My place on the bell curve

[remo]

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I'm an MS1 and so far in 4 different classes I have been in almost the exact same part of the bell curve for all the tests. It's weird because my scores have been almost exactly the same relative to the average for every exam. I'm not complaining because I'm in the top half but I'm wondering if this is where I can expect to be (barring any major changes in study habits). I have heard that people sort of find "their place" in the class relative to grades and I'm wondering if that is true.

 

[Chris Knight]

find "their place"? well sure, but its not so much about where you "belong" but rather where you comfortable, a balance between how much work/stress it takes to get to where you think is acceptable for you.

 

[Law2Doc]

find "their place"? well sure, but its not so much about where you "belong" but rather where you comfortable, a balance between how much work/stress it takes to get to where you think is acceptable for you.

Agreed. But be aware that the game changes in and after second year and you might find you move to a different spot on this curve in one direction or the other.

 

[PeepshowJohnny]

find "their place"? well sure, but its not so much about where you "belong" but rather where you comfortable, a balance between how much work/stress it takes to get to where you think is acceptable for you.

Yeah, that's a great point. At the top of your class you're going to find people who do less work than people in the bottom 25% because they're just that damn smart. You'll also find two people of about the same "aptitude" one in the middle of the pack gradewise, the other an achiever simply based on how much work they put in.

 

[deleted29780]

there is nothing like a spot on the "normal distribution curve" Things can change rapidly. Don't be too comfortable, keep at it...work hard.

 

[45408]

Yeah, I don't shift around too much, but I occasionally will do better in one class or on one exam than I normally do. Physiology came more easily to me than neuroscience.

 

[Flopotomist]

I am stuck on the other side of the mountain. I too don't move much relative to the mean. Statistically it would seem improbable, but according to SDN standards, I am one of the 2.4% of people who score below the mean. *shrug*

 

[TMP-SMX]

Well I went from a 67% on the head and neck practical to a 91% for the thorax/abdomen practical. So it's quite a jump. It's 2.5 standard deviations above the 67%.

 

[maestro1625]

Well I went from a 67% on the head and neck practical to a 91% for the thorax/abdomen practical. So it's quite a jump. It's 2.5 standard deviations above the 67%.

haha, amusing to hear Wayne students talk about standard deviations (too many friends from back in Michigan). At my school we're lucky if they tell us the average. However our grades are purely "percent correct" based

 

[LJDHC05]

I'm pretty much right in the middle of the curve. It feels good to be at the top...

 

[sendwich]

I'm pretty much right in the middle of the curve. It feels good to be at the top...

i think like you! 🙂

 

[TMP-SMX]

haha, amusing to hear Wayne students talk about standard deviations (too many friends from back in Michigan). At my school we're lucky if they tell us the average. However our grades are purely "percent correct" based

Yeah I like the standard scores because it lets you know where you stand and whether you should stop slacking. We get our percent, the class average, and the standard score. And yes, half our class is from U of M.