What grades am I meant to be getting?

I'm a second year law student at Oxford and my current grade average is about 65, sometimes I get 68/69 and sometimes I get as low as 61/62 but I've never got a first. The thing is, I know my grades are alright and aren't bad but they aren't really good either. I study for around 8 hours a day 6 days a week and I just feel so inadequate because I am still only getting alright rather than good grades. I know the thing is to study effectively rather than for long hours but that is just how long it takes me to do the reading and write my essays, if I cut back on the time at all I would be leaving out essential pieces of reading.

I feel like my whole life is just setting up for failure. I don't do any extra curriculars because I spend all my time just trying to stay on top of my degree whereas when I ask other people they are doing volunteer work with law firms or are constantly networking. I haven't applied for any vacation schemes yet because I have a year abroad so am planning to do them summer 2025 but I feel like I will get rejected from all of them because I'm just too inadequate. Average grades and no extra curriculars/networking won't get me anywhere.

I just want to succeed and feel alright about myself. I have no social life (a bit because of the studying and a bit because I give off a weird vibe that makes people immediately not want to be friends with me - hard to explain but not really relevant here lol) so this degree is the only thing I really have and I can't even succeed at that.

I just posted this to rant into the void. I've posted about similar things here and the comments follow two threads. One is that I will never succeed with this attitude and should just drop out - I don't want to drop out because Oxford was always my dream uni and I'm not willing to let go of that, also it's better to have a 2:1 than no degree at all. The other kind of comment is that I should see some sort of therapist - I don't want to.

I guess I'm just looking for advice on how to improve my grades/push myself to get a first or on how to find other opportunities/extra curriculars that will make up for my grades and still allow me to succeed.

Original post by Anonymous #1

I'm a second year law student at Oxford and my current grade average is about 65, sometimes I get 68/69 and sometimes I get as low as 61/62 but I've never got a first. The thing is, I know my grades are alright and aren't bad but they aren't really good either. I study for around 8 hours a day 6 days a week and I just feel so inadequate because I am still only getting alright rather than good grades. I know the thing is to study effectively rather than for long hours but that is just how long it takes me to do the reading and write my essays, if I cut back on the time at all I would be leaving out essential pieces of reading.

I feel like my whole life is just setting up for failure. I don't do any extra curriculars because I spend all my time just trying to stay on top of my degree whereas when I ask other people they are doing volunteer work with law firms or are constantly networking. I haven't applied for any vacation schemes yet because I have a year abroad so am planning to do them summer 2025 but I feel like I will get rejected from all of them because I'm just too inadequate. Average grades and no extra curriculars/networking won't get me anywhere.

I just want to succeed and feel alright about myself. I have no social life (a bit because of the studying and a bit because I give off a weird vibe that makes people immediately not want to be friends with me - hard to explain but not really relevant here lol) so this degree is the only thing I really have and I can't even succeed at that.

I just posted this to rant into the void. I've posted about similar things here and the comments follow two threads. One is that I will never succeed with this attitude and should just drop out - I don't want to drop out because Oxford was always my dream uni and I'm not willing to let go of that, also it's better to have a 2:1 than no degree at all. The other kind of comment is that I should see some sort of therapist - I don't want to.

I guess I'm just looking for advice on how to improve my grades/push myself to get a first or on how to find other opportunities/extra curriculars that will make up for my grades and still allow me to succeed.

Hi @Anonymous #1,

Firstly want to say that you shouldn't be discouraged by the grades you are already getting as they are amazing and a 2:1 is something to be proud of. But I do understand that you want the best grade possible and to make the most out of your degree by getting a 1st. Have you tried talking to your tutor/lecturers about how you can improve? or looking back at feedback you are getting from previous assignments? or even talking to the other people in your class which are achieving the grades you want to see what they are including? They might be able to tell you what you're not adding in these assignments to get those top grades you want.

In terms of other people in your class volunteering at law firms this might be something you should look into as having real world experience can be just as beneficial or even more than just studying and learning the theory at university. You are able to learn things which you might not do within your degree and give you that first hand experience, you'll not only be able to put what you have learnt into practise but learn new skills. Volunteering at law firms also allows you to gain valuable networking skills and meet like minded people which is beneficial as they might be able to help you in the long run.

Hope this helps🙂
Louise - University of Wolverhampton Rep

Original post by Anonymous #1

I'm a second year law student at Oxford and my current grade average is about 65, sometimes I get 68/69 and sometimes I get as low as 61/62 but I've never got a first. The thing is, I know my grades are alright and aren't bad but they aren't really good either. I study for around 8 hours a day 6 days a week and I just feel so inadequate because I am still only getting alright rather than good grades. I know the thing is to study effectively rather than for long hours but that is just how long it takes me to do the reading and write my essays, if I cut back on the time at all I would be leaving out essential pieces of reading.

I feel like my whole life is just setting up for failure. I don't do any extra curriculars because I spend all my time just trying to stay on top of my degree whereas when I ask other people they are doing volunteer work with law firms or are constantly networking. I haven't applied for any vacation schemes yet because I have a year abroad so am planning to do them summer 2025 but I feel like I will get rejected from all of them because I'm just too inadequate. Average grades and no extra curriculars/networking won't get me anywhere.

I just want to succeed and feel alright about myself. I have no social life (a bit because of the studying and a bit because I give off a weird vibe that makes people immediately not want to be friends with me - hard to explain but not really relevant here lol) so this degree is the only thing I really have and I can't even succeed at that.

