Stressed and hoping for advice.

[kaihire]

Hi guys,

Here's my general situation: I'm 26, work full-time (M-F 8:30am-5:30pm) as an MA in oncology, have a BA in English and Gender Studies from a very competitive school (my school refused to remove a zero from a medical withdrawal on my transcript, so my GPA is a horrible 3.1 where, without the zero, it's closer to 3.6). I'm taking one class/year at a post-bacc program (UPenn, for what it's worth) because my work schedule is so hectic that I can't balance more than that at the moment. This is compounded by the fact that I've been in a long-distance (Philly<-->London) relationship for the past 9 years with no ability to sponsor my partner for citizenship, which adds a significant amount of daily stress.

I did fine with Bio 101 last year (not as great as I'd hoped to do by a long shot--2.8) but I'm really struggling with Gen Chem. It's a course that presumes a background in Chem (I've never taken it before) and despite my best efforts, I've gotten behind. I've talked to the professor, who has been supportive but not particularly helpful. The 4-hour lecture after work (I get home around 11pm) and 3-hour lab (also after work) make it very hard to study the way I'm used to: in controlled bursts that give me time to absorb the material in between. I'm worried that I'll pull a similar grade to Bio, or worse. (This is particularly galling to me, as I got awesome grades in high school and college, neither of which graded on a curve.)

Basically, I'm wondering if I should withdraw from this course and start again next year from scratch (I'll cram with a tutor until then to prepare myself). I hesitate to do this because a) I don't know how a school would view a withdrawal on my post-bacc transcript and b) I'd rather not get another year behind. Any suggestions would be great. Should I buckle down, do my best, and see what sort of grade I get--and potentially retake the same course next year anyway--OR would it be better for me to drop it now while there's no recorded grade other than the withdrawal, and start from scratch?

Thanks

~Kai

[njbmd]

Originally Posted by kaihire

Hi guys,

Here's my general situation: I'm 26, work full-time (M-F 8:30am-5:30pm) as an MA in oncology, have a BA in English and Gender Studies from a very competitive school (my school refused to remove a zero from a medical withdrawal on my transcript, so my GPA is a horrible 3.1 where, without the zero, it's closer to 3.6). I'm taking one class/year at a post-bacc program (UPenn, for what it's worth) because my work schedule is so hectic that I can't balance more than that at the moment. This is compounded by the fact that I've been in a long-distance (Philly<-->London) relationship for the past 9 years with no ability to sponsor my partner for citizenship, which adds a significant amount of daily stress.

I did fine with Bio 101 last year (not as great as I'd hoped to do by a long shot--2.8) but I'm really struggling with Gen Chem. It's a course that presumes a background in Chem (I've never taken it before) and despite my best efforts, I've gotten behind. I've talked to the professor, who has been supportive but not particularly helpful. The 4-hour lecture after work (I get home around 11pm) and 3-hour lab (also after work) make it very hard to study the way I'm used to: in controlled bursts that give me time to absorb the material in between. I'm worried that I'll pull a similar grade to Bio, or worse. (This is particularly galling to me, as I got awesome grades in high school and college, neither of which graded on a curve.)

Basically, I'm wondering if I should withdraw from this course and start again next year from scratch (I'll cram with a tutor until then to prepare myself). I hesitate to do this because a) I don't know how a school would view a withdrawal on my post-bacc transcript and b) I'd rather not get another year behind. Any suggestions would be great. Should I buckle down, do my best, and see what sort of grade I get--and potentially retake the same course next year anyway--OR would it be better for me to drop it now while there's no recorded grade other than the withdrawal, and start from scratch?

Thanks

~Kai

Right now, you don't have the time or the ability to do what this course demands. If you drop it, then the next time you take it, you need to have made significant changes in your distractions (work or relationship or whatever) or you will be back to dropping courses and wasting tuition money.

If you drop this course, get your life under control and get yourself prepared by whatever means, to devote the time that your studies demand for mastery. If you can't do that, you wind up digging yourself into a deep lowGPA hole that you can't get out of.

If you do not have the background for any course, don't take it until you DO have the background coursework. What you did in high school has little bearing on what you are doing now.

You essentially get one shot at not ruining your uGPA. There aren't many "do overs" in this process that demands a high level of performance at best. Get your life under control and then revisit the pre-med stuff when you can do your best work.

[Ebete]

Originally Posted by kaihire

Hi guys,

Here's my general situation: I'm 26, work full-time (M-F 8:30am-5:30pm) as an MA in oncology, have a BA in English and Gender Studies from a very competitive school (my school refused to remove a zero from a medical withdrawal on my transcript, so my GPA is a horrible 3.1 where, without the zero, it's closer to 3.6). I'm taking one class/year at a post-bacc program (UPenn, for what it's worth) because my work schedule is so hectic that I can't balance more than that at the moment. This is compounded by the fact that I've been in a long-distance (Philly<-->London) relationship for the past 9 years with no ability to sponsor my partner for citizenship, which adds a significant amount of daily stress.

I did fine with Bio 101 last year (not as great as I'd hoped to do by a long shot--2.8) but I'm really struggling with Gen Chem. It's a course that presumes a background in Chem (I've never taken it before) and despite my best efforts, I've gotten behind. I've talked to the professor, who has been supportive but not particularly helpful. The 4-hour lecture after work (I get home around 11pm) and 3-hour lab (also after work) make it very hard to study the way I'm used to: in controlled bursts that give me time to absorb the material in between. I'm worried that I'll pull a similar grade to Bio, or worse. (This is particularly galling to me, as I got awesome grades in high school and college, neither of which graded on a curve.)

