The School of Graduate Studies proposes the following change in the graduate GRADING SYSTEM policy:

FROM

Grading System. Students may earn regular grades of A, AB, B, BC, C, D, and F in graduate courses. The letter grades, and their associated grade points, are as follows:

A / 4.0
AB / 3.5
B / 3.0
BC / 2.5
C / 2.0
D / 1.0
F / 0.0

Students’ degree grade point averages and their grade point averages in a major or emphasis area are calculated upon the graduate course work attempted at UW-Whitewater. Students’ overall UW-Whitewater grade point averages (shown on transcripts) are calculated solely upon all the graduate course work attempted at UW-Whitewater.

TO

Grading System. Students may earn regular grades of A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-,D+, D, D-, and F in graduate courses. The letter grades and their associated grade points, are as follows:

A / 4.00 / C / 2.00
A- / 3.67 / C- / 1.67
B+ / 3.33 / D+ / 1.33
B / 3.00 / D / 1.00
B- / 2.67 / D- / 0.67
C+ / 2.33 / F / 0.00

Students’ degree grade point averages and their grade point averages in a major or emphasis area are calculated based on the graduate course work attempted at UW-Whitewater. Students’ overall UW-Whitewater grade point averages (shown on transcripts) are calculated based solely on all the graduate course work attempted at UW-Whitewater.

Rationale for Changing the Graduate Grading Scale

  • Adoption of a plus/minus grading scale would allow for greater discrimination (and accuracy) in reporting the academic performance of graduate students. See the following summary of the argument advanced by testing measurement scholars.

(Source: Mohler, Chad. Inforrmation on Plus/Minus Grading (Georgia State University)). October 2000.

Scholars of measurement theory have severely criticized the simple (whole) letter-grade grading system because it allows too much grouping error.

  • Grouping errors occur because the mean of the actual grades within an interval is lower than the mean of the interval
  • Example of grouping error:
  • Professor is computing grades using a 0-100 system
  • Students who earn more than 80, but less than 90, will receive a B grade
  • Mean of the interval is 85 [80+90)/2]
  • If course scores are normally distributed, then the mean of the 80-90 interval is less than 85; i.e., there are more grades below 85 receiving a B grade than above 85 receiving a B grade
  • Thus, grouping errors
  • inflate the performance of weaker students and
  • reduce the reliability of grading

Loss of reliability from grouping error (or gain in reliability by increasing the number of grading options.

Reliability of
Grading Basis / Reliability of Grades for Various Numbers of Possible Grades
2 / 5* / 10** / 15
.95 / .63 / .85 / .92 / .94
.90 / .60 / .80 / .87 / .89
.80 / .53 / .71 / .78 / .79
.70 / .47 / .62 / .68 / .69
.50 / .33 / .45 / .48 / .49
*Whole letter grade system (A, B, C, D, F)
**Plus/minus system provides 11-13 grades (Most schools do not use A+; many schools do not use D- grades)
  • It would alleviate ambiguity and confusion for both students and instructors in those instances where graduate students enroll in courses at undergraduate-levels; e.g., to address content-level deficiencies; to complete licensure classes, etc.
  • Since UW-Whitewater graduate and undergraduate grading scales first separated in 1991, they have never been closer to being reconciled as they are now. The undergraduate grading system has evolved recently to accommodate more nuanced evaluations that full letter grades.
  • In general, the same grading scales are used for at the graduate and undergraduate levels. UW-Whitewater is the only institution in the UW-System that uses different grading systems, although two schools (UW-Stout and UW-River Falls) make a slight and inconsequential adjustment in their graduate grading systems (see table).
  • Most of the graduate programs in the UW-System use the plus/minus grading system.

Plus/Minus Grading System / Mid-Grades Grading System
Grade / Point Value / Used by: / Grade / Point Value / Used by:
A / 4.00 / Eau Claire / A / 4.0 / Green Bay
A- / 3.67 / Milwaukee / AB / 3.5 / La Crosse
B+ / 3.33 / Oshkosh / B / 3.0 / Madison *
B / 3.00 / Parkside / BC / 2.5 / Whitewater **
B- / 2.67 / Platteville (no D-) / C / 2.0
C+ / 2.33 / River Falls (no D-) / D / 1.0
C / 2.00 / Stevens Point / F / 0.0
C- / 1.67 / Stout
D+ / 1.33 / Superior / * Law School uses +/-, including A+
D / 1.00 / ** Whitewater is the only UW System school that has a completely different grading system for its undergraduate and graduate programs.
D- / 0.67
F / 0.00