I just posted this to rant into the void. I've posted about similar things here and the comments follow two threads. One is that I will never succeed with this attitude and should just drop out - I don't want to drop out because Oxford was always my dream uni and I'm not willing to let go of that, also it's better to have a 2:1 than no degree at all. The other kind of comment is that I should see some sort of therapist - I don't want to.

I guess I'm just looking for advice on how to improve my grades/push myself to get a first or on how to find other opportunities/extra curriculars that will make up for my grades and still allow me to succeed.

Hi there,

I can't comment on Oxford specifically but I can share my advice on getting the best grades you possibly can!

My number one tip is to talk to your tutors. They tend to be the ones who mark your work and if not they will know what needs to be included so talking to them will give you. a good idea of what needs to be included in a successful assignment. Explain that you are aiming for a first and see if they can look through your work and show you what might need doing to improve your work. If you have a personal tutor or advisor (at Hallam we have academic advisors so if you have something similar to this) then I would also suggest setting up a meeting with them and seeing if they can also look over your grades and tell you what you need to do to improve and how you can get consistently high grades that reflect the effort you are putting in.

I would also say that although it is good that you are putting a lot of work in, you also need to give yourself breaks! If you are constantly studying then it can sometimes be too much at once. I have found that allowing myself breaks to socialise etc helps me to be more focused and productive when I do sit down to work. so try not to be too hard on yourself and allow yourself the breaks you need!

I hope some of this helps,
Lucy -SHU student ambassador.

Reply 3

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

2:1 grades at Oxford are good. Averaging a good 2:1 and high 2:1 results is definitely good. A 2:1 is not an "average" grade and the fact you think so does not change that. You need to re-calibrate what you think are "good" vs "average" results in uni and realise it's not like school where anything less than an A* is "average" (which is not true in a school context either but I think more likely than not you are one of those types that thought that).

Also you need to re-align your expectations to those of others - specifically employers. For working as a solicitor a 1st isn't going to make a difference anyway, you have a 2:1 or above you tick that box on the recruiter's sheet and they start looking at other things in your application. You should however be looking at getting work experience/vacation schemes etc during the breaks between terms wherever possible. As that will make a difference, and not having that is going to be a major barrier.

There's also no reason to wait before pursuing any kind of work experience - even short shadowing opportunities, doing some more basic work in the court systems etc to demonstrate more familiarity with and engagement in your planned career. Plus, crucially, being able to demonstrate on paper that you did the work experience and therefore are actually capable of turning up on time every day and doing what is tasked to you!

In any event, whether you wish to see a therapist or not is up to you, and wouldn't have really been my first thought anyway. You may of course want to discuss with your GP and they may be able to make some suggestions although ultimately it's up to you whether you want to follow up on any of those. But you should definitely speak with your personal tutor about things, as they can provide some much more insightful comments on the situation and also should be able to contextualise your performance well so that you can understand you are doing well, as it will be someone who knows better than anyone if you are or not.

Considering dropping out because you're "only" getting good to high 2:1 grades is one of the most patently ridiculous things I've read on this website though and really speaks to the depths of your cognitive biases in how you are seeing things from a very warped perspective though. Which is something you need to address one way or another.

(edited 2 months ago)

Reply 4

Anonymous #1

OP

Original post by artful_lounger

2:1 grades at Oxford are good. Averaging a good 2:1 and high 2:1 results is definitely good. A 2:1 is not an "average" grade and the fact you think so does not change that. You need to re-calibrate what you think are "good" vs "average" results in uni and realise it's not like school where anything less than an A* is "average" (which is not true in a school context either but I think more likely than not you are one of those types that thought that).

Also you need to re-align your expectations to those of others - specifically employers. For working as a solicitor a 1st isn't going to make a difference anyway, you have a 2:1 or above you tick that box on the recruiter's sheet and they start looking at other things in your application. You should however be looking at getting work experience/vacation schemes etc during the breaks between terms wherever possible. As that will make a difference, and not having that is going to be a major barrier.

There's also no reason to wait before pursuing any kind of work experience - even short shadowing opportunities, doing some more basic work in the court systems etc to demonstrate more familiarity with and engagement in your planned career. Plus, crucially, being able to demonstrate on paper that you did the work experience and therefore are actually capable of turning up on time every day and doing what is tasked to you!

In any event, whether you wish to see a therapist or not is up to you, and wouldn't have really been my first thought anyway. You may of course want to discuss with your GP and they may be able to make some suggestions although ultimately it's up to you whether you want to follow up on any of those. But you should definitely speak with your personal tutor about things, as they can provide some much more insightful comments on the situation and also should be able to contextualise your performance well so that you can understand you are doing well, as it will be someone who knows better than anyone if you are or not.

Considering dropping out because you're "only" getting good to high 2:1 grades is one of the most patently ridiculous things I've read on this website though and really speaks to the depths of your cognitive biases in how you are seeing things from a very warped perspective though. Which is something you need to address one way or another.

My tutors aren't that helpful with things like that, I've asked how to get better grades and my tutor just told me to do practice questions and read more (which I'm already doing)

Reply 5

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by Anonymous

My tutors aren't that helpful with things like that, I've asked how to get better grades and my tutor just told me to do practice questions and read more (which I'm already doing)

I don't mean ask them about how to get good grades, I mean talk to them about how you feel you aren't getting good results. They should be able to put you straight if they're any good...

Reply 6

Anonymous #1

OP

Original post by artful_lounger

I don't mean ask them about how to get good grades, I mean talk to them about how you feel you aren't getting good results. They should be able to put you straight if they're any good...