"A longstanding debate within academia revolves around whether students in the present are being awarded higher average marks compared to students in the past, indicating a potential phenomenon known as ‘grade inflation’. The decline in public confidence resulting from grade inflation has been widely observed, ultimately eroding the credibility of higher education institutions.

This paper aims to empirically investigate this issue, focusing on a large university in Australia, where anecdotal evidence suggests a notable rise in average marks over time. By examining changes in average grades among students with similar Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) scores over 10 years, we seek to establish whether grade inflation exists.

The present study finds a significant level of grade inflation at a large Australian university since 2011. Factors that may have contributed to this trend are explored through a survey of academic and professional staff. Implications on grade inflation are also examined through a focus group with students at the Australian higher education institution. While previous papers have anecdotally suggested the presence of grade inflation, this is one of the first papers to provide empirical evidence of the existence of grade inflation in Australia. The findings of this study will benefit all stakeholders including the government, higher education institutions, academics, students, and prospective employers."