Grading

Three things go into your course grade:

  1. Final Exam
  2. Problem sets
  3. Quizzes

  The course grade will combine these in the following way[1]:

 

Grade = 0.30 x (avg. best 3 quizzes) + 0.20 x (avg. best 3 problem sets) + 0.5 x Final exam

 

In order to get a pass grade, all students should get a mark of at least 7,5 (out of 20,0) in the final exam.

Most exam questions will be in the same format and level of difficulty as the assignments, although it will important to have in mind that time pressure can make things more complicated.

Final exam is compulsory.

Assignments: There will be four problem sets distributed throughout the semester. They will typically be made available on a Thursday/Friday and will be due the following Monday morning at 12.00 am[2]. The course policy will be not to accept late assignments or grant extensions: a late assignment will translate into a grade of zero. In addition, there will be four short quizzes to be solved in short periods of time periods (normally, 15/20 minutes) during theoretical lectures.

Problem sets and quizzes share two main purposes: help students to structure their work and check the corresponding progress, on one side, and allow a quasi-continuous assessment of this evolution by the teaching team, on the other. The questions and problems used will be similar in complexity to those used in “practice lectures” (tutorials).

Quizzes are considered individual work and should be understood as such. Problem sets might be solved in groups, defined during the first week of classes. If you select to work within a group, each person is asked to list the members of the group atop their submission.



[1] Please note that, except for the ER exam, the course grade will always be calculated using this formula. Naturally, if one of the components is missed, it will be assessed with a 0.

[2] This timing might change from one problem set to another.