Dr . Johanna Rubba
English Department (Linguistics)
California Polytechnic State University

GRADUATE GRADING STANDARDS

Click here for undergraduate grading standards

As you may know, grade inflation is a problem in the CSU system, and my standards are intended to contribute to the correction of this problem by restoring the value of grades as an indicator of how well a student has grasped the material, and of what that student's abilities are in relayi ng the material to another person using academic English. This page is intended to explain the standards I use in grading, so that you know what to expect and understand how I evaluate your work.

Standards for graduate work are higher than for undergraduate work. Independent thinking, taking the initiative in posing and trying to answer questions, doggedness in developing analytical skills, and overall higher expectations for achievement are the hallmark of the good graduate student. I believe that a graduate degree is a marker of above-average skills and competence in the area being studied. Possession of a master's degree is supposed to mark you off as not just more educated, but also more intelligent and competent, with greater expertise in your discipline, than someone without a graduate degree. If instructors do not hold graduate students to higher standards than undergraduates, the value of your graduate degree will decrease.

Being an instructor in a department awarding a master's degree in English, I hold students to very high standards regarding the quality of their writing. I grade all written work on the quality of the writing as well as coverage of content / mastery of analytical skills. Work that is not presented in well-written academic English conforming to most grammar rules is not eligible for an A, regardless of the quality of the content.**

My grading policy is additive, not subtractive. In other words, all of you start at the same point: 0. You work up from th ere depending on (a) how much of the required material is present in the work being graded; (b) how accurate that material is; (c) how well-written it is.

• The 'A' grade range (A- to A+) is reserved for work that is outstanding. This means that it (1) shows exceptional talent in using academic English**, expressing intended meanings with flair and precision; (2 ) it shows perfect to near-perfect understanding of the necessary concepts and analytical tasks; (3) where appropriate, it shows the capacity to think creatively or to see implications beyond the immediate scope of the question. Work must be flawless to attain an A+/A. Work with minor flaws that is nonetheless excellent in other ways will earn an A-.

• A grade in the B range means that the work is acceptable at the graduate level (B- range) to very good (B/B+). This work satisfies all (B+) or most (B/B-) of the requirements of the question/research task, shows the capability to think beyond the task by relating it to other areas of knowledge in or outside of the course; is neatly presented and shows above-average use of academic English. If the work is decently written and covers most of the required content, but has several minor flaws or one major flaw, the grade will be B-.

• A grade in the C range means that the work, while covering much of the required ground, does not show graduate-level analytic and expressive ability. That is, major and minor items may be missing or incorrect; and while the language may communicate most points adequately, it does not qualify as above-average academic prose.

• A grade in the D range shows that the work does not, overall, achieve an acceptable level of coverage of the requirements AND/OR the language is insufficient to make the writer's points understandable to the reader. The content may be either incorrect to an unacceptable degree, or very incomplete.
 
• A grade of F indicates that so little of the required content is covered that grading the paper is an exercise in futility. It may mean that very major points have clearly not been grasped or have been misunderstood by the student. An F may also indicate that the ideas are expressed in such a way that they are not at all understandable to the reader. A grade of F is also awarded when assigned work is not handed in, or not handed in by the set deadline (unless alternative arrangements have been made personally with the instructor).

** By 'academic English' I mean the variety of Standard English used in academic and professional writing: grammar, spelling, and punctuation in accord with the conventions of formal Standard American English; a broad vocabulary, appropriately used; complexity and variety of sentence structure, and mastery of the generally recognized features of good academic style, such as parallelism, clarity, etc. It also means excellent control of aspects of manuscript form such as indentation of paragraphs, clean and readable copy, and conformity with the typographical rules (style sheet) prescribed for each assignment.

Letter-% Grade Conversion Table