Ask your prof for extra credit (Written by PROF)
I am very glad you came to this website to get some advice about asking your professor for some extra credit to help boost your grade.
You came to the right place because I have 15 years of experience teaching at the college level.
And I cannot count how many times students came to me begging for extra credit. It is a very common way students try to raise their grade.
I know your current state of desperation. And I think it’s entirely possible to recover from your situation.
Some of you might need extra credit JUST TO PASS the course while others are here because they just want a BETTER GRADE.
Don’t worry because I am going to tell you everything you need to know about talking to your professor about getting those few extra points you need.
While I can’t guarantee my tips will help, I can ensure you that you will know how to politely and professionally talk to your professor about extra credit after you read this article.
I will even give you a template of how I would have liked my own students to ask for extra credit.
When you ask for extra credit, it is best to be as detailed as possible. You should outline your challenges, your goals and your requests clearly to your professor. Finally, be prepared to ask for additional ways to boost your grade like making up assignments or getting a redo opportunity. Extra credit isn’t the only option here.
I talk a lot more about these strategies below.
Do professors give students extra credit?
Yes, professors give students extra credit but it isn’t promised as some professors may not allow students to earn extra credit while others may offer it routinely.
Professors are not required to give students the opportunity for extra credit and some have very strict policies against it.
Professors have all the discretion here, which is why my advice isn’t foolproof.
As a professor myself, I’ve had different extra credit policies throughout the years. Sometimes I would allow the opportunity for extra credit while other times I strictly forbid any extra credit.
I tried different things to see what worked best.
But one thing is for sure, MOST PROFESSORS are NOT going to offer extra credit on an individual basis.
This means that professors aren’t going to give one student an opportunity for extra credit and not allow everyone else the same opportunity.
Now, this is just what I have seen in my professional experience and your professor may be really cool and relaxed about it.
Even if your professor is a stickler, it still doesn’t hurt to ask, but how you approach them will make all the difference. Your professor probably doesn’t want to fail you.
So, while it is entirely possible that your professor will hand out extra credit like it’s candy, others could be a lot tougher to crack.
Is it bad to ask professor for extra credit
No, it is not necessarily bad to ask your professor for extra credit but remember that grades are earned and that receiving extra credit might not always be fair if every other student wasn’t given the same opportunity.
As a professor, I got asked by hundreds of students if I would give them extra credit.
When students would ask me, I could understand some of their situations, but oftentimes it was the student who missed a lot of assignments, or just didn’t care about doing the work during the semester.
It can come off as a little entitled when you ask your professor for extra credit when every other student that did good in the class had to work hard for it.
However, if a professor is willing to offer you extra credit, it isn’t bad to ask for it.
And by talking to your professor about your situation, it opens up the discussion for curving grades too. You won’t ever know unless you ask about the possibilities.
How to ask your professor for extra credit
If a college student wants to ask their professor for extra credit opportunities, they should politely approach them and ask them if they were planning on offering any extra credit to students this semester and what their policies are for extra credit.
I don’t think you are going to get anywhere if you just blatantly ask for extra credit. Instead, it is best to ask what their extra credit policies are first.
This way your professor doesn’t just think you are looking to score a few extra points by doing something last minute.
It helps to start the conversation, and lets you know where you stand.
Check their SYLLABUS
Review the syllabus to see how they calculate students’ grades, and determine if you’ll be able to earn the grade you want without any extra help.
It is possible that there are enough remaining assignments that you could still bump up your grade on your own.
Reviewing their policies will help you understand more about what they allow and what they won’t allow.
ASK them about their policies
You can then ask them about their extra credit policies if they aren’t listed in their syllabus.
Let them know that you were wondering if they offer extra credit or if they have any plans to offer any opportunities to earn some extra points.
If they say no, then you may be completely out of luck……. But not too fast. I have some other amazing ways to help you get the chance to raise your grade. Keep reading to learn more.
Talk about your goals
First, make sure you go in as early as possible. Don’t wait until the last minute because you will very likely get your request denied.
They have entirely too many students to monitor your grade so you’ll need to bring it to their attention that you’re concerned.
Start by talking to your professor about your grade, and what your personal goals are for yourself. If you want to make a C to maintain eligibility for a sport, tell them. Whatever it is, let them know why.
You can let them know how important your grade is to you and how you want it to be a reflection of how hard you worked.
However, if you aren’t putting in the effort, and you haven’t been doing well all semester long, and you reach out to your professor at the very end of the semester for extra credit, your professor is probably going to deny your request.
But by casually talking to them about your grade, they may bring up opportunities for you BEFORE you even suggest anything.
Don’t go in there thinking that you can convince your professor to give you extra credit either. It will need to be something they agree with and want to offer you.
READ MORE : I have a great article about how to talk to your professor about your grades if you are failing.
Talk about your CHALLENGES
After you have done all of the above, I want you to tell them why you have been struggling in the class OR why you haven’t done as well as you had hoped.
Did you have any medical issues?
Were you dealing with your mental health?
Did you experience a loss in your family?
Was there something out of your control that happened?
When you talk to your professor about these issues, they might empathize with you and offer you things they don’t usually offer to other students.
Remember, professors can make EXCEPTIONS if they understand your circumstances.
But not all professors will be lenient and some won’t budge at all. However, it’s best to try.
Sample email asking professor for extra credit
When you email your professor asking them for extra credit, I highly encourage you to be as DETAILED as possible.
The more information you provide them, the better your chances of getting some extra credit offered.
Dear Professor,
I have really enjoyed your class thus far and I have learned so much about Western Civilization, which wouldn’t have been possible without you. I was reviewing my grades and became really concerned when I saw that I was a few points from reaching my desired grade. This semester has been difficult for me because of some personal issues that have been going on and I was trying to balance everything but it appears that I didn’t do very well and I fell short. I am not the type to ask for help, but I realize that I let my struggles interfere with my coursework. I am truly sorry that you did not get to see the hard work that I should have put into this course because that is what you and your course deserved. I know you get a lot of emails, and I apologize in advance, but I was hoping we could discuss my grades and any opportunities that you may offer to provide me with some additional points to help show you the exceptional work I can do in this course. I would love to discuss this further.
Your student.
This email is not meant to be copied verbatim, obviously. But I wanted to help you see how you could do this politely.
You aren’t blaming the professor, and you are taking responsibility for your actions. You also threw a few compliments in there too. That can’t hurt.
Give these things a try.
Remember, professors can change final grades.
ALTERNATIVE TO ASKING FOR EXTRA CREDIT
If your professor isn’t going to offer you any extra credit, I think you should ask them to makeup any missed assignments or redo an assignment to get a better grade.
Sometimes extra credit is not an option because professors just don’t think it’s fair.
I never liked offering extra credit to only one student if I didn’t give everyone the opportunity. Instead, I would try and find other creative ways to help the student.
For example, one student was hospitalized and had some complications. Because of their health, they missed several assignments. I let them make up those assignments instead.
While I don’t go into detail about asking your professors for these types of alternatives to extra credit in this article, I have them linked below so you can check them out next.
And remember, your professors has a lot of discretion in this situation and they have the ability to round up your grade if they want to.
READ MORE : Ask to redo an assignment
READ MORE : Ask to makeup a missed assignment
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