COMP 360

Fall 2003-04

Letter Grades

  • A raw numerical grade is obtained from the two mid-term exams, the homeworks, and the final exam. This grade is the higher of the marks obtained from the following two weighting schemes: (i) Mid-terms 20% each, Homework 10% (total), Final exam 50% OR (ii) Final exam 100%.

  • The raw numerical grades are then translated into letter grades, which are then reported to the university. Do not attempt to translate your raw numerical grades into a letter grade yourself. This translation process is done by the instructional staff, taking into account the difficulty of the exams and the overall performance of the entire class.

  • Letter grades have the following subjective interpretations:
    Grade A: expresses ideas clearly, has mastered the course material, can tackle problems not seen before with success; would probably make an excellent job or graduate school candidate; is apparently highly motivated, hard-working, and can think independently.
    Grade B: expresses ideas well, has mastered the course basics, is willing to tackle problems not seen before with some success; does good, solid work, should make a good employee.
    Grade C: expresses ideas ok, but could do better, has reasonable knowledge of the basics, should probably be o.k. in a job that is closely supervised.
    Grade D or below: confused expression of ideas, either doesn't understand or can't communicate the material; for whatever the reason, this person did not master even the basics. It would be misleading to future employers to grant this person a CS degree from McGill.

  • To produce the course letter grades, the instructional staff rereads a sampling of exams, compares them to the subjective letter grade meanings above, and after discussion, determines a translation table for converting raw scores into letter grades.

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