How do you guys "question" a professor about a grade?

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Tennis Guy

Tennis Guy

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So, I got an A- in one of my classes, and I'm really pleased with it. However, I calculated my grade myself and added up all of the extra credit and it seemed to equal a flat A. So, I called my professor about this situation (he gave me his cell phone number at the beginning of the semester) and he told me that he calculated all of our grades and added the extra credit correctly and fairly. He also said that he would have given me a flat A, if that's what the numbers equaled and supposedly they didn't. Maybe he counted the extra credit differently from what I thought? I accepted his honesty, but I guess that it still bothers me that maybe I wasn't able to explain myself as well over the phone as opposed to an e-mail.
I didn't want to send him an e-mail and question him further after this because I thought it would make myself look really bad. He also knows two of my uncles, and I see him quite regularly. I guess that I should forget about this, be satisfied, and move on right? For future reference, I was wondering if me calling him about this was a bad idea, even though I know him well? I guess e-mailing or talking to the professor face to face in his office about "these matters" is the best thing to do? I'm happy with the grade and I'm not whining or anything, but this issue keeps nagging at me and I need some advice... 🙂.
 
In that situation, I think you should've talked to him in person in his office and brought something to show your calculations with you, thought email probably would've worked better too.
 
Tennis Guy said:
So, I got an A- in one of my classes, and I'm really pleased with it. However, I calculated my grade myself and added up all of the extra credit and it seemed to equal a flat A. So, I called my professor about this situation (he gave me his cell phone number at the beginning of the semester) and he told me that he calculated all of our grades and added the extra credit correctly and fairly. He also said that he would have given me a flat A, if that's what the numbers equaled and supposedly they didn't. Maybe he counted the extra credit differently from what I thought? I accepted his honesty, but I guess that it still bothers me that maybe I wasn't able to explain myself as well over the phone as opposed to an e-mail.
I didn't want to send him an e-mail and question him further after this because I thought it would make myself look really bad. He also knows two of my uncles, and I see him quite regularly. I guess that I should forget about this, be satisfied, and move on right? For future reference, I was wondering if me calling him about this was a bad idea, even though I know him well? I guess e-mailing or talking to the professor face to face in his office about "these matters" is the best thing to do? I'm happy with the grade and I'm not whining or anything, but this issue keeps nagging at me and I need some advice... 🙂.
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What the hell? You called a professor's cell phone?

Get real man. If this is a real scenario, which I'm not convinced that it is, then the proper etiquite is to double check your calculations then send them over email or present in person to the prof.
 
LOL Why would you do that 👎

Stuff like this is always best handled in person. But grade grubbing looks so bad that it's better to live with an A-.
 
Tennis, I am in the EXACT position as you. I have an A- in the class and I thought that, from the way the professor explained the EC, that I would easily get an A even if I bomb the final.

I do feel like a complete douche bag for haggling with the professor because my grade is still high. It just sucks when you expect something to be concrete and things don't work out. I'm still waiting for a reply back, I'll let you know how it goes 😀. But you really should have just popped the professor an email or just spoken to him in his office. Calling just seems kind of weird.
 
one of the big drawbacks of calling him is that you might have caught him at a moment where he was busy and wasn't prepared to answer your questions (ie eating in a restaurant or something).

btw, what was the reason he gave you his cell phone number? if someone who wasn't in the same peer group as me gave me their cell phone number for a specific reason, I would be more reserved in calling them.
 
I wasn't successful. I guess the EC weighed differently...I probably should have studied for the final lol.
 
MrCheetah said:
What the hell? You called a professor's cell phone?

