Asking a prof to bump up a grade

[Quester]

I never asked any profs to bump up any of my grades before and I'm debating if should this time.

Basically the prof forgot to scan my final exam scantron so I didn't find out what I got on my final until a couple of days ago. It turns out I just had to get 3 more questions right to go from 3.3 --> 3.7, which is a huge gap. In terms of percentage wise, it's about 2.2% to the overall mark.

Should I even bother asking the prof to bump up the grade? I mean, is 2.2% a bit too much? It's already been two weeks since term two started and he's not my prof anymore.

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[BarcaBest23]

if one class has such an effect on your gpa (3.3-3.7) when you are a ways from having to get paranoid about one grade and just focus on improving the next few months/years until you have to apply. If it really bothers you that much, ask, but be prepared for a surprised look on your professors face since it has been a while and its probably gonna take some extra paperwork on his and your part to get it fixed which I'm sure he/she will be reluctant to do. If you are a freshman/sophomore I would say suck it up and just make sure you are getting that 3.7 from now on.

 

[Quester]

if one class has such an effect on your gpa (3.3-3.7) when you are a ways from having to get paranoid about one grade and just focus on improving the next few months/years until you have to apply. If it really bothers you that much, ask, but be prepared for a surprised look on your professors face since it has been a while and its probably gonna take some extra paperwork on his and your part to get it fixed which I'm sure he/she will be reluctant to do. If you are a freshman/sophomore I would say suck it up and just make sure you are getting that 3.7 from now on.

I don't mean my cGPA will go from 3.3 -->3.7; just this one course specifically.

I'm a junior and I guess that's why I'm more worried.

 

[RogueUnicorn]

doesn't hurt anything except your sense of integrity, i suppose. if you're ok with it, and want to ask, go ahead. if you feel kind of dirty about it (i would) then don't.

 

[gettheleadout]

2.2% overall difference? I just don't think an 87.8% rounds to a 90%, but it's up to you to ask if you think the professor would and you really want to.

 

[mishaS]

I could understand if it was less than 1%, but 2.2%? This thread reminds me of my photography class. Prof asks what grade I want on the last day(no joke), I say an A, she says what about an A-, and I tell her I really want an A, and she says ok.

 

[Mr Hippopotamus]

Surely if you didn't get the points on a multiple choice test, you can't possibly be given the grade. Because you were clearly wrong. It's not really a question of the professor's perspective. If he gives you a few extra points, why shouldn't he give everyone a few extra points? A B+ isn't the end of the world.

 

[Quester]

2.2% overall difference? I just don't think an 87.8% rounds to a 90%, but it's up to you to ask if you think the professor would and you really want to.

Yeah...that's the thing. I feel like 2.2% might be a bit too much to ask. Do you guys think so too?

 

[NickNaylor]

Asking for any grade you didn't earn is too much to ask in my opinion. But if that's how you want to roll - asking people to give you stuff you didn't earn - then hey, no one's stopping you. You certainly wouldn't be the first or the last to do so.

 

[circulus vitios]

I tried that with my organic professor. He curved me from a C- to a B-. I think it was just a 1 letter grade bump so I asked if he could bump me up to a B since I had a 72.7% pre-curve. He shut me down. 👎

 

[alwaysaangel]

Don't. Grade grubbibg is obnoxious. You got the grade you got, just accept it and move on. On the MCAT the difference between a 12 and 13 or 13 and 14 or 14 and 15 comes down to only a couple questions those couple of questions are what differentiate great from awesome. That's how tests work.

 

[alwaysaangel]

Asking for any grade you didn't earn is too much to ask in my opinion. But if that's how you want to roll - asking people to give you stuff you didn't earn - then hey, no one's stopping you. You certainly wouldn't be the first or the last to do so.

I couldn't agree more.

I was in a classically premed major at uc berkeley and had several awesome professors who had learned how to deal with this sort of thing. If you wanted a regrade because you thought you deserved more points they would comply. However, the entire test would be regraded and for every point you got extra they would mark off one somewhere else and you would end up with the same grade or worse depending on how obnoxious you were. They told us this upfront...not too many people bothered them for regrdes...I though it was brilliant.

But we didn't have straight multiple choice exams which is what made their subjectivity possible.

 

[chiapet874]

I couldn't agree more.

I was in a classically premed major at uc berkeley and had several awesome professors who had learned how to deal with this sort of thing. If you wanted a regrade because you thought you deserved more points they would comply. However, the entire test would be regraded and for every point you got extra they would mark off one somewhere else and you would end up with the same grade or worse depending on how obnoxious you were. They told us this upfront...not too many people bothered them for regrdes...I though it was brilliant.

