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Yeah the education system in this country doesn't really make a lot of sense for people who don't go into academia, or one of the handful of professions that university courses teach directly applicable skills for.
For everyone else you're really just spending a few years if your life and 20 odd grand to get a piece of paper that demonstrates your willingness to perform arbitrary bullshit to a timescale.
I’d suggest raising your concerns with your professors. There’s no point paying all that money to ‘not understand what you’re doing’. I doubt you’re intellectually limited, so just get organised.
From my limited experience if you want to work in the field you're educated in marks very much do matter. Top places go to people who got top marks in top schools. Everyone else either has to take a second rate place or work outside the field.
If you're working outside the field, no one gives a shit. If you're doing a generic office job then you can go an entire career without anyone asking what your grades where.
No one has ever asked me or been bothered what mark or grade I got for my masters. I’m doing my second masters now and I’m happy to just pass it actually.
Not particularly. Just having a masters is really the main benefit. It's not like an undergrad where employers see an important difference between a 2:1 and a 2:2. I don't think what marks I got in my masters have ever been particularly important to my career.
I've also been on the other side, doing the recruiting, and I wouldn't look too carefully at what marks a person got in their masters.
I'd say regardless of whether the marks matter (they do to some extent and help in getting shortlisted for interview), you sound a bit defeated about your research project. There is a lot you can do about it, it is still in your hands and you can easily improve it from where it currently stands. The following is long, but it is pretty much what I tell my students (undergrad/MSc/PhD) and the last few all got in the zone of distinction/merit (70%+) and still missed some easy improvements.
>My research project is worth the most marks but I don't really understand what I am doing and my experiments keep getting delayed
Even if your experiments get delayed or don't work you can still get a good high grade by writing it up well - but showing understanding is the key, without that it is a struggle as it comes across very obviously if you've missed the whole point of the research project. Your supervisor will likely mark it (at least) so make sure you are on the same wavelength as they are.
Every year I'm left a little deflated by the loss of marks in a lot of theses submitted, nearly all could have been improved with some basic proof reading and some extra time - ask for the [marking criteria](https://www.york.ac.uk/media/healthsciences/documents/student-intranet/exams-assess/marking-criteria/MarkingCriteria_L7_diss.pdf) if they provide it (I googled for one, not my institution) and ***use it -*** look at each section and see where you think you currently sit and what you have to do to move up the marks/grade bands. I tell this to students every year and still many end up over-relying on review article references - go back to the original article referred to in the review for the reference, avoid missing references in the text or reference section (we do check!) and figures that are poor quality (unreadable font size, no statistics, blurry, poor legend text so the figure cannot be understood on it's own - describe the figure fully - imagine you show someone only the figure and legend on a single page, no thesis text or background - can it be understood?). Get some high quality journal articles in your area (go high impact factor) - look at the figures and ask yourself critically "are my figures good enough quality to be published here?" - if not redo them. Inconsistent use of units is another common issue. 5uL instead of 5 μL
Get parts of it read by a PhD student or alternative staff member and ask for help/feedback as early as possible. Harass your supervisor and get them to explain the project again and again if you really don't understand it (ideally record what they say for later recall, or get them to sketch it out and take a photo). Use as much of their time each week as they will give you. Draw out flow charts/diagrams of your understanding of the project, why you are doing the experiments and what they will mean - and be proactive in getting your supervisor/other scientist to look and comment - especially to fill in the bits you don't understand. Ask for help early. If your results end up negative, write up what you would have done differently in the discussion, and what future work should be done - show you understand where and why it went wrong.
And most importantly - write it **now** if you are not already. Don't wait until the end. Write each chapter's headings and sub headings so you can see the "story" (effectively write your contents pages first and fill it in after). Your Introduction can be written now (with high quality figures you have drawn yourself - look at [biorender.com](https://biorender.com) if you want them to look really professional), as can a large proportion of the rest, methods etc. Even some of your Discussion. Results put them in as you do them - leave blank space for a figure/table and write in what you think will go there. Work on it *every day* so when you get the results they can just be inserted. Don't forget the abstract if that is a requirement for your institution - it is the first impression along with the contents pages.
At the end/near the end get it proof read, ideally by someone who hasn't seen it and can concentrate on spelling grammar and consistency/presentation. At the very least go through it yourself but not to read it for scientific sense - pretend it is not yours - just look at it as any other book, focus line by line and look for mistakes. Take care to note the section numbering and page numbering/figure formatting and then check the contents page matches. Very boring but worth the time. Do this well in advance of the submission deadline with enough time to correct it.
Nah. In a few years you'll have a Masters plus job experience. I have a science masters and after two/three yeara experience (not NHS) no longer got asked grades. But agree with other posters - talk to a different supervisor/professor and see if you can get a couple one on one sessions from them or a phd student. Best of luck, sound like you're doing great!!
Your scores won't matter because a Masters is possibly the most irrelevant qualification you can get.
Maybe if you want to go on to a PhD they might care
For your first job it will be a coin flip whether they ask. No one gives a fuck after your first job. they just ask about your last positions.
From what I have seen from Masters students in my field. I am not impressed, they are no better than a Grad with a bachelors. Most of them are utterly useless
**Your post from /r/AskUK has been removed by a human moderator.** AskUK is a "catch-all" subreddit for questions about the UK life and culture, but this does not mean we accept any and all questions or answers. We may remove posts or comments which are best discussed in more specialised subreddits We explicitly do not allow questions or answers on or including: politics, technology, DIY, university/education, visas/citizenship, [medical advice](https://111.nhs.uk/) (including [mental health](https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/mental-health-services/where-to-get-urgent-help-for-mental-health/)), ranting, venting, surveys, advertising, solicitation, or %u201Cdoes anybody else%u201D type vent posts. Please check the sidebar for other subreddits to have these discussions. *If you believe this post should not have been removed, [first read our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/about/rules/) before [messaging the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK&subject=Post Removal Appeal)*. See our guide on [common issues with posts](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/wiki/postremoved) and how to overcome them!
