Grade of "A": Exceptional/Excellent

• Thorough, thoughtful, and thought provoking treatment of the topic.
• Logical and convincing expression of ideas.
• Clearly articulated thesis (statement of position on topic)/opinion that leaves no doubt as to what the writer thinks and why.
• Ideas are original and complex and developed in depth.
• Carefully and appropriately uses pertinent examples to illustrate points/support argument.
• Free of grammatical or stylistic problems.
• Easy to follow because of good organization, structure, word choice.
• Clarity and eloquence.

Grade of "B": Above Average

• Pretty good in most ways, but generally less thoughtful and articulate than A work.
• Often B papers are those which mostly parrot back what the professor and readings have to say or what others think rather than expressing unique/original thoughts and ideas.
• Thesis (statement of position on topic)/opinion is articulated but not enough substantive support is provided to explain it fully.
• Good points were made, but there were a few vague or underdeveloped points that needed more substantive support to flesh out ideas.
• Follows directions and understands the concepts but doesn't discuss them in ample detail.
• Gave a report from other sources or developed a topic rather than a thesis.
• Writing style may be less fluid or sophisticated than the A paper's.
• A few grammatical and stylistic problems, but the discussion is still quite competent as well as easy to follow.

Grade of "C" : Average

• Demonstrates an understanding of most of the concepts involved in the assignment but may not have read assigned topic very thoroughly or followed directions completely.
• May identify a thesis(statement of position on topic)/opinion, but doesn't thoroughly explore reasoning or expresses it in a confusing, ambiguous/vague manner.
• Has relied too heavily on outside sources or the opinions of others.
• Key points are made but there is little support for them, so discussion remains shallow &/or treatment of topic seems superficial.
• Lacks specific details and pertinent examples to flesh out ideas.
• Writing is comprehensible but often awkward due to language usage &/or stylistic problems as well as grammatical &/or punctuation errors that make understanding ideas difficult.

Grade of "D": Below Average

• Seriously flawed, poor quality work.
• States the obvious or makes points that remain unclear &/or unsupported.
• Thoughtless, underdeveloped, or careless treatment of topic with no thesis (statement of position on topic)/opinion expressed.
• Demonstrates little understanding of the topic with a rather shallow exploration of the material.
• Argument is incoherent due to lack of detail &/or language usage problems.
• Thoughts wander aimlessly among several ideas without developing any single one.
• Relies entirely too heavily on others' work, rather than developing her/his own ideas.
• Lacks revision &/or editing with lots of typos and/or jumbled thoughts.
• Writing makes the professor wonder if the student even read the assignment or applied himself/herself at all.

Grade of "F": Fails to meet standards for college level work.

• Little redemptive appears in F work.
• Fails to address the assignment in fundamental ways.
• Fails to follow directions/guidelines of the assignment.
• Fails to state thesis (statement of position on topic) &/or leaves opinion completely uninformed &/or unsupported.
• Shallow or confusing treatment of topic.
• Writing is mostly stream-of-consciousness with not attempt to be coherent or logical.
• Not enough detail to comprehend points.
• Used outside sources without proper MLA citation. (This may also constitute plagiarism, and, in turn, may call for disciplinary action. See syllabus for details.)
• Language problems so severe that it's difficult or impossible to comprehend ideas.
• Thankfully, few students do so poorly that they earn F 's.