James Flores

The passing grade in the American system is relatively higher than the Australian passing mark (50) and the reason why I brought this up is to give my opinion on how they grade differently. Below is the American system:

* A = Excellent or Superior; or top 10% (90 to 100) = 4.0
* B = Above Average; or second 10% (80-89) = 3.0
* C = Average; or third 10% (70-79) = 2.0
* D = Below average, minimum passing grade (60-69); or fourth 10% = 1.00
* E/F (or any of a number of other symbols) = Failure or Exceptionally Poor; or bottom 60% (0-68) = 0.00

The Australian system:

* HD (High Distinction) 85% and above
* D (Distinction) 75-84%
* Cr (Credit Pass) 65-74%
* P (Pass) 50-64%
* F1 (Fail level 1) 45-49%
* F2 (Fail level 2) below 45%

I tend to think about the grades being relative. This means that my view of getting a 50 back home is equivalent to a 70 in the US. The thing is that getting an A is an achievable task if you do the required work, whereas getting HD's back home require exceptional work. In any case, why can't we all just agree on one system