Feeling Really Discouraged About 1L Grades

[lawapplicant246357]

Hi everyone! I just got my grades back for the first semester: B for Contracts, B for , and B + for Torts. (I go to school at Osgoode)

I understand that overall they’re not bad grades at all, but idk I just feel really discouraged because I was hoping for one A. I also never worked so hard as I did last semester. That isn’t to say that the other students didn’t, but I just feel like although I tried my absolute best, I don’t feel good enough. I also feel like since I can’t work harder, I can’t imagine getting better grades. 
 

I guess what I’m asking for is some guidance on whether or not I’m screwed for the 2L recruit. I definitely know Im not getting the 1L recruit so I might not even apply, but am I in a really bad position right now? 
 

thank you so much!

Edited January 18 by lawapplicant246357

[omigone]

First, it's worth putting your grades in perspective. Out of a first year section of 70 students, approximately 7 can get an A and 3 can get an A+. This is the push and pull of the law school curve. (https://www.osgoode.yorku.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Grade-Profiling-Sheet-2021-2022.pdf) 

Second, make some time to meet with your professors to discuss exams (each might have a different process). They can help you see what made an "A" range exam and how you can improve for this semester. In reality, your grades indicate you likely knew the content but maybe missed an issue, packaged things in a way your prof didn't agree with, or a number of other reasons. 

Given the small number of A-grades given out in each course, it's important to be kind to yourself. You performed well and beat the curve in one of your courses and you were not in the 15 or so students that HAD to get a C in each of your classes. 

For what it's worth, your 1L fall grades are similar to mine and I received over 15 OCIs in 2L. A B (or two or three or ten) will not ruin you. Congratulations on completing first semester, focus on growth and learning and you'll come out the other end with all doors open to you (and most importantly, none are currently closed for you). 

Finally, it's not about working "harder," it's about working smarter. I went from doing every reading in first semester 1L to putting away the books to focus on class notes and summaries and my grades improved dramatically. I also prioritized practice exams and made sure to start early in the semester. These strategies are not a golden ticket to As, but are just illustrative that you need to find your own strategies which will take trial and error. If anything, the effort I put in 3L is dramatically reduced from 1L after finding a system that worked for me. The same will be true for you with some more law school experience under your belt.

Edited January 18 by omigone

[BlockedQuebecois]

The above isn’t really how Osgoode’s grading system works.

In reality, basically every 1L professor pushes the curve as high as possible, such that ~14 students get an A (of which 4 or 5 will be an A+) and only 10 students get a C (of which all but 3 will be a C+). 

None of that takes away from the fact that the OP did perfectly fine and is basically the platonic ideal of a median student at this stage. 

[omigone]

13 minutes ago, BlockedQuebecois said:

The above isn’t really how Osgoode’s grading system works.

In reality, basically every 1L professor pushes the curve as high as possible, such that ~14 students get an A (of which 4 or 5 will be an A+) and only 10 students get a C (of which all but 3 will be a C+). 

None of that takes away from the fact that the OP did perfectly fine and is basically the platonic ideal of a median student at this stage. 

Not sure the math fully maths on this one, as the GRC only permits an instructor "a maximum variation of 5% of the assigned profile" (https://www.osgoode.yorku.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Understanding-the-Academic-Rules-1L-Presentation-2021-FINAL.pdf).

BQ you could be an instructor at Osgoode and I could be fully off about this, but this is how it was presented to us. A maximum 5% deviation on the entire profile, not for each letter grade. Either way, instructors are going to do their best to push the maximum amount of As and the least amount of Cs.

[scooter]

I'm not sure I understand what you mean about the entire profile vs each letter grade. You can't have a 5% change in one grade without an equivalent change in other grades, because there are a fixed number of students. An increase in one necessarily means a decrease in another.

[omigone]

21 minutes ago, scooter said:

I'm not sure I understand what you mean about the entire profile vs each letter grade. You can't have a 5% change in one grade without an equivalent change in other grades, because there are a fixed number of students. An increase in one necessarily means a decrease in another.

Not necessarily. If you are a prof that decides to not give D grades (and bump the A's by 5%) you would have a profile that reads:

20% - A+/A
60% - B+/B
20% - C+/C

In this case the C and B grades as a relative percentage would remain unchanged, while an increase in A's would necessarily require a decrease (elimination) in Ds.

Anyways, apologies for the tangent on the profile here. It's a minor point and I could be wrong about this. I don't mean to get hung up on this as at the end of the day its only a difference of a few students and doesn't change OP's circumstances.

Edited January 19 by omigone

[beatthecurve]

 

1 hour ago, omigone said:

Not sure the math fully maths on this one, as the GRC only permits an instructor "a maximum variation of 5% of the assigned profile" (https://www.osgoode.yorku.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Understanding-the-Academic-Rules-1L-Presentation-2021-FINAL.pdf).

BQ you could be an instructor at Osgoode and I could be fully off about this, but this is how it was presented to us. A maximum 5% deviation on the entire profile, not for each letter grade. Either way, instructors are going to do their best to push the maximum amount of As and the least amount of Cs.

Under the same impression here that the variation was for the "plus range" within each grade profile, not for the letter category.

"Beginning in Fall 2015, the following grading profile was used for courses with more than 30 students.
Up to one-third of grades in the A and B range could be designated as a "plus" grade and up to two-thirds of grades in the C range could be designated as a "plus" grade." 

[BlockedQuebecois]

1 hour ago, beatthecurve said:

Under the same impression here that the variation was for the "plus range" within each grade profile, not for the letter category.

"Beginning in Fall 2015, the following grading profile was used for courses with more than 30 students.
Up to one-third of grades in the A and B range could be designated as a "plus" grade and up to two-thirds of grades in the C range could be designated as a "plus" grade." 

The 5% variation does not relate to the "plus" grades. Professors have no obligation to award any "plus" grades. That is clear from the fact that the wording is "up to one-third..." rather than "between 28% and 33%..."