Law degree workload (1 Viewer)

pete shearman

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<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">how does one obtain high distinctions and distinctions when everyone doing law is naturally smart, and most likely, driven to succeed? i did university history 2006 whilst in year 12 and the 88 average mark i achieved wasn't too difficult. is law a world apart from arts in competition?</TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on">
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_dhj_

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Yes it's more competitive and only a small percentage of students would end up with 88 or higher, but obviously if you're smart and put a decent amount of work in anything is achievable.
 

neo o

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I think that it's a statistical impossibility to get 88 at ANU. :(
 

melsc

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In first year I found a D very hard to achieve, I'd always miss it by 2% or less which is very frustrating. I managed a HD and am not sure how but I am hoping that this year it will be easier to scrape a D.
 

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pete shearman said:
how does one obtain high distinctions and distinctions when everyone doing law is naturally smart, and most likely, driven to succeed? i did university history 2006 whilst in year 12 and the 88 average mark i achieved wasn't too difficult. is law a world apart from arts in competition?
The average mark in law is far less than that I'm afraid!

Here are some past grade distributions at UNSW from the first semester of 2006.

You can see the percentage of people attaining each grade.

Each grade's cut-off is:

HD = 85+
D = 75-84
C = 65-74
P = 50-64
 

MoonlightSonata

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Also note that the average in arts is not an HD grade either -- attaining high grades at university level is far more difficult than the HSC, or a uni-HSC course.
 
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LaraB

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pete shearman said:
<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">how does one obtain high distinctions and distinctions when everyone doing law is naturally smart, and most likely, driven to succeed? i did university history 2006 whilst in year 12 and the 88 average mark i achieved wasn't too difficult. is law a world apart from arts in competition?</TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on">
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i

The "university" subjects that you can do whilst still in year 12 seem to mark much less harshly than "real" uni does... perhaps that could be why it appeared easy to achieve.. or perhaps you were all just natural geniuses lol :p
 

pete shearman

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sorry if my post was ambiguous. i 'averaged' 88. 88 was not the 'average mark'. 80+ was an HD at melbourne. we competed against first year uni students. also, it was my opinion that one of the essay markers was much harsher than all the others. it seemed lucky if you were able to avoid that marker through the year because your average stayed intact.
 
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pmtennis

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hmm i found this info which might be interesting:

this is for monash uni

HD 5-10% of cohort (HD =80+)
D next 10-20% of cohort (D=70-79)
C next 25-30% of cohor (C = 60-69)

and also, do they mark u harder in the assessments than in the exams in law?

so to get a decent D (75) would mean u'd want to be in the top 20-25% of the cohort, which isn't tooooo difficult if u really want it and study hard i am guessing?
 
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wheredanton

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pmtennis said:
hmm i found this info which might be interesting:

this is for monash uni

HD 5-10% of cohort (HD =80+)
D next 10-20% of cohort (D=70-79)
C next 25-30% of cohor (C = 60-69)

and also, do they mark u harder in the assessments than in the exams in law?

so to get a decent D (75) would mean u'd want to be in the top 20-25% of the cohort, which isn't tooooo difficult if u really want it and study hard i am guessing?
Odd mark cutt offs at monash. i think most unis D's start at 75...
 

goan_crazy

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wheredanton said:
Odd mark cutt offs at monash. i think most unis D's start at 75...
Yeah they are...

At most unis it is:
its P: 50-64
C: 65-74
D: 75-84
HD: 85-100
 

BobB

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pmtennis said:
hmm i found this info which might be interesting:

this is for monash uni

HD 5-10% of cohort (HD =80+)
D next 10-20% of cohort (D=70-79)
C next 25-30% of cohor (C = 60-69)

and also, do they mark u harder in the assessments than in the exams in law?

so to get a decent D (75) would mean u'd want to be in the top 20-25% of the cohort, which isn't tooooo difficult if u really want it and study hard i am guessing?
Sort of a difficult question to answer given that that's an odd system of marks - every other uni i've encountered follows the standard HD = 85+, D = 75-84, C = 65-74, P = 50-64...

So, to translate into the more usual terms - to get a decent D which would be high 70s/80 ish - it's not a matter of being in a certain bracket of the student body neessarily.

If you attend a uni that still believes in bell curving, then yes, somewhere in the top 15% (to be safe) would usually get you a D.

If you are at one of the more practical and logical unis lol who've gotten over the principle of bell curving and instead actually awards the marks that people deserve, then it has nothing to do with percentile ranges. Just a matter of the quality of yoru work.

The best way to get an idea is to look at past unit outlines or faculty websites- they usually have the table that shows the "criteria" for each mark bracket.

That said though - rarely will you find HD coprises 5-10% - that'[s far too large a group to represent the principle of a HD - i.e. a work above and beyond that stands out from the cohort. In any sensible unit of say, 150 people, you'd probably find a handful only who are given HDS... probably more somewhere arond the 3-5%range.

Keep in mind the bell curve tapers at the top and bottom end so the vast majority will be Ps/Cs.
 
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BobB

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melsc said:
Yep because I got my fair share of 74's, they hurt...
lol your "fair share"?

Aren't you only just starting 2nd year? You haven't been around long enough to hav ea "fair share" of anything :rolleyes: :p

A fair share would be more like my mate who graduated with a bunch of HDs and high range distinctions and 7 x 74 :p
 

goan_crazy

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84 and 83 are worse :(
Got one of those first semester and the other last semester
 

melsc

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BobB said:
lol your "fair share"?

Aren't you only just starting 2nd year? You haven't been around long enough to hav ea "fair share" of anything :rolleyes: :p

A fair share would be more like my mate who graduated with a bunch of HDs and high range distinctions and 7 x 74 :p
Well for each law assignment I did, I got 74% so as a proportion of what I have done its a fair share as well as a few 74's in my other degree...its evil!
 

wheredanton

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melsc said:
Well for each law assignment I did, I got 74% so as a proportion of what I have done its a fair share as well as a few 74's in my other degree...its evil!
Congrats on your transfer to maqu.

But 74's are not that bad. I can think worse mark situations.
 
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