Notes on Grading

Steven J. Zeil

Last modified: Oct 21, 2023
Contents:

1 Grade scale

All letter grades are based on ODU’s 4-pt scale:

Grade Value
A 4.0
A- 3.7
B+ 3.3
B 3.0
B- 2.7
C+ 2.3
C 2.0
C- 1.7
D+ 1.3
D 1.0
D- 0.7
F 0.7

All grades for assignments & exams will be recorded as a number on this 4-pt scale. Intermediate values (e.g., 3.5) falling between letter grades are possible. Although 4.0 is the largest value on the official ODU scale, individual grades on assignments & exams may range as high as 4.5.

2 Converting raw grades to 4-pt

Scores on assignments and exams will first be converted to a percentage based on the number of points possible on that item.

Percentages are then mapped to the 4-pt scale as follows:

Percentage 4-Pt
100 4.5
$\geq 90$ 4.0
$\geq 70$ 3.0
$\geq 50$ 2.0
$\geq 30$ 1.0
$< 30$ 0.0

3 Overall Grades

The final grade will be determined as a weighted average of the percentages on all graded items, using the weights described in the syllabus.

I will drop the lowest assignment grade before computing your overall score. The overall percentages stated in the syllabus will be retained after that score is dropped.