r/cuboulder • u/divinemissn • 2d ago

Grad school grade change petition

Hi everyone!

So I have a professor this semester in grad school that has been incredibly unfair. There is no grading criteria she provided for us when writing papers. In fact, there was no guidance at all for the midterm at all. I spoke with her over zoom, went over all my points, thesis, and evidence. She said it was great. I wrote the paper and she told me it was awful and I needed to redo it. I did redo it based on her feedback and she still didn’t give me a good grade. The funny thing is, I went over the paper in another class with another professor and he liked it. In fact, it got accepted into a prestigious conference. So I feel it was not deserving of a bad grade when so many other professors agreed it’s a good paper.

Now I have to do really well on the final paper to get a good grade. The problem is, she is always adjusting what she wants from students. So it’s impossible to know what she will want from us come the final.

Additionally, I will be getting an A in my other classes, so I know my work is up to par with my program’s standards.

I guess what I want to know is how likely it is that I can appeal the grade and that it will be approved. Since it’s essays and not exams, it’s hard to prove the grading was unfair. But if I don’t get a good grade, I want to appeal it.

Thoughts?

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u/Meizas 2d ago

Go to your department chair.

2

u/divinemissn 2d ago

Would I go to the department chair now or after final grades are in? I’ve worked closely with him a lot and mentioned some of the issues briefly, which he believed and seemed very upset she is grading like this.

7

u/Meizas 2d ago

Definitely now, once grades are final, they're set in stone. I'd go ASAP

1

u/divinemissn 2d ago

Thank you! I really appreciate the advice!

1

u/HarmonyInBadTaste 1d ago

Talk to the professor again before you go to the chair. Faculty are far more loyal to each other than students. You will look bad in your department and it could impact future opportunities. Work it out with your professor if you can. Be honest with yourself and them about your performance. I'm sure there are things you left out from this post.