Get real man. If this is a real scenario, which I'm not convinced that it is, then the proper etiquite is to double check your calculations then send them over email or present in person to the prof.
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Yea, I know... it wasn't really a smart idea or proper etiquette now that I think about it. This is a real scenario lol... I know that it's kind of hard to believe. This class had only about twenty people or so in it, so it was quite small. I really should have e-mailed him and to even attempt to ask about it now in an e-mail I'm sure would put me in a bad light. So, should I just forget about this and move on? 😕 I usually e-mail my professors about these matters. It was a bad decision to ask about it over the phone. I have his cell phone number because he actually encouraged the class to call him, if we had any questions or needed help understanding something in class. He's a part time instructor, so he doesn't really have office hours.
 
The hell...? Cell phone? Email?
If it were me I'd print out the grade with all scores, calculate the math in legible ink, then meet with the professor the first chance I got and request an explanation.

Happy with an A-?
Man up. If you feel your grade has been calculated incorrectly, then you're entitled to a review/explanation.
 
Kind of hard to "man up" when the profs already been generous enough to give you extra credit. You called, he said even with extra credit it's an A-, game over move on. It could be worse
 
Tennis Guy, go ahead and e-mail him. In my Intro Bio class at a Top 5 school, I received a B+ and was shocked. So I went to one of the TAs and they found a mistake in the calculations as they explained how they determined my grade, so they gave me a A-. I was pleased with it as you seem to be because it let me get Dean's List and an A- is pretty good anyway. But then I looked at the final exam key and regraded a lot of questions that showed my knowledge but I didn't receive credit for, and I sent an e-mail to the same TA asking for a regrade. She quickly responded and said that my regrade probably wouldn't change my grade. I said to follow through with it anyway, but she didn't respond after three days. So I sent another e-mail, and she responded this time...acknowledging that I should have received more points and that these points would change my grade further. So I went from a B+ to an A- to an A because of my persistence. It changed my GPA for this semester from a 3.66 to a 3.97, huge difference because the Bio class had a lab portion integrated in too.

Bottom line: I'm sure you worked hard all semester and studied a lot, so don't give up now. All you have to do is e-mail him respectfully saying you don't understand why you did not get an A.
 
Yo should meet the professor and ask one on one. It shows you care about the class and your grade. Email may not do it. Meet the professor during office hours.
 
"I'm happy with the grade and I'm not whining or anything, but this issue keeps nagging at me and I need some advice..."

This is exactly how I felt. Happy but still lingering in my head. Contacting him will relieve you: you will either get the higher grade or know that you got the grade you deserved.

I'd still say e-mail because you show your calculations clearly.
 
I'm sorry, but what professor hands out his cell phone number?
 
A biology professor miscalculated my grade this past semester. When I was looking over my final grades, I had a B when it should have been an A. I emailed her with no response and after a few days she wrote back stating that she changed the grade. Apparently, she didn't do it correctly and I had to contact her again and the school directly to actually have it changed. The first email I sent included the calculations and politely asked if I was the one calculating it wrong. It wasn't awkward, just a pain to have it officially changed.
 
You should be happy that you took a class that offered extra credit. Seriously, there are colleges that allow extra credit work? What would your grade have been without the extra credit? If it was less than your A-, I would say move on.
 
Kaustikos said:
I'm sorry, but what professor hands out his cell phone number?
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Two of my professors gave us their numbers, it happens

OP I had the same problem and from experience you should

A: take your calculations to him in person (best option)

B: email him your calculations

you shouldn't shy away from the grade you earned and of coarse its nagging you because you again earned an A not A-
 
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You should show up at his house around 3 AM with a half empty bottle of Jack Daniels or Johnnie Walker in your hand screaming that you wanna discuss your grade in his class..

Worked for me, three times now. :meanie:
 
Jesus, now I remember why I don't like premeds.
 
When I called him, it was about two weeks ago. So, if I decided to e-mail him wouldn't this still be kind of awkward? I can't meet him in his office because he really doesn't have an office of his own. He's a part time instructor. I've waited kind of long to bring this up, and as you guys can see I'm kind of perplexed on what to do... 😕 I could always talk with/e-mail the other section instructor of the class because he might have my grade as well. It might be better than talking to my professor again about this...
 
