt listed the required books, im wondering if I need any?</p>

<p>Not sure why you need a 4.0 As the others said you are in college now and competing with kids with high stats in your range. High achievers in HS are always surprised at any college when they find out that an A in a HS might take twice as much effort in college. No one expects students to pull a 4.0 in college. If you look at GPA averages at THE most competetive Law Schools like Yale, Penn, Harvard, now you are talking the best of their classes at these schools, and still a 3.6 is about average.</p>

<p>Freshman year is often the hardest for grades because kids are adjusting to college and putting effort into creating a new social life. Try and ease up, do your best. If GPA is really important to you then go on ratemyprofessor.com and figure out which classes to take based on the grading described on that site. You really should study what you love though. My S got a B in writing Freshman year and I think it says more about US students writing abilities and lack of preparation then about him. BU insisting on those writing classes ensures that students get that piece early on so their later courses, which always require writing, will be easier to manage.
By the end of his Soph. year S has a 3.7 and that includes taking a few courses that were not near his major, like Spanish, where his grades were not nearly as high as they are for classes that interest him like Reason & Augument.</p>

<p>Why do you want a 4.0 anyway?</p>

<p>im just wondering if its possible.</p>

<p>Well, of course it's possible. There's no rule against someone getting a 4.0.</p>

<p>It's certainly possible to get a 4.0 at BU...but DS doesn't personally know anyone who has done so. His highest GPA for a semester was a 3.8 (and he was thrilled with that). He says his grades are very realistic and he has earned his grades (regardless of what they were!!). His cumulative GPA right now...entering his senior year is 3.59 and he is also quite happy with that.</p>

<p>It's hard to get a 4.0 at schools with tons of grade inflation. It's rare - and meaningless.</p>

<p>boston is known for its grade deflation tho isnt it?</p>

<p>The NYTimes ran an article about this. Some schools have seen the % of A's and B's go through the roof while BU has seen a mild increase - fewer C's but not like Harvard where C's are now rare.</p>

<p>listen, it's great to have goals and shoot high, but stop worrying about it. if you can get a grade and look back on it and say "i did my best and there wasnt anything i couldve done better," then you should be proud of yourself. getting an a in college is much different than getting one in high school. there is grade deflation at BU depending on your class and your professor so you cant avoid it. just chill.</p>

<p>here's the NY Times article about BU grade deflation. and the BU livejournal community's reaction to it.</p>

<p><a href="http://community.livejournal.com/bunite/1252887.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://community.livejournal.com/bunite/1252887.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>i'll personally say that for most BU classes, if you're willing to do the work, it's fairly easy to get a B. most BU students have less classes than other college students. last year, i had 4 classes and one optional gym class each semester. most of my friends in other colleges had 5 or 6 academic classes. we have more time to do our work. spend it wisely.</p>

<p>also, the BU grade deflation subject has been going around for a while. i'd say most grad school admission officers know about it. they all know the value of an A- or A at BU. if you're highly talented and u think just a little extra work will get u those grades, then go for it. take advantage of the fact that A's at BU mean more than at other colleges. there's nothing wrong with setting that goal, but just don't make it an obsession where u start picking each and every class based on the easiness of the professor or where u start sacrificing club time, activity time, and your social life just to stay in and study for a perfect 4.0.</p>

<p>a 4.0 for four years at BU is nearly impossible. when u finally get something lower than a 4.0, you're gonna start wishing u had spent bits of all that study time in other areas rather than in chasing something u can't ever have.</p>

<p>Most schools require 32 classes to graduate, same as BU. Only a few, like Yale, require 36. Brown only requires 30 (!) and they have no distribution or other requirements other than taking enough classes in your concentration. No wonder the school is popular.</p>

<p>While I have managed to get a 4.0 for a single semester, it is pretty rare occurence (not to honk my own horn). I am yet to hear of anyone here who has sustained one for four years, and it seems like it would be more contingent upon the vicissitudes of fortune than actually ability (though both would certainly need to be present!). I know a few students who are smart kids, but who have never managed to get a single full-fledged A. I have also been in a class where NO ONE got an A, though three people got A-'s. </p>

<p>Wow, I hope that doesn't sound too stark.</p>