Lowest class average on an exam that you've ever seen?

BU Medical Sciences
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
passionformed

passionformed

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2012
Messages
240
Reaction score
2
In your experience, what has been the lowest class average for any exam in any of your classes? What class was it?

Personally, I've seen 60. I know that's rather high, but then again, I am a freshman. This was in Gen Chem 2.
Members don't see this ad.
 
20% This was in Gen Chem 1. Not my class, but a class by a professor that I just barely escaped :scared:
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Class average for my organic chemistry I final was a 35%.
 
My first Gen Chem I exam (which was also my first college exam) had a 32% average...
 
~55 on a physics 2 exam.

I may have seen lower but I can't remember.
 
40% was the lowest. It was in cell phys and the prof didn't like to teach to an undergrad level. Everything was a PhD level.

The prof also used a similar test every year but changed the lectures a ton. The end result meant we were tested on complex stuff without ever being taught it.
 
passionformed said:
In your experience, what has been the lowest class average for any exam in any of your classes? What class was it?

Personally, I've seen 60. I know that's rather high, but then again, I am a freshman. This was in Gen Chem 2.
Click to expand...

30% in E&M (the more advanced physics course)...
 
Something in the 55% range.

One student I know got a a 0/150 on a midterm. =/ That was a bummer.
 
Below 50% on a Ochem 2 mid-term, the cut-off for what was considered an A was like 70%. The class was curved at the end after averaging the mid-terms & final. One dude got a 100%. He probably didn't even have to take the final to still get an A in the class.

On the other side, I had a curved test that had like an high 80s% average. I got a 95% and still got a B.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
26% in organ and cellular physiology
It was multiple choice too
 
~40% intro calculus. About 65-70% was sufficient for an A
 
We had something in the 40s a couple times in med school. Once on a pharmacology exam and another in a fundamental physician skills course. Both were multiple choice. The minutae was overwhelming.
 
I've given a test where the average was ~55; my fault. There was a genetics test where bringing my grade from a 47 to a 59 got me into B range.
 
rachelkj said:
51. Second term OChem.
Click to expand...

68. Second term OChem.

No traditional curve. You had the option of taking a "retake" exam (diff questions) and your new score replaced your old score. Any score >80 was rounded down to an 80 so the best you could get on a retake was a B-.
 
Third midterm o.chem 2 was 41 for my class. I got a 56 on the test and felt like a genius.
 
percentage-wise: orgo 1 and 2 ~45% but something like 80% was an A
raw difficulty: circuits and systems (ECE class) ~65% no curve, much smarter class
 
eggs13 said:
68. Second term OChem.

No traditional curve. You had the option of taking a "retake" exam (diff questions) and your new score replaced your old score. Any score >80 was rounded down to an 80 so the best you could get on a retake was a B-.
Click to expand...

Not only is 68 not a low average, but I can't wrap my mind around it being considered so low that they gave you the option of a retake.
 
Especially for OChem, a 68 is considered an easy test :p

Lowest test average I'd seen in undergrad was a 45% in one of my upper level bio classes. :eek:
 
In genetics, the average was regularly between the 50's or 60's. There was no curve.
 
Lowest i've seen was NOT from a science class.

30% on a midterm for Econometrics II.
 
Easily the sub-30% class average at the end of E&M with calculus.

73% was an A.

I forgot what the cutoff for F's were, but 18 out of 40 students got them.
 
Both semesters of organic the averages were around 62-68... No curve was given. Class average was D+/C- without a curve at the end. Good times...
 
I just took my orgo II final today. I was the first one finished. I'm afraid that I did it all wrong, but I knew all but two problems. "YOLO" as they say,
 
My class had an average of 52 on our first calc 1 exam. This is including everyone who took AP Calc in high school. That exam was brutal, insane derivatives, and we couldn't use calculators. The professor said as long as you got a 40, you were in decent shape. 80% was an A.
 
thesauce said:
We had something in the 40s a couple times in med school. Once on a pharmacology exam and another in a fundamental physician skills course. Both were multiple choice. The minutae was overwhelming.
Click to expand...

What happened when the averages were so low? Was it curved or something that you all had to overcome?
 
Not in my class, but for a gen chem 2 test, the average was a 4/15, or 27%
 
May have had lower (there's an anatomy class I took a few years ago where 60s-70s was A range, if I remember correctly), but in an upper level bio course this past semester, class average was 45% for one of the tests. I really didn't like that class. :eek:
 
My last test in chem 2 two weeks ago was 58%. My wife's genetics class usually averaged around 45% on tests.
 
58% on an OChem II exam. No curve. Yes, the average was actually an F and stood as such, partially because there was/were some of us with high-90s scores, so it wasn't an unfair test -- just a wide spread.
 
That I know of, probably my organic chem class with a test in the low 40s.

For the most part, I found the lowest averages to be in the intro classes where you get a lot of people in need of a "reality check." In my upper level physics classes, usually you weren't in there unless you had some reason to think you could handle them, so the class averages could be low but wouldn't be 40s and 50s low.
 
CityLights said:
What happened when the averages were so low? Was it curved or something that you all had to overcome?
Click to expand...

One was curved and the other wasn't. I can't remember all the specifics, but the pharm class was combined with another that had a fairly high average, so there were still a number of people that honored.
 
ClemsonFirst said:
An art class and it was a 25.
Click to expand...

Thanks for giving me another reason why art is super lame and a waste of time. :thumbup:

Like seriously? Grading done by art professors is completely subjective, and most art professors love "abstract art" (i.e. just paint random stuff and give some random philosophical explanation on what the painting is supposed to be).

/rant.
 
59% biochem (no avg higher than 68% in the class for the 4 exams)
got a 93.7% in the class
still got an A- because only so many As were allowed.
:mad:
 
High 40s and low 50s for O-chem. No curve. I've never been so thankful for a B+.... -_-
Surprisingly, the average for the first paper in an upper-level Philosophy class was a D- (we don't do percentages). Again, no curves.
 
Not sure about the average, but on my first test of my General Zoology class of 20 people, 7 had Fs, 5 had Ds, 6 had Cs, 1 had a B and 1 had an A.

I was the one with the B :)
 
I don't remember what the class average was... but I got an 18% (a SINGLE question right and a little bit of partial credit on a 10 question test) in Calc3 and it ended up being curved to an A- for our final exam.
I remember spending two weeks after taking the exam before getting the grade back wondering what would happen to my medical school dreams if I got an F and instead I ended up coming out with a B+


TLDR: <18% on a Calculus final


btw this is at a top25 school
 
I had quantitative analysis chem class exams with averages hovering around 30. Prof just put way too many problems on 50 minute exams. Getting a 50 or above was killing the class.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

D
Adcoms of SDN, what is the highest number of publications you've seen from a premed
Replies
7
Views
2K
jhmmd
jhmmd
D
How many hours does the average applicant spend on his/her personal statement?
Replies
13
Views
1K
CatDad26
C
D
Most Compelling EC's/Stories You've Seen
2
Replies
61
Views
7K
LittleBrother
L
PreMedMissteps
Often told that research experience obtained for course credit cannot count as research. Where does it say that on AAMC or AMCAS?
Replies
13
Views
1K
PreMedMissteps
PreMedMissteps
D
AAMC Data for 2022 Matriculants show a 509 MCAT Average
Replies
14
Views
2K
eigen
eigen
Top