<p>I realize this is the engineering forum, but given the differences in majors this seemed to be the best place to post.</p>
<p>I recently got a final grade back for one of my classes. I ended up getting a B+ which is lower than i was expecting, however we only know about 50% of our grades from the class(which is a problem in its self). The issue is a large portion of our grade was a team project, for which all members of the team should have gotten the same grade(and even if we didn't, myself and another individual would have gotten the most points on the team). The problem now is that speaking with another member of the team i know they received an A in the class. All of the grades that have been released where virtually identical between myself and this individual. The grades that we never got back(team project, homeworks, and a 3rd exam) should not make a difference such as that, considering the team project and homeworks where worked on together and the grades should be the same. The 3rd exam is the only thing open, though it is only 12% of our grade. I know i did not TANK the 3rd exam, and even on the off chance that the other individual did significantly better than me on the 3rd exam it should not have made such a large difference in our overall grades.</p>
<p>Now the issue is the professor is difficult to get in contact with, as he rarely responds to emails and given that the semester is over i do not know when he is in his office. I have emailed him and am currently waiting for a response. Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>My advice is to not really expect a reply. I would be surprised if the professor responds unless you have a very good reason why you should have gotten an A. He/she probably sees a dozen similar emails after each semester, all thinking they deserved better. Consider that with the exam being 12% of your final grade, an 8% swing on the exam could give you a 1% swing in you final grade. You wouldn’t have to tank that exam or do significantly worse than your friend, just several percent worse. Unless you have some real sense that you got short handed, I wouldn’t even bother.</p>
<p>Yeah this is extremely frustrating. When i said A i meant 93%+(should have been more specific), so the exam would have been at least a 24% difference. Also I agree there is a low probability of a flaw(though he is EXTREMELY disorganized). The fact that a professor can basically leave you in the dark for a majority of the semester then give you a grade significantly lower than another individual with the same scores without consequence is annoying to say the least.</p>
<p>Are you a freshman? Professors ought to let you know periodically how you are doing, but there are a very large number who are bad about it. The thing is, they are doing a million things at once and teaching is only one thing on their plate. Many just put grading in a timely manner pretty low on their priority list. There isn’t much you can do about it. The bottom line is that a B isn’t going to kill you, especially a B+ if your school gives a different GPA for +/- grades.</p>
<p>I’d still ask if I were you. I’ve attended two semesters of college so far, and so far both semesters I had a B that, when I asked, turned out to be misgraded. The first semester I had professor misread an exam score of 101 as 61, and the second semester the professor forgot to add my extra credit points.</p>
<p>If you want to get results, phrase your request something like “I was surprised that I got a B, since I thought I was firmly in A territory. Did I do poorly on exam three? I’m trying to figure out where I went wrong”. This isn’t accusatory, nor does it make you look like one of those students who beg for a better grade, but it does prompt the professor to explain the grade in more detail, at which point you can catch if an error was made.</p>
<p>Email professor asking for some time to sit down with him to explain why you got a B. Give him a 2-4 weeks to respond. If he doesn’t respond, email the department head. Remember, this is about why you got a B, you need to make sure you find out. Find out where you messed up, fix it, and move on. You pay your professor’s salary, not the other way around. If nobody will respond to you, there should be a procedure in place to appeal your grade. Let your professor/department explain to the committee why they didn’t have time to respond to your email. Again, you are paying for this class, you have the right to know why you got a B.</p>
<p>One last thing, which is a bit of a tough pill to swallow. Don’t do anything that your academic career can’t handle. I’ve kept my mouth shut once or twice in an effort to not burn bridges I might need to cross eventually. Check the syllabus, check the catalog and know exactly what the procedures are.</p>
<p>Do NOT email the department head if you ever want that professor to respect you in either way. Going over someone’s head is a good way to **** them off.</p>
<p>The sad thing is no, i am currently a senior. This was a senior level course with roughly 20 students. The problem with the situation for me is not that I got a B+ but that another individual with virtually the same work received an A. I understand professors are more likely to curve someone who always goes to class etc…, but the reality is I am the student who always goes to class and asks questions about HW or whatever it may be.</p>
<p>You don’t pay professors to give you a grade; you are paying them to teach the material. Going over their head will just make them less likely to hear you out. You are better off approaching the situation asking about mistakes you made and improvement since you thought you had the subject down better. Approach it like you want to learn something, not like you want a better grade.</p>
<p>Teaching, as you mentioned, is just one of the many things you pay a teacher for, as is explaining your grade. Maybe his school has some bizarre policy that states teachers aren’t required to explain grades, but that is unlikely. If your teacher isn’t performing their job, then you need to email the department head. If a teacher didn’t show up to class for a week, would you still suggest not emailing the department head so you don’t risk the teacher not respecting you? This is absurd, 4 weeks is plenty of time for a teacher to respond to an email, if only to say they are really busy and can find time next semester. I’ve never once advocated him try to change his grade, but he needs to find out where he messed up so he won’t repeat the same mistake. “Not bothering” with it is just like saying it isn’t good to learn from your mistakes.</p>
<p>Last year our D got an 85 in an CH engineering class. At the end of the semester the Prof “scaled down” the grades because too many students did well. She got a B-. What a kick in the a$$ especially at $56k per year. She went to see him about it but to no avail. At least she said her piece you should too! good luck.</p>
<p>1) Do not put too much emphasis on the grade. It is a good grade and will not ruin your life or prevent you from getting your dream job or any such thing.</p>
<p>2) You rarely get what you don’t ask for. Explain to your Prof, in a nicely worded email, what you explained above and see what happens. End the email with flattery, stating how much you enjoyed the class and greatly appreciated the rigor and discipline with which the course was taught. Also state that you hope to take more classes from him/her… Expect no reply, but at least you asked.</p>
<p>Move on, try hard, learn as much as you can… Have a good time.</p>