Qbees

So, I wanted to follow up my original post. I did speak with the professor, and in a very round about way, they asked me whether I had used one of my sources "creatively." I explained that the paper was indeed my own work and the thought process I when through developing it. Basically, the paper I wrote was not really what the professor wanted. Some of the material I used for my paper was from sources and contexts that looked to my professor as completely unrelated to the subject. The term paper requirements were seemingly flexible, and the midterm outline I submitted got one comment when returned to me (I ended up getting more comments, a few weeks too late, during our meeting when my professor looked back at my outline). Thus confusion ensued between the paper I wrote and the evaluation it got. I spoke to another faculty member I'm more familiar with and basically she figure that it was pretty much a disconnect between what I was being communicated about the term paper and what the instructor really wanted. Lesson learned, in the future I will be more sure about keeping material very close to home and more diligent about getting feedback on paper details. Thanks for the advice, it was helpful.

So, long story short, I started graduate school this fall. For one of my courses, the entire grade was our term paper. I submit my paper at the close of the semester and waited. I get an email from the professor a week later saying that there is trouble grading my paper, the sections seem disconnected, and that it needs to be studied it further. Then I get an email two weeks later (today), with some anxiety inducing phrases: the problem is that it seems like "two papers," written by "different people" for "different assignments." One seems like a "draft with many editorial problems" and the "second is a very finished piece of writing as if someone else wrote it," but for the wrong assignment. "I have discussed the paper with a colleague to get another pair of eyes on the paper and we are in agreement." Then, the professor offers me a passing grade, and "we can let the matter stand; unless you want to do a revision." I do, in fact: I emailed them over the weekend because I hadn't heard back, and I asked if we should meet and talk about the paper and whether I should revise it. I'm feeling positively crazy right now because I can't shake the serious feeling that the professor thinks I plagiarized or something: "as if someone else wrote it"! The whole paper is of my own work (I wish that could go without saying), and I am a very detailed about citing sources, page numbers, etc. However, I am fully willing admit it might be a poorly written paper. But I have no idea what to think, or whether I'm reading way to much into this. I feel really ridiculous and embarrassed for saying all this, but I have almost zero friends in this kind of program (I'm in social sciences, and for some awful reason all my grad school friends are in mathematics). Ah! Tell me what to think!?!