But we didn't have straight multiple choice exams which is what made their subjectivity possible.

Win. But wouldn't it have just been faster/easier for the professors to just say no to the students asking for a bump?

 

[alwaysaangel]

Win. But wouldn't it have just been faster/easier for the professors to just say no to the students asking for a bump?

yeah but if someone found something they could argue as an error the prof would have to check or it could be appealed to the college. So they would fix the 'error' but be more harsh elsewhere.

 

[hopki099]

You got a B+, but you're looking for a 2.2% bump to an A-.

It sounds like you're closer to a B than an A-.

 

[gettheleadout]

From a previous thread on this subject...

...While I agree that in some, maybe a lot of circumstances grade grubbing can make someone seem weak and pathetic, (and they may very well be so) there are exceptions, and a generalization is especially not applicable to this topic. It's easy to say that you get whatever grade you deserve, but what about subjectively graded courses? Why is it your fault that the professor learned bad news mid-grading your class' essays and yours came afterward and he numbly handed out an 85%? (random hypothetical...) Does that mean your work didn't merit a higher grade, or does it just mean that the teacher is human and makes mistakes like everyone else? And who says that student-teacher interaction doesn't apply toward the evaluation of your performance in a course? Much fewer courses are graded strictly off of "did you answer this question correctly" than one would think... Regardless of what the syllabus says, the professor can always bend rules to help out students that they feel genuinely care about what they are spending their time teaching them. A professor is very understandably going to view the grade a student receives as a measure of their performance in the course more holistically than just what percentages they got on tests, etc... and when a student demonstrates active effort to comprehend and master the material (going to office hours, talking to the professor for help, etc...) they'll easily see this as part of the student's performance. Everyone makes a big deal about students expecting an "A for effort" and in the case of someone who makes a solid B and asks for a bump, yeah they clearly didn't put in the work required to get the grade they wanted, so their effort doesn't merit the grade. But in the case of someone who gets an 89.**, who's to say that the teacher can't determine that they deserve an A, based on their numerical performance in the course (which is very close to A level) and the qualitative effort they put in?

Edit: I'm not saying I support the OP in his effort here, I would recommend not asking for such a large bump. I'm just saying that if there is any degree of subjectivity in the grading of a course, I don't think the generalization that "you get the grade you deserve" necessarily applies 100% of the time. In the case that a course is completely based on right/wrong answers on multiple choice tests or something, and there are no errors in consistency or accuracy of grading, I would argue you definitely get the grade you deserve, even if its an 89.9%. Asking for a bump in those circumstances is asking for something you didn't earn. But many classes are not so clear cut.

 

[Elpenor]

Your prof will laugh at you.

I wouldn't even consider asking unless I was < 0.5% away and had some other mitigating circumstance (such as a zero on a quiz i forgot to take or something).

 

[deleted357625]

Do it if you want. Don't listen to anyone saying no. It's your grade, you can always try, it's a 50/50 chance, might as well go for it....

If i were you i def would

 

[Frazier]

So what is new from the last thread on this same exact topic?

 

[Druggernaut]

I was always annoyed by the masses of people who would immediately swarm over the professor after a test to beg for points, and a number of professors clearly felt the same. 2.2% on the final grade is a pretty big jump. If a question on the test was graded wrong or worded in a confusing manner, go ahead and bring it up, but this is well above and beyond that. Let it go.

I've always gone with the mentality that I'm not going to do anything I'd be embarrassed or ashamed about admitting to myself, friends, or anyone else in order to get into medical school. To me, this falls in that category.

 

[ha87]

If there is a legitimate reason for the professor to give you those points, ask for them. If there is no reason other than you need the grade boost, I'd say don't waste your/his time.

Additionally, I've seen many instances where 3 questions is more than enough to distinguish an A- from a B+. On our Anat/phys exams (50 questions, 100 points) for example, >3 questions wrong and you didn't get the A, >5 and you didn't get the A-. In those cases you just have to work harder to get the A/A-. There will always be cases where you get the grade bump / testing luck, but if you are really serious about med school you have to put in the work so that you do well no matter what.

 

[bixbyn]

I currently work as a research assistant for a professor who has to deflect these kinds of requests with shocking frequency, and I can tell you that this will most likely not help your cause. If you're determined to go ahead a request a reevaluation, at least pretend (out of respect for your professor) to be concerned about your comprehension of the course content, rather than the grade.
You took a multiple choice test and got the grade that you earned. The class is over and it would probably be more helpful to you in the long run to focus on the classes you're taking now.

