I Just Found Out That The Aussie And American Grading Systems Are Totally Different, So You're Probs Smarter Than You Think

    "How do you not have an A+ [grade]? That's so embarrassing, don't tell anyone that that's what you got."

    Angeline Barion
    by Angeline Barion

    BuzzFeed Staff

    There's no denying that American TV shows and movies have lied to the rest of the world about the high school & college experience.

    Disney / Via disneyfanatic.com

    Besides the idea that school days would be filled with breakout songs like High School Musical, we were also led us to believe that maintaining an A grade average was more difficult in the US than anywhere else.

    But according to a recent video from resident American-living-in-Australia influencer, Sophia Kim, the Australian grading system might be harder to conquer.

    My inner selective high school soul just lit up a little.

    In her recent TikTok video, Sophia in Sydney (as she's more affectionately known) gave scrollers a #storytime on her mid-term results from the International College of Management, Sydney. Her mum was in shock that she'd only gotten 70-73% on both her papers, saying "How do you not have an A+ [grade]? That's so embarrassing, don't tell anyone that that's what you got."

    Sophia Kim / Via tiktok.com

    "Is that a C?" her mum responded.

    To which Sophia said, "It's an American B, but an Australian C." And after hearing that, I was suddenly transported back to 2018 when my year co-ordinator tried to explain how the hell scaling for HSC Music worked. To this day, I've never fully understood.

    Imgflip / Via imgflip.com

    Uh... Alexa play "What Do You Mean?" by Justin Bieber. 

    The people in the comments added to my confusion and agreed that Australian grading systems were much more difficult.

    TikTok @murfalurph
    TikTok @rnrhomestead
    TikTok @@jehudagohoy, @cassxo33, @robman2095

    So to our fellow Aussie students out there, if one of your parents ever hits you with a "Why didn't you do better?" after getting back school results — just show them Sophia's video. Maybe the parental lecture won't be as bad as you think.

    Peopleimages / Getty Images/iStockphoto

    Or show them this comparison chart for extra evidence, courtesy of Overseas Students Australia.

    Overseas Students Australia / Via overseasstudentsaustralia.com

    BRB, in a silly and goofy mood, gonna dig up my old uni assignments and regrade them in American college standards.