When your GPA is on the floor, one way to bring it back to life is by doing extra credit.

Freshman Gianna Cognetti said she knows that no one is entitled to do extra credit, but it is nice to have the option if the course is challenging.

“I don’t mind doing extra credit, especially if it’s easy to do,” she said. “All I would have to do is make time to do it.”

One of Cognetti’s professors gives extra credit for perfect attendance.

“I like this because I rarely miss classes unless it is for a sport or sickness, so being rewarded a few bonus points is helpful,” she said. “It is a possible chance for extra class points, which can also help an A-minus go to an A.”

Freshman Joe Shirley said he chooses not to complete extra credit when it is offered. He said he can usually keep his GPA up enough so that he does not need it.

“I think extra credit is a great opportunity,” Shirley said. “More students should take the opportunity and professors should try to offer it more often.”

Most students said they find extra credit helpful, but others said they do not feel like doing the work.

Some UC professors do not offer extra credit but some do, and they all have different ways of offering it to students.

Mathematics professor Hossein Behforooz said he gives bonus points in exams instead of giving out extra credit assignments.

“Some students abuse the bonus points I include in the exams,” Behforooz said.

Some professors have also done extra credit in the past but eventually put an end to it.

Computer Science Professor Dennis Schonewetter said does not offer extra credit because he wants students to be focused on regular course material.

“My concern is that extra credit might cause some students to not work hard to learn the material and earn a good grade because they believe poor performance or lack of effort can be bolstered by doing it,” he said.

Schonewetter had offered extra credit assignments several years ago. He put an end to offering this because of what he noticed with various students in the past.

“It became apparent to me that the students taking advantage of it were ones who already achieved a good course grade,” he said. “Most of the students who weren’t performing well did not take the opportunity to do it.”

Ariel Gratch, assistant professor of communication and media, also said he does not offer extra credit.

“If students earn a B or higher, that means they’ve spent a lot of time trying to understand the course better,” he said.