University. One to two marks off a first? Experiences?

cakeforbrains

samtoby wrote: »

For essays where I am getting 69 - what do I need to think about to get 70 and above?

What is a viva?

I got a first. It sounds like awful boasting, but my third year dissertation got marked at 85%. What they liked about the dissertation was my application of an existing framework (somebody else's theory) to a new problem. In fact, I never actually had my own opinions in any essay I wrote; I always backed everything up with sources and kind of played ping-pong with other people's arguments.

Sometimes, also, it really helps to simply make your point explicit. So, instead of saying...erm... "Sally likes the MSE forum because it's full of financial information." Say "Sally likes the MSE forum because it's full of financial information, which she has found very useful to running her business." Make things really clear.

The structure of your work is also very important. Make sure you know the way that essays in your subject should be put together. Make sure you have an introduction and conclusion, etc. and that the conclusion doesn't introduce any new information.

Don't worry too much about your first year, though. Sounds like you've been finding your feet really well. I didn't get anything above 70% in my first year, and then years two and three threw back lots of first class grades.

You're not throwing any marks away with spelling, punctuation or referencing errors are you?

LandyAndy

samtoby wrote: »

For essays where I am getting 69 - what do I need to think about to get 70 and above?

What is a viva?

It's an oral examination. You meet with a number of the academic staff and they question you on any aspects they think fit.


Think of it as an interview for a first.

Noctu

As a former university lecturer....

Be critical of the literature, don't just describe it.

Think outside of the box - can you infer any criticism from the wider paradigm the researchers you are citing are working from?

Be concise, don't waffle.

Use the active voice rather than the passive.

Ask your lecturers for the marking scheme/criteria they are marking to so you can clearly see what constitutes a 2:2, 2:1, 1:1 etc. Also don't be afraid to ask for feedback on essay structures, or certain sections etc -- they may say no, but it's worth asking. Equally, read the module handbook really carefully to pick up any tips.

samtoby

cakeforbrains wrote: »

I got a first. It sounds like awful boasting, but my third year dissertation got marked at 85%. What they liked about the dissertation was my application of an existing framework (somebody else's theory) to a new problem. In fact, I never actually had my own opinions in any essay I wrote; I always backed everything up with sources and kind of played ping-pong with other people's arguments.

Sometimes, also, it really helps to simply make your point explicit. So, instead of saying...erm... "Sally likes the MSE forum because it's full of financial information." Say "Sally likes the MSE forum because it's full of financial information, which she has found very useful to running her business." Make things really clear.

The structure of your work is also very important. Make sure you know the way that essays in your subject should be put together. Make sure you have an introduction and conclusion, etc. and that the conclusion doesn't introduce any new information.

Don't worry too much about your first year, though. Sounds like you've been finding your feet really well. I didn't get anything above 70% in my first year, and then years two and three threw back lots of first class grades.

You're not throwing any marks away with spelling, punctuation or referencing errors are you?

Thank you. I have my essays checked by my sons tutor for english etc and he highlights sections for me that don't read well. I have had a couple of comments on the last semester about my english but only one on this semester and it was one sentence.

My tutor said my referencing is really good and I clearly read a lot as I inter mix grey and academic literature which is very good.

Gloomendoom

samtoby wrote: »

What is a viva?

Or it could also be an abbreviation of 'viva voce' another term for an oral exam.

Gloomendoom

cakeforbrains wrote: »

You're not throwing any marks away with spelling, punctuation or referencing errors are you?

This is a good question.

Also make sure that your handwriting is legible. An examiner can only give marks for content that they can read.

Buzzybee90

Make sure you're using valid, academic and relevant references and don't hold back on using them. In first year I achieved mostly 2.1s, a first and a 2.2 (I think!), the hike in quality needed to get a 2.1 was hiked massively and in second year I was mostly hitting 56 (with some 2.1s), I knew I was capable of getting a first, my writing was good but I wasn't engaging with the literature enough.

