Wow we have it easier than Americans in terms of GPA.

[Vallinar]

lol i think we Canadians have it easier then our friends down south in terms of GPA.

 

I was under the impression that is was the opposite (harder for us to get high GPA). But apparantly for SDN boards the GPA system adopted by ontario schools (90+ is a 4, 85-89 is a 3.9 ect ect) is "ridiculous".

 

There's this thread showing that alot of schools are getting screwed over in this department. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=447006

 

For example someone listed a 90 at there school as a 3.67

 

 

OH well, sucks to be them i guess.

[avenir001]

if a 90 is 3.67 at some school, then probably it's easier to get a 90 there than it is at a school where 90 is 4.0...for example, in the country where i'm from, marks are usually given out of 20...over there, top students are expected to get above 19/20 and more like 19.75...someone with an 18/20 avg would be considered an ok-good student, whereas over here 18/20 (ie 90%) is an awesome average and really hard to achieve.

[The Law]

It is easier to get 90s at most US schools than it is here. That is why Canadian grades are marked with a different scale when we apply there.

[Vallinar]

It is easier to get 90s at most US schools than it is here. That is why Canadian grades are marked with a different scale when we apply there.

 

I don't know about... how can they determine that its easier to get 90s in the US than here?

 

I'm a chem/biochem major, and i can tell you that getting 90s in most chem courses is EASY> (and no you dojn't have to be that smart).

[The Law]

I don't know about... how can they determine that its easier to get 90s in the US than here?

 

I'm a chem/biochem major, and i can tell you that getting 90s in most chem courses is EASY> (and no you dojn't have to be that smart).

 

lol, I have cousins in the US that were allowed to use graphing calculators on their calculus exams.

 

An 80 there is like a C... I think we can all agree, that it's not that easy to attain an 80 here. So if most people are not getting Cs in the US, either they're smarter than us... or our education system is a little more difficult.

[The Law]

By the way, a 90 wouldn't even be an A+, it's like an A- or an A I forget.

[vip_138]

I had a similar feeling when i first heard about this too, but i think its mostly likely due to how its harder to attain the same % in canada than it is in US. My biochem prof constantly complains about how we think 70% sucks because when he was in school in england that was supposed to be really good. Each system has its own way or grading its students so you can't just look at getting X% here vs. X% there is the same. If you really wanted to compare our system with the US you'ld have to look at percentiles, seeing how many ppl get a 90+ here vs. how many ppl get a 90+ there or something (assuming ppl in the US and Canada are equally intelligent).

[The Law]

I had a similar feeling when i first heard about this too, but i think its mostly likely due to how its harder to attain the same % in canada than it is in US. My biochem prof constantly complains about how we think 70% sucks because when he was in school in england that was supposed to be really good. Each system has its own way or grading its students so you can't just look at getting X% here vs. X% there is the same. If you really wanted to compare our system with the US you'ld have to look at percentiles, seeing how many ppl get a 90+ here vs. how many ppl get a 90+ there or something (assuming ppl in the US and Canada are equally intelligent).

 

Which we know isn't the case. Canadians wouldn't elect George Bush twice (let alone once).

[Vallinar]

I had a similar feeling when i first heard about this too, but i think its mostly likely due to how its harder to attain the same % in canada than it is in US. My biochem prof constantly complains about how we think 70% sucks because when he was in school in england that was supposed to be really good. Each system has its own way or grading its students so you can't just look at getting X% here vs. X% there is the same. If you really wanted to compare our system with the US you'ld have to look at percentiles, seeing how many ppl get a 90+ here vs. how many ppl get a 90+ there or something (assuming ppl in the US and Canada are equally intelligent).

 

Well i would surely like to believe that (ego booster for us Canadians), but honestly my orgo 1 and 2 exams were, imo, as easy as the prof could have mad ethem. The lab write ups were marked REALLY easy, and the quizes were jokes. I don't see how it could be THAT much easier in the US.

 

Oh well i deosn't really matter i guess.

[avenir001]

come to my uni and take advanced orgo...i'm sure u'll enjoy the marathon midterm (10 pages of syntheses in 50 mins) and hopefully understand how it could be easier in the US.

[Vallinar]

come to my uni and take advanced orgo...i'm sure u'll enjoy the marathon midterm (10 pages of syntheses in 50 mins) and hopefully understand how it could be easier in the US.

 

lol yea i took orgo III and the prof made the final absolutely ridiculous (no finished the exam. BUT he curved it in the end. Besides that final the course was ridiculously easy tho.

[Madz25]

classes generally have a quota of how many students should get A's. Regardless of whether an A = 99%+ or 85%+ the same proportion of students in the class will get A's. So in US schools, the same # of students in a given class will be getting their 99s to get the A and an equal # in canada will get 85+.

 

hope that makes sense.

[solocup]

It really depends on the school. I graduated from an American university where there's little grade inflation. Unless the class is under 10 students, it will definitely be curved. The student quality is high because it's difficult to get in. In general, only the top 5% will receive an A. There is no percentage equivalent, i.e. 85% = A etc. It depends on the difficulty of the course and exams and the relative performance with your classmates.

 

On the other hand, at our peer institution - Harvard, grade inflation is rampant and an A at Harvard is virtually meaningless. But I heard they're taking measures to make grading more meaningful.

