Stressed even before my I receive my official letter!

[missleung]

Hi guys,

Just speaking my mind out there. I'm quite worried about my studies in my graduate program. I've currently been accepted to the MSc Biostatistics program at UBC, however I have to maintain a 75% minimum grade average in my program. So, even though my program doesn't start til September 2016 (in four months), I'm already studying the lecture notes that I know I'll be taking that's available online. 

Reason why I'm worried is that I've previously attended SFU which is known to rate their students' grades using a bell-curve grading system. Pretty much our grades are rated by the class average. Because of this, my original grades on average turns out to be higher than my actual grades. UBC grades, well, by a typical grading system. And I'm scared I can't maintain such a high grade because of this.

So I'm wondering, is the Master's program much harder than an Undergrad program? Has anyone been through this before? Please share your story with me!!

[Happington]

This is speaking from my experience, and may not be reflected everywhere.

"Easier"

I had a similar condition on my admission, I needed no lower than a 75 in my first three courses at the university.  Coming out from an undergrad where I only performed remarkably well my last two years this condition made me nervous.  I came out of my courses with an overall of close to 95.  I worked hard, yeah, but I didn't find the work nearly as draining as undergrad.  I think this came from the reduced number of courses (I wasn't taking six a semester anymore) and the fact I was taking only courses that interested me, instead of piles of required courses that were extremely mundane and clogged up with group work.

Grad GPAs are reliably higher than undergrad GPAs at my school, and looking on the internet, it seems to be the case in most places.  I'd say it's uncommon for a student to have a GPA below 3.7, and being around there would be cause for concern.  I can't speak for everywhere though.  I don't know anyone in UBC Biostat so I can't comment on that program in particular.

Again, just my story, don't take my experience as cannon.

As for curving fears, remember that the school WANTS you to succeed.  If the university requires students to maintain a 75% average, they're not going to curve the median down to a 65%.  They DO want most of their students to pass, and they won't blatantly adjust marks to kick over half their Masters students out.  Just make sure you work hard, and you should be fine.  They wouldn't have accepted you if they didn't think you'd make the cut.

[ShogunT]

23 hours ago, Happington said:

As for curving fears, remember that the school WANTS you to succeed.  If the university requires students to maintain a 75% average, they're not going to curve the median down to a 65%.  They DO want most of their students to pass, and they won't blatantly adjust marks to kick over half their Masters students out.  Just make sure you work hard, and you should be fine.  They wouldn't have accepted you if they didn't think you'd make the cut.

I would disagree here. The more prestige the program is, the higher standards it holds. I am sure that schools expect qualified students to pass, not most of the students if they are not qualified. And there is little correlation that the instructors/profs are bound to do any leverage to curve the grade mean.

For my school, grading method solely depends on the instructors, and many of the prof I knew are quite fair about it. But there are also Profs with really eccentric grading methods and teaching styles.

What I would suggest to the original poster are four things. First, choose the course you take wisely. I myself sit in many classes during the beginning of the semester, and then pick the ones I am comfortable with. Sometimes, the course description and its expected outcomes are quite appealing, but the actual teaching does not provide the opportunity to reach these goals. Second, be proactive and ask questions to your senior grad students in the dept. Third grind as hard as you can. Fourth, grad school is hard but doable. Many people have done that before.

Edited April 28, 2016 by ShogunT

[missleung]

Oops I should've been more clear. I meant that my old school grades by class averages but the new school grades without using the bell curve criteria (ie. your grades don't change accordingly to the class averages). 

Do you think the current grad students would actually be that helpful? I've been getting an impression that they would ignore my e-mails simply because their time is dedicated to studying/marking assignments and exams, etc.

[ShogunT]

On 5/1/2016 at 4:04 PM, missleung said:

Oops I should've been more clear. I meant that my old school grades by class averages but the new school grades without using the bell curve criteria (ie. your grades don't change accordingly to the class averages). 

Do you think the current grad students would actually be that helpful? I've been getting an impression that they would ignore my e-mails simply because their time is dedicated to studying/marking assignments and exams, etc.

If you are aiming for the top grade, then I don't think you need to worry about the curve.

The senior grad students would be helpful. They would have experienced some pitfalls within their study or known some strategy to avoid ones, so ask them about the courses you are planning to take. However, many will not be likely to respond to unsolicited email. I myself don't answer emails asking coursework details from student X who has never set foot on my school premises, but if he/she is a current student, I will answer. Many grad students are also very willing to share their experience to you when you ask them personally.