Tennis Guy said:
When I called him, it was about two weeks ago. So, if I decided to e-mail him wouldn't this still be kind of awkward? I can't meet him in his office because he really doesn't have an office of his own. He's a part time instructor. I've waited kind of long to bring this up, and as you guys can see I'm kind of perplexed on what to do... 😕 I could always talk with/e-mail the other section instructor of the class because he might have my grade as well. It might be better than talking to my professor again about this...
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Kid, you got an A-. What are you going to do when you have to deal with a real honest to god problem in your life. And you will, and it will be alot worse, than an A-. Just get a good nights sleep and go for a run in the morning. And enjoy the sunshine, or even the rain. Seriously. Inhale and exhale. You are losing perspective.
 
I would just be really polite about it, go to his office and bring all your assignments and exams. After that, take a chill pill. You got an A- dude.
 
searun said:
Kid, you got an A-. What are you going to do when you have to deal with a real honest to god problem in your life. And you will, and it will be alot worse, than an A-. Just get a good nights sleep and go for a run in the morning. And enjoy the sunshine, or even the rain. Seriously. Inhale and exhale. You are losing perspective.
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Lol... you're absolutely right... I really have lost perspective and there will be greater issues/problems to deal with in the future besides this. I just hate this aspect of being pre-med though... you always have to worry about getting the best grade. You're right an A- is a really great grade, and I should be satisfied. I'll probably end up just accepting the grade and not pursuing/worrying about this further... because it seems kind of late to bring it up now and I really don't want my professor to have an unfavorable view of me.
 
Why does this matter? AMCAS does not see +'s and -'s.
 
I understand where you are coming from. If it were me, the grade would not bug me, the fact that the grade was not what it should be would be what bugged me..

Anyways, I say let it go. If it were in the B range I would say go ahead and try one more time. Like someone else said, the extra cred probably already bumped your grade, so think of it like this; without that extra credit, you would probably be at an A- anyways, so it all worked out.

I would not feel too bad about calling if the professor specifically told you to call with any questions and gave you the number. He or she should not have said that if he/she did not mean it.
 
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Lakerfan4life said:
Tennis Guy, go ahead and e-mail him. In my Intro Bio class at a Top 5 school, I received a B+ and was shocked. So I went to one of the TAs and they found a mistake in the calculations as they explained how they determined my grade, so they gave me a A-. I was pleased with it as you seem to be because it let me get Dean's List and an A- is pretty good anyway. But then I looked at the final exam key and regraded a lot of questions that showed my knowledge but I didn't receive credit for, and I sent an e-mail to the same TA asking for a regrade. She quickly responded and said that my regrade probably wouldn't change my grade. I said to follow through with it anyway, but she didn't respond after three days. So I sent another e-mail, and she responded this time...acknowledging that I should have received more points and that these points would change my grade further. So I went from a B+ to an A- to an A because of my persistence. It changed my GPA for this semester from a 3.66 to a 3.97, huge difference because the Bio class had a lab portion integrated in too.

Bottom line: I'm sure you worked hard all semester and studied a lot, so don't give up now. All you have to do is e-mail him respectfully saying you don't understand why you did not get an A.
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seriously? this just makes you sound like a whiny douche, no offense. It would also explain why, a few days after every test i take, the reported mean jumps about 5-10 pts when i check my grades.
 
mmmcdowe said:
If only that were true. AMCAS only does not see A+s. They are quite content with the rest.
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Does an A+ appear as an A when AMCAS views the course grade? Or do you mean that they don't "see"/value an A+ as higher than a 4.0, but they see literally see an A+ on the transcript?
 
jack_bauer_torture090408010504_515x343.jpg












PreMedder said:
Does an A+ appear as an A when AMCAS views the course grade? Or do you mean that they don't "see"/value an A+ as higher than a 4.0, but they see literally see an A+ on the transcript?
Click to expand...

AMCAS converts the A+ to an A, but does not have the same blindness to those of us with A-'s.
 
