‘I thought my performance was really bad’

Getting excellent grades is uncommon at any university, but the Dutch grading system is unique compared to other educational cultures. It adopts a scale from 1 to 10, but grades above 8 are extremely rare. According to the 2024 UU grading statistics, 93 percent of the passing grades for Master’s students were between 6 and 8.5, while this percentage was 96 percent for Bachelor’s students. 

In a recent DUB panel consultation about this topic, all members who reacted were Dutch and in favour of a system in which the last two grades of the scale are almost “unachievable”. However, international students coming from other educational cultures may struggle to adapt to that.

“When I got my first grade, I had to speak with my classmates to understand how I should feel about it because I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be happy or not”, says Sofia, who moved to Utrecht from Italy to complete a Master's in Science Education and Communication. She struggled to understand how the grade reflected her performance because she was told that the last two grades of the scale should not be considered. In Italy, the grading system goes from 1 to 30, and 18 is the passing grade. It is not easy to get a 30, but everyone knows that they can potentially get it if they get everything right in an exam. “Here, if I know that it is impossible to get that grade, I am not even motivated to try”.

Sofia, from Italy, wishes it were possible to get higher grades. Photo: courtesy of the student.

“One of the problems of adjusting to this system is that it is difficult to explain my grades to my Italian friends and family because I don’t even know how to feel about them,” sighs Sofia. She says there is more social pressure to get good grades in Italy, compared to the Netherlands, and reckons that the grading system might be the reason why Dutch students seem to care relatively less about their grades. 

There is even a Dutch term for that: zesjescultuur, or “six culture”, meaning that most students will aim for a 6.0, just enough to pass. A stark difference from cultures that push students to be competitive and strive for excellence. Not being able to get the best grades sometimes makes Sofia feel frustrated or unmotivated. “Why are these grades even there if they are unachievable?”

Daniel, from Germany, thinks that making 9s and 10s unachievable makes students unmotivated to work hard. Photo: courtesy of the student. 

‘Why should I work hard to try to get it?’
Daniel is a German student pursuing a Master's in Game and Media Technology. In Germany, the grading scale goes from 1 (the best grade) to 6 and it is common to get all the grades on the scale. Daniel explained that he came to the Master’s with the idea of not looking at the grades but rather concentrating on the skills he is acquiring. However, he says, “sometimes it feels like the grades we get for the assignments are a bit random”. He continues: “If you tell me that it is unachievable from the start, why should I work hard to try to get it? It would be way more motivating if I knew that I could reach that.”

“When I got my first grade it was quite stressful, I thought my performance was really bad because I compared it to the Indonesian grading system”, says Pam, a first-year Master’s student in Migration, Ethnic Relations and Multiculturalism. She did her Bachelor’s in Indonesia, where grades are out of 100. Therefore, it is easy to convert a Dutch grade into its “mathematical” correspondent. In Indonesia, the most common grade is 80, and 70 is already considered quite low. “When I get a grade here, I feel like I am always behind and not doing enough”. While knowing that she cannot get a 9 or a 10 helps her to develop more realistic expectations, it also “demotivates me to do my best because it is impossible to achieve.”

Pam thought her first grade was bad until her Dutch classmates told her it wasn't. Photo: courtesy of the student.

Friction
Sauro Civitillo is an Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Social Science who teaches at the Bachelor’s and Master’s levels. Before coming to the Netherlands, he worked in Germany, where “grades are an important component of the academic selection process. For example, in the field of Psychology, students need to obtain top grades for their Bachelor’s degree to maximise their chances of finding a place in a Master’s programme”. 

In his class, he has both international and Dutch students. “Their different grading experiences might reflect in their motivation, especially in group work. International students may tend to aim for a good grade, while some Dutch students may tend to do just enough to pass. This zesjescultuur may create some friction among students.”

Some defend that the current grading system should be replaced with a pass or fail system, but Civitillo thinks this could make students less motivated. “Grades are an integral part of a student’s educational journey, and experiencing failure or underperformance should be normalised as a natural aspect of growth rather than burdening students with excessively high expectations,” he explains.

Professor Bruce Mutsvairo. Photo: Kees Gort 

“We all can always improve”
Bruce Mutsvairo is a Professor in the Department of Media and Culture Studies at Utrecht University. He also teaches at Utrecht College University. His previous teaching experiences include the US, Australia, and the UK. “When I was working in all these different countries, I had to learn as quickly as I could to understand the different grading cultures and the way in which students react to grades.” In the UK, for example, it’s not uncommon for students to complain about their grade, while “most Dutch students are happy with a passing grade. I like that because it creates grounds for a good attitude which, in my view, is more important than being the best”. 

Mutsvairo observes that the grading system often reflects a country’s social context. “In the US, if you are excellent, everyone has to know and recognise that, while here, being excellent is appreciated but being grounded is appreciated more”, he explains. “If you get a 10/10, what’s left to learn? 8 is the highest grade that I give because it gives me room to explain where students can still improve. After all, we all can always improve.” In Mutsvairo’s view, this system teaches students to be humble and modest, an attitude that is “generally valued in the Dutch working culture. People with a know-it-all attitude are usually very difficult to work with.”