Doh.

I'd never heard that....classic!

Just to add, many of the competitive graduate jobs require you to have a 2:1. It would be more difficult to find a job that places importance on good academics with a 2:2.

FYI:

According to the UK government's 1997 National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education (Dearing Report):

"The American high school diploma compares in standard with GCSE and the
associate degree with GCE A-level and Advanced GNVQ, the bachelor’s degree with a UK pass degree or higher national diploma and the Master’s degree with a bachelor’s honours degree from a British university."

Wow!! does that mean my 2:2 BSc Hons is the same as a Masters???

Minus 32 times by .555555555555

Not in most people's books, I don't think. I didn't realise teh Dearing report had that sort of statement in it, but generally-speaking in practice that is incorrect.

From my experience this could be open to some negotiation. I came back from America with a high school diploma and was accepted into University in England (although with a little bit of convincing i'd be ok) - they didn't make me do any intermediate steps like AS/A Levels. It's hard to understand why a HS diploma would only be worth GCSE's

Conversely, one of my close friends got high marks in her matric (sp?) in SA and was told she had to do A levels as recently as a few years ago when she came to the UK and when a member of my family was studying in his first year of "A" levels in 95, his parents showed a geology teacher at Brum Uni the work he was expected to do and the teacher said that it was along the lines of what he expected his first year undergraduates to do, not a sixth form student. GCSEs roughly being a GED/HSD doesn't surprise me at all.

That could be similar to AP courses that students can do in HS that counts as university credits

Just out of interest, do you know if there is a vague correlation between US GPA and the degree scale mentioned here as used in the UK?
For example, any idea what a 3.25 grade point average would mean? Were it not for one incomplete class, they'd have given me honors with that score. Grumble, grumble.

Ta.

Post number 6 about sums it up:

A = 4.0 = 1st
B = 3.0 = 2:1
C = 2.0 = 2:2
D = 1.0 = 3rd

- I'd say a 3.25 overall GPA is about a 2:1 ... but in reality it depends on what university and what major. Getting high grades in physics is a lot more difficult than in, say, media studies.

Isn't there some correlation between Magna Cum Dingdong and Summa Cum Latte or whatever between 1st Class and 2:1 Honors or thereabouts!!!

Yes, and "Thank You Lordy" equates to a 3rd.

I forget exactly, but the Summa, Magna, and Cum Laude equate to something like GPA > 3.9, 3.75 and 3.5 ... approximately. It varies between institutions (some require a 4.0 for summa, for example), and some have extra requirements (e.g., an honours thesis) for these classifications.