B = worried :(

[franc109]

I received a B and a B+ in the first semester of my master's program and am feeling very worried. I've heard that Bs in grad school are like Ds or Fs. Is this true? 

I will be meeting with my adviser after Winter Break to talk about this issue but was hoping to hear from students who may have been in similar situations. Please help - I'm really worried. Thank you.

Edited December 31, 2016 by franc109
Misspelling

[fuzzylogician]

Grading policies vary by department so I don't think anyone here can help you. It's true that in many programs, anything below an A is cause for alarm, but that's not true universally. In particular, it seems that in STEM programs, things may be different. You could try asking other students in your program if they know, but other than that, I'm afraid you may have to wait for that conversation with your advisor. 

[Need Coffee in an IV]

I second that this is department/school base. I'm in a very interdisciplinary program and my cohort has a wide variety of degrees. I will have to say while Bs aren't as good as As or A-, in my program there isn't a huge emphasis on it. My program seems to adopt the attitude that B is still passing and as long as you are passing then its fine. The only concern is that you may possibly drop below a 3.0 which may cause funding issues. 

[Quickmick]

I would agree with @fuzzylogician about STEM possibly being different. Finishing up my MS (one course left in the spring) and picked up my first B this past fall (ouch!). I had the same feeling of B = kiss of death (or at least dire warning), but after talking to a STEM colleague he felt that the B as death knell is more in the humanities.

Edited December 31, 2016 by Quickmick

[.letmeinplz//]

Our first semester we had a seminar class where professors would come and present their work so you would know if you wanted to work with them in research. One of the professors was asked about his reputation for teaching a pretty hard class with a tough grading scheme. His reply was "would you rather get an A and learn nothing or a B/C and learn a lot"... 

I wouldn't take a B as failing if you are at the GPA you need to not be on probation/graduate, research matters much more. I'm not sure your interviews after getting your PhD will lead with "oh you made meaningful contributions to X science? BUT WHAT ABOUT THAT B THOUGH?".