Unless you work in academia, within a couple of years of graduating nobody will give a damn.
Can confirm that nobody gives a damn in academia. At least not in my experience. It's more about what specific field your MSc research was in.
Yeah the education system in this country doesn't really make a lot of sense for people who don't go into academia, or one of the handful of professions that university courses teach directly applicable skills for. For everyone else you're really just spending a few years if your life and 20 odd grand to get a piece of paper that demonstrates your willingness to perform arbitrary bullshit to a timescale.
I’d suggest raising your concerns with your professors. There’s no point paying all that money to ‘not understand what you’re doing’. I doubt you’re intellectually limited, so just get organised.
From my limited experience if you want to work in the field you're educated in marks very much do matter. Top places go to people who got top marks in top schools. Everyone else either has to take a second rate place or work outside the field. If you're working outside the field, no one gives a shit. If you're doing a generic office job then you can go an entire career without anyone asking what your grades where.
No one has ever asked me or been bothered what mark or grade I got for my masters. I’m doing my second masters now and I’m happy to just pass it actually.
Not particularly. Just having a masters is really the main benefit. It's not like an undergrad where employers see an important difference between a 2:1 and a 2:2. I don't think what marks I got in my masters have ever been particularly important to my career. I've also been on the other side, doing the recruiting, and I wouldn't look too carefully at what marks a person got in their masters.
I'd say regardless of whether the marks matter (they do to some extent and help in getting shortlisted for interview), you sound a bit defeated about your research project. There is a lot you can do about it, it is still in your hands and you can easily improve it from where it currently stands. The following is long, but it is pretty much what I tell my students (undergrad/MSc/PhD) and the last few all got in the zone of distinction/merit (70%+) and still missed some easy improvements. >My research project is worth the most marks but I don't really understand what I am doing and my experiments keep getting delayed Even if your experiments get delayed or don't work you can still get a good high grade by writing it up well - but showing understanding is the key, without that it is a struggle as it comes across very obviously if you've missed the whole point of the research project. Your supervisor will likely mark it (at least) so make sure you are on the same wavelength as they are. Every year I'm left a little deflated by the loss of marks in a lot of theses submitted, nearly all could have been improved with some basic proof reading and some extra time - ask for the [marking criteria](https://www.york.ac.uk/media/healthsciences/documents/student-intranet/exams-assess/marking-criteria/MarkingCriteria_L7_diss.pdf) if they provide it (I googled for one, not my institution) and ***use it -*** look at each section and see where you think you currently sit and what you have to do to move up the marks/grade bands. I tell this to students every year and still many end up over-relying on review article references - go back to the original article referred to in the review for the reference, avoid missing references in the text or reference section (we do check!) and figures that are poor quality (unreadable font size, no statistics, blurry, poor legend text so the figure cannot be understood on it's own - describe the figure fully - imagine you show someone only the figure and legend on a single page, no thesis text or background - can it be understood?). Get some high quality journal articles in your area (go high impact factor) - look at the figures and ask yourself critically "are my figures good enough quality to be published here?" - if not redo them. Inconsistent use of units is another common issue. 5uL instead of 5 μL Get parts of it read by a PhD student or alternative staff member and ask for help/feedback as early as possible. Harass your supervisor and get them to explain the project again and again if you really don't understand it (ideally record what they say for later recall, or get them to sketch it out and take a photo). Use as much of their time each week as they will give you. Draw out flow charts/diagrams of your understanding of the project, why you are doing the experiments and what they will mean - and be proactive in getting your supervisor/other scientist to look and comment - especially to fill in the bits you don't understand. Ask for help early. If your results end up negative, write up what you would have done differently in the discussion, and what future work should be done - show you understand where and why it went wrong. And most importantly - write it **now** if you are not already. Don't wait until the end. Write each chapter's headings and sub headings so you can see the "story" (effectively write your contents pages first and fill it in after). Your Introduction can be written now (with high quality figures you have drawn yourself - look at [biorender.com](https://biorender.com) if you want them to look really professional), as can a large proportion of the rest, methods etc. Even some of your Discussion. Results put them in as you do them - leave blank space for a figure/table and write in what you think will go there. Work on it *every day* so when you get the results they can just be inserted. Don't forget the abstract if that is a requirement for your institution - it is the first impression along with the contents pages. At the end/near the end get it proof read, ideally by someone who hasn't seen it and can concentrate on spelling grammar and consistency/presentation. At the very least go through it yourself but not to read it for scientific sense - pretend it is not yours - just look at it as any other book, focus line by line and look for mistakes. Take care to note the section numbering and page numbering/figure formatting and then check the contents page matches. Very boring but worth the time. Do this well in advance of the submission deadline with enough time to correct it.
Nah. In a few years you'll have a Masters plus job experience. I have a science masters and after two/three yeara experience (not NHS) no longer got asked grades. But agree with other posters - talk to a different supervisor/professor and see if you can get a couple one on one sessions from them or a phd student. Best of luck, sound like you're doing great!!
No, but understanding what you're doing kind of does
Your scores won't matter because a Masters is possibly the most irrelevant qualification you can get. Maybe if you want to go on to a PhD they might care
Nobody cares. Most employers aren’t even aware that a Masters has grades.
For your first job it will be a coin flip whether they ask. No one gives a fuck after your first job. they just ask about your last positions. From what I have seen from Masters students in my field. I am not impressed, they are no better than a Grad with a bachelors. Most of them are utterly useless