I think it would be reasonable to talk to the professor about it in person. Students should get the grades they earned. Make sure to bring along your calculations so that, if they're wrong, he can see what you're talking about and, if you're wrong, he can point out where. One thing I can't stress enough, though, is to be polite and don't get rude if you disagree. Certainly don't start off with an argumentative tone like "You gave me an A- and I think I should have gotten a higher grade." Instead, if you start out the conversation by saying that you understand that your grade calculations might be wrong and you just want to see where your numbers are different, it will probably set up a much better conversation!
 
PreMedder said:
Does an A+ appear as an A when AMCAS views the course grade? Or do you mean that they don't "see"/value an A+ as higher than a 4.0, but they see literally see an A+ on the transcript?
Click to expand...
I think they see an A, but not 100% sure.
 
Tennis Guy said:
So, I got an A- in one of my classes, and I'm really pleased with it. However, I calculated my grade myself and added up all of the extra credit and it seemed to equal a flat A. So, I called my professor about this situation (he gave me his cell phone number at the beginning of the semester) and he told me that he calculated all of our grades and added the extra credit correctly and fairly. He also said that he would have given me a flat A, if that's what the numbers equaled and supposedly they didn't. Maybe he counted the extra credit differently from what I thought? I accepted his honesty, but I guess that it still bothers me that maybe I wasn't able to explain myself as well over the phone as opposed to an e-mail.
I didn't want to send him an e-mail and question him further after this because I thought it would make myself look really bad. He also knows two of my uncles, and I see him quite regularly. I guess that I should forget about this, be satisfied, and move on right? For future reference, I was wondering if me calling him about this was a bad idea, even though I know him well? I guess e-mailing or talking to the professor face to face in his office about "these matters" is the best thing to do? I'm happy with the grade and I'm not whining or anything, but this issue keeps nagging at me and I need some advice... 🙂.
Click to expand...

yeah always deal with those issues in person ready to discuss how you arrived at your score.

lesson learned...just keep moving...you'll be fine
 
shouldvestudied said:
You should be happy that you took a class that offered extra credit. Seriously, there are colleges that allow extra credit work? What would your grade have been without the extra credit? If it was less than your A-, I would say move on.
Click to expand...

There's no such thing as extra credit. Everybody deals with the same set of rules and in the end you're always ranked against your peers one way or another. More often than not extra credit is something lazy professors throw in there to avoid having to rigorously defend the grades they give out at the end.
 
I learned never to question my grades after 3rd year of college. ever. The higher up you go, the less you ever want to question anything. tiptoe around chaos.
 
Extra credit? Don't talk about extra credit. You kidding me? Extra credit?

But seriously though, in person>emails>phone call.
 
I actually had a chance to talk to a professor immediately after he met with a student who asked for his grade to be raised. He really didn't like the idea of the student confronting him in person, as he thought that put added pressure on him to make the change just to get the student out of his hair.

I'd just email the professor saying you calculated the grade to be an A and ask if he could recalculate it.
 
There's nothing wrong in asking for a grade you earned. Checking to make sure everything was graded/calculated correctly is simply smart, not grade grubbing. It's not like he knows for sure he made an 89 and is going to ask for an A.

Also I think I have cell phones for at least ~10 professors on my phone and have been invited to dinners at their homes before. Different universities have different cultures.
 
Just walk into his office sometime and say something like. "Hi, I was wondering if we could go over my grade from this past semester. I expected it to be higher and I think if you go over the calculation it will help me understand it better."

You know... like a completely normal god damn person.
 
sustentacular said:
Just walk into his office sometime and say something like. "Hi, I was wondering if we could go over my grade from this past semester. I expected it to be higher and I think if you go over the calculation it will help me understand it better."

You know... like a completely normal god damn person.
Click to expand...

👍 my thoughts exactly. i don't know how this scenario presented such a huge problem that warranted so many posts.
 
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