Sincerely,
Research minion who is 2 weeks behind on a project due to boss taking time to politely (he's Canadian) explain to students why he won't bump their grades on the final, even though they didn't do as well as they wanted to.

 

[Doubtnichts]

If there is a legitimate reason for the professor to give you those points, ask for them. If there is no reason other than you need the grade boost, I'd say don't waste your/his time.

👍

I can understand if you feel like the professor made a mistake or you don't understand why you got a particular question wrong. But when you clearly deserved the grade you got and are simply asking for a better one...I think that's petty and shameful. I really wouldn't be able to have any pride in my grades if I did that.

 

[ModernAlchemist]

I have a friend who worked hard in undergrad to get a 4.0. Sometimes professors would try to give him an A- or B+. He would complain to them and they would be angry but often times bumped it up so they wouldn't have to deal with it. If that didn't work, he went to the ombudsman a few times to complain about racial discrimination... he was white... and it worked. Long story short, he got his 4.0 and now is in the top of his business school class at a top school.

If you tried that as a premed at my school, you would get dominated, though. I remember one kid trying to grade grub for 2 questions. The professor said, "Fine I'll regrade the whole thing". He knocked the guy down from a B+ to a C+. I never did it unless I was clearly deserving of the higher grade. Good luck with your decision.

 

[StudyShy]

I don't think that I would have the guts to ask for a higher grade.

 

[circulus vitios]

I don't think that I would have the guts to ask for a higher grade.

I did it over e-mail.

I probably could have made a case for a higher grade, too, since he didn't follow the syllabus (only 4 online quizzes when we were supposed to have 10, one of which crashed on me and gave me a 40%.) Then I realized how stupid it would be when he's the only organic professor in my school.

 

[StudyShy]

I did it over e-mail.

I probably could have made a case for a higher grade, too, since he didn't follow the syllabus (only 4 online quizzes when we were supposed to have 10, one of which crashed on me and gave me a 40%.) Then I realized how stupid it would be when he's the only organic professor in my school.

I maybe could muster the balls to send an e-mail.

 

[QuizzicalApe]

brb, gonna go to my student affairs office to ask for my MD

could be a time saver

 

[apumic]

I never asked any profs to bump up any of my grades before and I'm debating if should this time.

Basically the prof forgot to scan my final exam scantron so I didn't find out what I got on my final until a couple of days ago. It turns out I just had to get 3 more questions right to go from 3.3 --> 3.7, which is a huge gap. In terms of percentage wise, it's about 2.2% to the overall mark.

Should I even bother asking the prof to bump up the grade? I mean, is 2.2% a bit too much? It's already been two weeks since term two started and he's not my prof anymore.

Don't. Assuming you have some respect for yourself. Grade-grubbers are the scum of academia. Honestly -- my solution to your situation if I had a student do what you're asking for (and was tenured): tell you to go away and I'd consider changing your grade. Then I'd flip a coin: heads, I leave your grade as-is, tails, I DROP you 5% points! And laugh.

Grade-grubbers are obnoxious. Their behavior is pointless (it doesn't do much for their grades, does nothing or even "negative work" on their intellect, and just p*sses off the people they're going to need for recommendations later). And they're NOT going to be well-adapted for the real-world, where your evaluations actually mean something and "grade-grubbing" on an eval (or review) is...laughable...and probably won't get you a promotion (might get you fired for insubordination, though).

 

[ILikeDrugs]

I'll put it this way. If I was ever in a position where I could only save one of two people whose life was in danger, someone who never asked for a grade bump and someone who asks for grade bumps, I would save the life of the person who never asked for a grade bump. 😉

 

[gettheleadout]

Don't. Assuming you have some respect for yourself. Grade-grubbers are the scum of academia. Honestly -- my solution to your situation if I had a student do what you're asking for (and was tenured): tell you to go away and I'd consider changing your grade. Then I'd flip a coin: heads, I leave your grade as-is, tails, I DROP you 5% points! And laugh.

Grade-grubbers are obnoxious. Their behavior is pointless (it doesn't do much for their grades, does nothing or even "negative work" on their intellect, and just p*sses off the people they're going to need for recommendations later). And they're NOT going to be well-adapted for the real-world, where your evaluations actually mean something and "grade-grubbing" on an eval (or review) is...laughable...and probably won't get you a promotion (might get you fired for insubordination, though).

