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4.10 Anonymous Grading

Please keep in mind that the Law School follows an anonymous grading system, which means that faculty members do not know which student submitted a particular exam. In the event that any problems arise while taking an exam, students cannot communicate directly with a professor through any means. Instead, students should contact the Proctor, the Office of the Registrar, or the Dean of Students. Improperly contacting a professor regarding an exam may result in disciplinary action. This policy also applies to the 1L memo and briefs for Legal Research and Writing, and any other class where the professor has indicated that the assignment will be graded anonymously.

Examples of issues include where a student:

  • Cannot take the exam on time
  • Has problems opening the exam
  • Uploaded the wrong document
  • Used the wrong exam ID number
  • Took the exam questions with you instead of turning them in
  • Exceeded the word count
  • Failed to understand some instruction in the exam
  • Turned the 1L memo or brief in late

If in doubt, for any reason, you should first reach out to the Dean of Students or the Registrar and not your professor. 

Because of the importance of instructor feedback and guidance in writing classes, first-year Bigelow Legal Research and Writing courses do not employ anonymous grading. For this reason, grading policy does not prevent instructors from reviewing non-anonymous drafts or otherwise providing non-anonymized guidance.