[AMmd]

come to my uni and take advanced orgo...i'm sure u'll enjoy the marathon midterm (10 pages of syntheses in 50 mins) and hopefully understand how it could be easier in the US.

 

hahaha thats nothing ... my orgo 1 final was 25+ pages of pure hell!!! (did i ever tell you my prof was a psychooooo!!)

[wisdom_tooth]

if a 90 is 3.67 at some school, then probably it's easier to get a 90 there than it is at a school where 90 is 4.0...for example, in the country where i'm from, marks are usually given out of 20...over there, top students are expected to get above 19/20 and more like 19.75...someone with an 18/20 avg would be considered an ok-good student, whereas over here 18/20 (ie 90%) is an awesome average and really hard to achieve.

 

"in the country where i'm from, marks are usually given out of 20" are you originally from Iran

because I believe that's how they do it as well

[The Law]

"in the country where i'm from, marks are usually given out of 20" are you originally from Iran

because I believe that's how they do it as well

 

avenir's got a stalker :p

[avenir001]

"in the country where i'm from, marks are usually given out of 20" are you originally from Iran

because I believe that's how they do it as well

 

oui i'm indeed purrrrrsian...and with 3500+ posts to my credit, it's about time i got my very own stalker , nice to meet u

[wisdom_tooth]

avenir's got a stalker :p

"Location: Brampton and London... inside avenir001's heart <3 right there by her aorta"

 

well I obviously have some competition

[The Law]

"Location: Brampton and London... inside avenir001's heart <3 right there by her aorta"

 

well I obviously have some competition

 

hahaha, I'm always up for competition... wouldn't want you to waste your time though

[Alastriss]

Well i would surely like to believe that (ego booster for us Canadians), but honestly my orgo 1 and 2 exams were, imo, as easy as the prof could have mad ethem. The lab write ups were marked REALLY easy, and the quizes were jokes. I don't see how it could be THAT much easier in the US.

 

Oh well i deosn't really matter i guess.

 

things like that are variable between schools and can't be used to represent an entire nation.

[Satsuma]

things like that are variable between schools and can't be used to represent an entire nation.

 

 

This is a great point. There are challenges comparing grades within Canadian schools (or how many students in undergrad have opted to take a class taught by one prof over another because they have heard with a certain prof students do alot better...so problems comparing even within institutions)

 

I think that when looking at other countries you have to consider what standards are considered in their country and not what the standards are within your own.

 

When I was in school in France marking standards were considerably different than here. They mark out of 20 and a 10 is completely respectable. A 13/15 good, a 17 and you're genius and over 18 is almost impossible to get. I was pretty upset after my first exam where I had gotten 13.5/20 (a subject I had never studied before...but to me I may as well have failed) and the rest of my class was upset that a foreigner had gotten one of the better marks in the class

 

Now, when applying to universities in Ontario...had I been applying with those marks...I recall that they had a minimum standard for marks that corresponded with those considered in France. That is...they didn`t expect that someone from France would be applying with an 18/20 average.

 

I don`t know how they convert marks from foreign universities....but I suspect the scale has to reflect the standards in the country.

[Alastriss]

This is a great point. There are challenges comparing grades within Canadian schools (or how many students in undergrad have opted to take a class taught by one prof over another because they have heard with a certain prof students do alot better...so problems comparing even within institutions)

 

I think that when looking at other countries you have to consider what standards are considered in their country and not what the standards are within your own.

 

When I was in school in France marking standards were considerably different than here. They mark out of 20 and a 10 is completely respectable. A 13/15 good, a 17 and you're genius and over 18 is almost impossible to get. I was pretty upset after my first exam where I had gotten 13.5/20 (a subject I had never studied before...but to me I may as well have failed) and the rest of my class was upset that a foreigner had gotten one of the better marks in the class

 

Now, when applying to universities in Ontario...had I been applying with those marks...I recall that they had a minimum standard for marks that corresponded with those considered in France. That is...they didn`t expect that someone from France would be applying with an 18/20 average.

 

I don`t know how they convert marks from foreign universities....but I suspect the scale has to reflect the standards in the country.

 

This is very true. Many people suggest that we should look at percentile and standard deviation, but even this is less than ideal. Some classes may selectively have more academically inclined students and a high class average here may make the course look like a breeze.

Othere classes are made where getting an 80 is easy but anything higher than 85 is difficult and 90 is almost impossible.

 

I believe in letter grades more than % values, and I am glad the US looks at this, now if only to get some OOP schools to do the same, but that is just my opinion.

[MedPen]

I don`t know how they convert marks from foreign universities....but I suspect the scale has to reflect the standards in the country.

 

They have a scale that's made up by the Ministry of Education. I went to a school from France and the Ministry did our conversions for us. I have the scale somewhere... It's pretty generous. Roughly, an 8 on 20 is a 62%.

[mikkey]

Hey

As a Canadian, I just got back from interviews in the US and they flat out told me that a Canadian A is much better regarded than an American A because of the endemic grade inflation american universities seem to foster. Also, as far as I am concerned, I have never heard of such a thing as a pre-med BA in Canada, which everyone knows is simply taking the 7 required courses and then filling the rest of your time by studying such things as Underwater Basket Weaving.