Disproportionate unit counts skew grade point averages

Currently, I am taking 18 units. My roommate is also taking 18 units. I do my fair share of studying and homework; he does his fair share, and then some ““ and then some more. Our differences in workload provide an excellent example of how flawed the unit system is at UCLA. This system seems instead to be numbers randomly assigned by the whims of administrators.

The inconsistencies with the unit system may seem like a trivial problem, but they creates unfairness in grade point average calculations. The disparities cause problems when students are deciding which classes to take next quarter and determining their workloads. Unit counts should be adjusted to reflect a more equitable, work-based system.

Students should consider the impact on GPA calculations when thinking about the lack of equity within the current unit system. GPAs are important in graduate schools applications. In our unit system, difficult and time-consuming classes with lower unit values can very easily lead to low overall GPAs.

John Mac, first-year chemical engineering student, is currently taking three classes and two labs. Since his labs are requisites for his major, he is required to put a fair amount of time into them. For his two-unit lab, he works about 10 hours a week.

While he may get an A in that two-unit class, think about how the workload compares to the work he puts into his four- or five-unit classes.

“Units seem to be assigned disproportionately to the amount of work put into the class,” Mac said.

Under the current system, Mac would have better served his GPA by spending more time on an easier General Education class. Instead, because he had to learn the material for his major, he was forced to work harder on a less important class. The difficulty of Mac’s major is compounded by the fact that harder classes are typically weighted as less work than easier classes.

Since students are not able to accurately estimate workload by units when planning their quarters, they must guess how much work they will have when figuring out class schedules.

The university should act quickly to remedy a situation that affects students’ grades and scheduling. For a two-unit class to require as much work as a four-unit class is simply ridiculous. The unit system must be changed to make grades at the university more fair, an issue that has an immediate impact on students’ lives.

By implementing a new system, students’ GPA will improve and will actually fairly reflect students’ grades and work effort. In an improved system, classes would ideally be audited.

Unit values would then be assigned, reflecting the amount of work a class has in actuality. With this system, students would, instead of being punished for taking harder classes, be rewarded with the due amount of GPA recognition.

While the university may face more important issues today, a problem as small as this can have a large impact on individual students.

For students stressed about their GPA, a small change such as this can do a great deal in order to boost their grades and confidence, and at the same time provide a fairer system with which to evaluate the academic prowess of students.

If you’re working too hard, e-mail Feeney at [email protected]. Send general comments to [email protected].