I'm assuming your saying if you were teaching an entirely objectively graded course, right? The problem with statements like these is they come off as generalizing anyone who questions a grade as a "grade grubber," when that's not always the case. Example: Final paper in class determines A/B or B/C for you in the class. When you get your paper back, you have a C on the paper, and now a C in the class. However, there are no annotations on this paper, though the professor usually does so. It is understandable that in the rush to grade all the final papers before grades are due, the professor simply assigned grades without much thought, only briefly reading essays. You feel that your paper was deserving of a higher grade, and go see your professor, asking him/her why you got a C and what was wrong with your paper, mentioning that you thought it was some of your best work. The professor rereads the paper and notices some overarching theme or something in the details and agrees that the paper is better than C quality, regrading it with a A/B. That is NOT "grade grubbing" in my book. For the record, that has not happened to me, but I can't imagine it being that uncommon.

 

[Godric]

I'm assuming your saying if you were teaching an entirely objectively graded course, right? The problem with statements like these is they come off as generalizing anyone who questions a grade as a "grade grubber," when that's not always the case. Example: Final paper in class determines A/B or B/C for you in the class. When you get your paper back, you have a C on the paper, and now a C in the class. However, there are no annotations on this paper, though the professor usually does so. It is understandable that in the rush to grade all the final papers before grades are due, the professor simply assigned grades without much thought, only briefly reading essays. You feel that your paper was deserving of a higher grade, and go see your professor, asking him/her why you got a C and what was wrong with your paper, mentioning that you thought it was some of your best work. The professor rereads the paper and notices some overarching theme or something in the details and agrees that the paper is better than C quality, regrading it with a A/B. That is NOT "grade grubbing" in my book. For the record, that has not happened to me, but I can't imagine it being that uncommon.

That happened to me in Comp 101, however it wasn't a final paper, but a midterm. I wrote what I thought to be a good paper, arguing for my statement quite well. Only to receive a C+, I went to my Profs office hours, kindly asked him to explain how I could improve and maybe show me what I did wrong, and maybe if I could point out to him what I was trying to guide him in reading, and I must admit I was fortunate to have him because he listened to me and he re-read my paper and said he understood what I was arguing for, and gave me pointers for the final. And I got a B+/A- 🙂
But in all honesty I doubt going back to a Prof would help you for a final.

I tried that with my organic professor. He curved me from a C- to a B-. I think it was just a 1 letter grade bump so I asked if he could bump me up to a B since I had a 72.7% pre-curve. He shut me down. 👎

I was 6 points away from a B+ in Orgo, I got a B. I got my final, I made dumb mistakes, I thought I found 2 problems I could get points back on. One of them I got shut down bc of a reasoning due to acid/base (but my mech. was right, like dead on) the other question was just stupidity, it was IUPAC naming, I got it named right but I forgot to alphabetize it, lol my Prof had 3 versions of the right name but in differ alphabetical order. If I could have gotten anyone of those right I could have gotten a B+ 🙁
Its ok though, I shouldn't have to rely on a mere 6 points for my grade, learned my lesson, that I need to secure my grade next time. I'd advise you to do the same, because most profs wont budge on a grade.

 

[McPoyle]

You should ask cause you clearly deserve the grade bump, actually earning the grade is for the common folk, you though, you my friend are special.

 

[apumic]

I'm assuming your saying if you were teaching an entirely objectively graded course, right? The problem with statements like these is they come off as generalizing anyone who questions a grade as a "grade grubber," when that's not always the case. Example: Final paper in class determines A/B or B/C for you in the class. When you get your paper back, you have a C on the paper, and now a C in the class. However, there are no annotations on this paper, though the professor usually does so. It is understandable that in the rush to grade all the final papers before grades are due, the professor simply assigned grades without much thought, only briefly reading essays. You feel that your paper was deserving of a higher grade, and go see your professor, asking him/her why you got a C and what was wrong with your paper, mentioning that you thought it was some of your best work. The professor rereads the paper and notices some overarching theme or something in the details and agrees that the paper is better than C quality, regrading it with a A/B. That is NOT "grade grubbing" in my book. For the record, that has not happened to me, but I can't imagine it being that uncommon.

Sure. And I have given students back points when they can make a good argument as to why they have earned them; however, I've also had students that I gave back a few petty points just to get them out of my face when, in fact, the number of pts I gave back is essentially meaningless because of the weighting scheme of the course. The net effect is that the student gets nothing of value from the grubbing but does lose both my respect and that of the other faculty with whom I work (because students who do this kind of thing chronically do come up in discussions with more senior faculty).

Honestly, though, the difference between an A paper, a B paper, and a C paper in most classes becomes quite evident. It's like the difference on the MCAT WS between a J, an O, and a T. Sure, the gradations may be subtle when we go for detail but the overall difference in papers of different letter grades is usually quite striking.