I took that on board in third year and really tried to back up every single point with a good source, sometimes you can have the best idea with no one to reference it against. It takes an awful lot of time. After I started this I achieved a first for my dissertation and a first overall with comments from almost every lecturer regarding referencing.

On a side note - a 69 average will not be rounded up to a first as the individual units are rounded up. Note how you never get a 59 but 60 is a common score.

As above, my university disgards worst 40 creds, this is pretty standard practice though it may have changed, before that there was 'compensation' but I'm not sure how that worked.

Good luck!

gleek1

Firstly, well done on your marks - this bodes really well for the forthcoming years. What I would add though, is that the difference between a mark of 70 and a mark of 69 is not just simply one mark. It is not a totally linear scheme in many respects.

To get into the first band will need to be a relatively large shift from what you have being doing. It wont be just down to spelling or referencing - you wouldn't have got such a good mark if you did not have these down.

What I mean is that the work needs to give the overall impression of being worth a first. Often markers get a feel for the level of essay and then within this they assign a mark - you are clearly nearly there, but should ask for advice for your specific case from your tutor. The feel is often down to structure, argumentation, applying existing ideas to a new problem - whether it just seems to be clear, authoritative, focused....

Does this make sense?
Well done and good luck

BumblebeeUK

Hi Sam,

I'm a lecturer at a Russel group university - a different field to you but a lot of what applies to the work I mark may apply to you.

I second what's already been said by others - ask your tutors for advice. They're the best people to give you detailed feedback because they know what's required in your area. But please bear in mind that students generally improve as they progress through the years, so a very high 2:1 in your first year is really excellent and shows real promise of a first-class degree in the end. Take pride in having done so well so early

And I'm afraid your intuition is correct, at least in my institution - a 2:1 is a 2:1, and a first is a first - regardless of how close to the boundary it is (we have to draw the line somewhere, and there will always be someone who just misses out wherever we draw it). So unless there are mitigating circumstances, the mark (and degree classification) will stand.

It sounds like you're already using lots of literature and writing well - which is great. So beyond those things what I'm looking for to award a first, above all else, is evidence of independent thought by the student. Something that really shows me that you've thought carefully about the issues and structured a coherent argument.

An example - I work in life-sciences, and students often get this wrong by writing something generic like "not test enough samples/people/age-groups were tested, therefore the results may not generalise, future studies should test more samples/people/age-groups to address this". Students think they're showing critical analysis and independent thought, but generic statements like these are unlikely to impress me and would not induce me to award a high mark. Instead I encourage students to try to determine WHY such things might be a problem, what impact it's likely to have had on the conclusions/argument, and WHAT the implications of this are for the current state of the art.

So for example - a student who says "the results may not generalise" needs to tell me why not, and support this with EVIDENCE that the population tested is not representative. So if a study tested only females and the student can think of an evidence-based reason WHY they might have behaved differently to males and what effect this will likely have had on conclusions - then this shows much more true independent thought and I'm much more impressed. Or students could come up with something else SPECIFIC to what they're discussing. The general idea is to really show me that you've THOUGHT about the specific evidence and the argument you're making.

It's a difficult skill - but it pays dividends (at least, in my field it does).

Bumblebee x

ClareTeaches

Just wanted to reinforce a couple of points already made (I'm a college lecturer, but teach some HE there, plus have MA, etc).

Firstly, congratulations on doing so well in your first year, particularly with all the other life stuff you've had going on - that's a real achievement! You should celebrate, if you haven't already!

A couple of people have already said the really key point I thought of as soon as I saw your post - be critical of the sources you're using. This is often the thing that separates a great grade from a good one.

And as Bumblebee above has said, be as specific as you can. I often say to my students that to really explain something in a way that shows you truly understand it, you will sometimes feel like you're stating the obvious.

The one thing I have to add is that you should have feedback with your assignments that gives you praise, but also areas for development. Your lecturers should be identifying areas for improvement that will give you clues about what to do in future.

Best of luck!