By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Sep 12: Postgraduate (PG) students from the 2022 batch of NEHU-affiliated colleges have given Vice Chancellor Prof Prabha Shankar Shukla a two-day deadline to address their concerns regarding the low grades awarded in their recent results. The students submitted a petition to the Vice Chancellor’s office, expressing frustration over the grading system introduced in February 2023, which they claim has negatively impacted their results.
The current grading system, which assigns grades based on percentage ranges, has sparked outrage among students. The system follows this scale — For letter grade ‘O’ (Outstanding), students are awarded 9 to 10 grade point, which is equivalent to 90-100%; for ‘A’ (Excellent), it is 8 to 9 grade point or 80-90%. Similarly, letter grade ‘B’ (Very Good) translates to 7 to 8 grade point and 70-80%, letter ‘C’ (Good) is 6 to 7 grade point and 60-70%, letter ‘D’ (Average) is 5 to 6 grade point and 50-60%, letter ‘E’ (Pass) is 4 to 5 grade point and 40-50%, and letter ‘F’ (Fail) is given below 4 grade point and equals below 40%.
Students argue that the system, which places higher grade thresholds, unfairly penalises those who would have performed better under the previous grading structure. For instance, a student previously awarded a ‘C’ for scores between 45-55%, now requires a 60-70% score for the same grade.
The students urged the university to implement the new grading system approved by the Academic Council in June 2024 for the 2022 batch. They argued that as students of the 2023-2024 academic session, they should benefit from the updated system.
“How do only the students of the first batch of NEP syllabus have to bear the negative impact of a faulty grading system? It is very unfortunate for us,” the students rued.
They stated, “In fact, we the students of batch 2022 were the final year students of the Academic Session 2023-2024; and since the Academic Council resolved to make the new system effective from that Session, we should not be excluded from its purview,”.
The students also emphasised the urgency of resolving the issue, stating that the current grading system jeopardises their future academic and career prospects, particularly when applying to universities and job opportunities that may only consider letter grades rather than percentage scores.
Countering a possible argument that this grading system would not affect their career as the university will indicate the percentage of marks in the mark sheets, the students explained, “However, such claims will not relieve the worries of many of us who have to apply for further studies in other universities in India and abroad; and especially for job applications,” they said.
They pointed out that there are several universities, as well as various government departments which require for a column dedicated for letter grade and not for percentage of marks to be filled in the prescribed format whether it was for application to join a course or job application.
“Such institutions, departments or corporations will not bother to see the details of marks, hence applicants having with only grade ‘C’ ‘D’ or ‘E’ will be rejected and victimised. In such cases, our career will be affected very badly,” the PG students added.
In their petition, the students requested an urgent meeting of the Academic Council if the issue cannot be resolved administratively, urging the university to rectify what they describe as an unfair system.