Asking for Extra Credit
Ask early. If you are asking for extra credit after the final exam, your professor or teacher is less likely to think about your request. If you see you are doing poorly in the class halfway through the semester, don't wait until the final week to ask. See what you can do right away, and your professor or teacher might be more willing to help you.
Be exceptionally polite. You are asking the professor to do extra work. Therefore, you need to approach your professor with respect and deference, as it is up to her whether or not to grant your request. For instance, you could begin by saying, "I appreciate you taking the time to see me. I know you have a busy schedule. I have a request to make that I realize may make more work for you, but I do have a legitimate reason for my request."
Have a compelling reason. Most professors and teachers will be more lenient if you have a legitimate reason for missing a class or an assignment. For instance, if you were sick and had to miss several class periods, your instructor might be willing to give you extra credit or let you make up work. Similarly, if you have a close family member who is seriously ill, some teachers will take that under consideration. Work may be a legitimate excuse for some but not others. Have paperwork to back up your excuse if possible. For instance, you could take in a doctor's note or your work schedule. You can make your case by saying something to this effect: "I realize I've missed some classes, and I would really like to make that up with some extra credit so that I can learn the material properly. I know that typically you do not give extra credit. However, I did have some extenuating circumstances. My grandmother had a heart attack and was in the hospital. I drove down to see her and to provide support for my mom."
Go in person. Many students make pleas for extra credit by email. It's easy for a professor or teacher to delete your email. It's not as easy to dismiss you in person. Make an appointment, or drop by during the professor's or teacher's office hours.
Ask about a specific grade. If you really want to just make up a bad grade or test, ask specifically about that. Maybe you can retake the test or redo the work to make up some of the points. Often, you won't be able to get full credit back, but your teacher may be willing to give you partial credit. This request works well early in the semester, especially if you are a freshman in college or taking a difficult course in high school. You're trying to learn a new style of writing, testing, and grading that is more difficult, so your professor or teacher may be more lenient as you learn. You can approach your teacher by saying something to the effect of "I was surprised that I did so poorly on this essay. I usually do well. I want to learn what it takes to do better in this class. I would love to hear your feedback and have the opportunity to rewrite this paper."
Try making a case for the whole class. If you notice that most everyone did bad on a recent exam, try asking your teacher about extra credit for the whole class. She may be more willing to grant it if the opportunity is offered to everyone. Have something in mind before approaching her. Maybe you could go to a campus lecture related to the class and write a short paragraph about attending. Another option is to do a community service project related to the class. For instance, you could say, "I know we all did pretty bad on the last exam. Is there anyway we could get some extra credit as a class? I found a great opportunity where we could volunteer, and it's related to our class material. I'd be willing to sign in people for the opportunity."
Understand why your teacher may not want to give you extra credit. Asking for extra credit implies you haven't done earlier work or you did poorly. Your teacher may just think you're after the grade and you don't really care about learning. In addition, your teacher likely will not want to offer you an extra credit opportunity that she doesn't offer to the rest of the class. Other teachers may feel that extra credit takes away from your regular work.
Paying Attention to Opportunities Offered to You
Check your syllabus. If you're in a college course, your professor will hand you a syllabus at the beginning of the semester. Often, if the professor is going to offer extra credit, she will put it on the syllabus somewhere. She may go over it at the beginning of the semester, but she may not. Take the time to read your syllabus. In a high school class, your teacher may tell you about projects you can do for extra credit at the beginning of the school year. Make notes about those projects, and ask your teacher for more information if you feel like she didn't provide enough details.
Pay attention in class. Your teacher or professor may offer opportunities throughout the semester or school year. These opportunities could be anything from an extra project to attending a concert related to class material. Try to take advantage of these opportunities even if you don't think you'll need them.
Look for bonus questions on tests. Study hard for tests, and pay attention to extra material in the class. Teachers and professors will often offer bonus questions on tests. These questions are sometimes harder than the regular questions or may make use of some minuscule detail. Other times, they may be something silly and have an obvious, easy answer. Take advantage of them.
Avoiding Needing Extra Credit
Give your best effort. Make sure you put as much effort as you can in to each assignment. Go over it to look for mistakes, and make sure you've mastered the material. If you mastered the material for your homework assignments and essays, you'll have an easier time when it comes to studying for tests.
Show up to class. If throughout the semester you've been showing up to class, you've shown your professor you're committed. However, don't just show up--participate. Engage in the discussions that your professor is facilitating. Ask questions when you have them. Show your professor that you care about learning, not just about your grade. In addition, you'll learn more by being engaged, and your grades will go up. Plus, some professors make attendance part of your grade, so you can literally improve your grade just by being there. Also, by paying attention, you'll get a sense of your professor's personality and expectations. Knowing those two things can help you when you go to ask for extra credit, and they'll also help you write better for that professor when given essays.
Take good notes in class. Try to jot down the main ideas while your professor is lecturing. Your professor will cover what she thinks is most important, so those notes will help you when get around to taking a test or writing an essay.
Do the reading ahead of time. You can't participate well without doing the work and without studying hard. Your education is your job. Like a job, you should expect to put in 40 hours a week. In high school, that may mean you're studying 4 to 5 hours a night, but in college, that definitely means you need to put in 5 hours of studying a night on weeknights. Take notes on the chapter. Try to capture important themes. The headings in the chapter should give you an idea of what is most important. Jot down questions. If the teacher doesn't cover what you don't understand, ask her about it during class.
Turn in your homework on time. Turning in your homework with ample time takes some planning. If you have trouble with that kind of planning, get a student planner and record all your assignments in it. Add in reminders for when you need to start working on an assignment. Turning in your homework improves your grade, helps you learn the material, and shows you are committed.
Learn your study style. Whether your a visual learner, an auditory learner, a tactile learner, or something in between, use it to your advantage. If you're a tactile learner, make sure to incorporate it into your studying. Maybe you need to write notes when you're first learning material or even re-write them when you are studying for a test. If you're auditory, maybe your best bet is to read aloud or be read to. Many ebooks have a read aloud option, so you can use that to help you learn.
Study for tests, and learn to take them well. Tests are often a large part of your grade. However, not everyone knows how to study for tests, and not everyone takes tests well. You can, however, teach yourself to do better on tests. Plan what you need to study. Often, your professor or teacher will give you a study guide for your test. If she doesn't, you can still make an outline by using the syllabus or textbook. Look at the major ideas, and decide how much detail you need to go into for your test. Remember, it's always best to study what you know the least about. If you know something really well, don't spend as much time reviewing it. Have a plan for the test. If you think you'll forget something, write it down when you first get the test. Skip questions you don't know. You can always come back to them later if you have time. For multiple choice, come up with an answer before looking at the answer choices, while for essay questions or short answers, make a small plan for the points you want to include. Finally, always be sure to read all questions carefully. You don't want to miss a question you know just because you were rushing through the test.
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