Does NYU medical school have a downward curve like its undergraduate program? How about Cornell?

[Alakazam123]

I have a friend who went to NYU for undergrad, and he told me how there was a downward curve. Another friend went to Cornell for undergrad and there was a downward curve there as well.

Is this downward curve used in their medical programs too?

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[cantankerous]

Every school has a downward curve when you're not getting A's

 

[getdown]

You should talk to the current medical students at those respective schools and ask how their grading scheme is. Some schools are graded, others P/F, etc etc.

 

[Alakazam123]

You should talk to the current medical students at those respective schools and ask how their grading scheme is. Some schools are graded, others P/F, etc etc.

I never understood a P/F system:

1. How do they decide what is considered a pass or a fail?

2. To reach a passing grade is it done based on a downward or upward curve?

Hence my previous question about whether the curve is downward or upward.

I know for a fact that NYU has a P/F system, and Cornell does as well. I just don't know if students are graded on a curve BEFORE being considered passing or failing.

 

[Alakazam123]

Shout out to NYU med students?

 

[Lucca]

I never understood a P/F system:

1. How do they decide what is considered a pass or a fail?

2. To reach a passing grade is it done based on a downward or upward curve?

Hence my previous question about whether the curve is downward or upward.

I know for a fact that NYU has a P/F system, and Cornell does as well. I just don't know if students are graded on a curve BEFORE being considered passing or failing.

P/F is done on a bar clearing basis. I.e. you just jump this high to pass. If you jump that high, you pass. If you don’t, you fail or remediate. If everyone in the class jumps that high, then everyone passes.

 

[Alakazam123]

P/F is done on a bar clearing basis. I.e. you just jump this high to pass. If you jump that high, you pass. If you don’t, you fail or remediate. If everyone in the class jumps that high, then everyone passes.

Is there any sort of a curve, such that your Pass or Fail is awarded after your final curved score is determined? Or is it based on a simple number of questions correct basis?

 

[Lucca]

Is there any sort of a curve, such that your Pass or Fail is awarded after your final curved score is determined? Or is it based on a simple number of questions correct basis?

Sounds like a question to ask an individual school. I can only speak to what my friends at P/F schools have told me but I dont know that much in detail.

Seems like a really, really miniscule thing to worry about though.

 

[Alakazam123]

Sounds like a question to ask an individual school. I can only speak to what my friends at P/F schools have told me but I dont know that much in detail.

Seems like a really, really miniscule thing to worry about though.

It's just that it's harder to do well in a school with a downward curve, as opposed to no curve or upward curve. So, if you get an 85 % and the rest of the class does around the same as you, your score may be reduced.

 

[LizzyM]

I can only speak for one school that cannot be named (to protect my privacy) but the curve is set such that failing is any score >2 standard deviations below the mean and there is a little sliver above that labeled "barely passing" (they have a fancier name for it) so that those who barely passed are notified that they came close to not passing and should know that for next time. Everyone who fails must remediate during the academic year or later (but before boards which come at the end of 2nd year). Also, if a question on the exam turns out to be confusing or poorly worded as evidenced by a large proportion of the class getting it wrong, the question is thrown out and not included when grading the exam.

AFAIK, this has no relationship to anything in the undergraduate colleges of the university.

 

[getdown]

It's just that it's harder to do well in a school with a downward curve, as opposed to no curve or upward curve. So, if you get an 85 % and the rest of the class does around the same as you, your score may be reduced.

You do realize the point of medical school isn't to fail out as many students as possible, it's to produce physicians right? They're not going to put the pass at 85%. It's likely they'll look at the mean scores and go 2 standard deviations below as pass. If you study the material then you should do well. Going to a P/F school doesn't mean you get to just slack off as long as you pass. The information you're learning is going to be used to actually treat patients so it behooves you to know this stuff in order to be a competent physician.

 

[OneTwoThreeFour]

My institution's passing score was either a 70 or 2 standard deviations below the mean (whichever was lower). There is no curving. Honors in the 3rd and 4th year-which is important to mention because it is actually the only grades residency cares about more or less-is typically a certain percentage of the class. You'd have to ask each school what their percentage is (mine was 40% honors, 40% high pass, 20% pass).

 

[ciestar]

I can only speak for one school that cannot be named (to protect my privacy) but the curve is set such that failing is any score >2 standard deviations below the mean and there is a little sliver above that labeled "barely passing" (they have a fancier name for it) so that those who barely passed are notified that they came close to not passing and should know that for next time. Everyone who fails must remediate during the academic year or later (but before boards which come at the end of 2nd year). Also, if a question on the exam turns out to be confusing or poorly worded as evidenced by a large proportion of the class getting it wrong, the question is thrown out and not included when grading the exam.

AFAIK, this has no relationship to anything in the undergraduate colleges of the university.

My institution's passing score was either a 70 or 2 standard deviations below the mean (whichever was lower). There is no curving. Honors in the 3rd and 4th year-which is important to mention because it is actually the only grades residency cares about more or less-is typically a certain percentage of the class. You'd have to ask each school what their percentage is (mine was 40% honors, 40% high pass, 20% pass).

My school does the same things. 70 in general seems to be the cutoff for passing most often.

Of course, they did change it to 73 after my class. But, same deal.