Basically, I'm wondering if I should withdraw from this course and start again next year from scratch (I'll cram with a tutor until then to prepare myself). I hesitate to do this because a) I don't know how a school would view a withdrawal on my post-bacc transcript and b) I'd rather not get another year behind. Any suggestions would be great. Should I buckle down, do my best, and see what sort of grade I get--and potentially retake the same course next year anyway--OR would it be better for me to drop it now while there's no recorded grade other than the withdrawal, and start from scratch?

Thanks

~Kai

From personal experience, I would drop it, take the Chem basics (the fundamental class before the one you are taking now) and Ace it, then take the Gen. Chem and ace that one too...I know it sounds kinda of backwards but some times its worth "loosing" a little time to come out with an excelent grade in the end, which to me sounds to be very important...
good luck

[kaihire]

Originally Posted by njbmd

Right now, you don't have the time or the ability to do what this course demands. If you drop it, then the next time you take it, you need to have made significant changes in your distractions (work or relationship or whatever) or you will be back to dropping courses and wasting tuition money.

If you drop this course, get your life under control and get yourself prepared by whatever means, to devote the time that your studies demand for mastery. If you can't do that, you wind up digging yourself into a deep lowGPA hole that you can't get out of.

If you do not have the background for any course, don't take it until you DO have the background coursework. What you did in high school has little bearing on what you are doing now.

You essentially get one shot at not ruining your uGPA. There aren't many "do overs" in this process that demands a high level of performance at best. Get your life under control and then revisit the pre-med stuff when you can do your best work.

Thank you for the reply. I'm not sure how I can get my life more under control: my job isn't going to get less stressful and unless immigration law changes, I can't bring my partner here (which would be a huge relief). The only thing I *can* change is trying to prepare more effectively for this course.

[kaihire]

Originally Posted by Ebete

From personal experience, I would drop it, take the Chem basics (the fundamental class before the one you are taking now) and Ace it, then take the Gen. Chem and ace that one too...I know it sounds kinda of backwards but some times its worth "loosing" a little time to come out with an excelent grade in the end, which to me sounds to be very important...
good luck

Thanks for the reply. There isn't a basic Chem course before the Gen. Chem offered through my program. While I could take one at Penn's undergrad school, it's smack in the middle of my work day. My only real option would be to do independent study with a tutor.

[faith2]

a withdrawal is better than a bad grade because it does not get calculated in your GPA. When you do your personal statement you can incorporate your struggles that you have overcome while doing the post bac program( minus the relationship, although it is so romantic admission commitee might wonder well if she or he does not get here while you are in med school how will you cope). As for this time you can study and get ahead. When you retake a course it is always better to get an A. Another thing alot of secondaries ask you to explain "low Grades or W's" you can also use that time to explain a withdrawal. Please do not beat yourself up you still have options.

[kaihire]

Originally Posted by faith2

a withdrawal is better than a bad grade because it does not get calculated in your GPA. When you do your personal statement you can incorporate your struggles that you have overcome while doing the post bac program( minus the relationship, although it is so romantic admission commitee might wonder well if she or he does not get here while you are in med school how will you cope). As for this time you can study and get ahead. When you retake a course it is always better to get an A. Another thing alot of secondaries ask you to explain "low Grades or W's" you can also use that time to explain a withdrawal. Please do not beat yourself up you still have options.

^_^; I would definitely not be mentioning my relationship on applications, but it's been a rough year: my father battled lung cancer and I found out my cat has cancer, as well--it's been a lot to juggle, running around to take care of my parents during this painful time and dropping my cat off at the vet's before work, etc... I just feel like daily life is really taking its toll, despite how hard I've tried to avoid being depressed about it.

[0919mmk]

Originally Posted by kaihire

^_^; I would definitely not be mentioning my relationship on applications, but it's been a rough year: my father battled lung cancer and I found out my cat has cancer, as well--it's been a lot to juggle, running around to take care of my parents during this painful time and dropping my cat off at the vet's before work, etc... I just feel like daily life is really taking its toll, despite how hard I've tried to avoid being depressed about it.

Hey - I sympathize - that's rough. I actually was in a sort of similar situation, so maybe I can just tell you what I did. I was 23, had been out of college for a year, and basically had decided to pursue medicine as a career. Once I made that decision, I dropped everything and dedicated myself to this 110%, and I would suggest that if you DONT do something like that, it's really hard to juggle everything.

So I quit my job, applied to masters programs, and actually also ended up at UPenn (where I am now). I took out a huge loan (I have about 80k debt right now), and while I am here, I aced my masters classes, but also took a couple undergrad classes to complete my med pre-reqs (I was a bio undergrad, so I had most of the pre-req already). I studied for the MCAT, applied in the spring, and I just had 2 interviews in October! So basically, I guess my advice to you would be to consider doing a post-bacc full time (or masters program if you have some of the pre-reqs from your undergrad), and taking out loans to pay for it. If you are truly dedicated, then you'll be able to pay back the loans when you are a doctor, and you'll be able to focus on getting good grades and, more importantly, building the science foundation that you will need in med school.

To reiterate one of the above posts, this is obviously a big big commitment. And it might require you making sacrifices to get where you want to be (taking out loans, becoming a full-time student again, which is pretty surreal). So I don't know how much experience you have with the med field, but I would strongly recommend doing some volunteering at HUP to make sure you know (and the ad coms know that you know) what you are getting in to. It's only 4 hours a week, and you can do it on the weekend. If you have any questions about UPenn pre-med stuff in particular, I'd be happy to help you out. Most of all, good luck! If you really want this, you will do it, one way or another.

[0919mmk]

Oh and I totally didn't answer your original question, haha! I guess my vote would be to withdraw and come back to it when you can ace it. As you probably know from your fellow pre-med post-baccs (btw do you know Gabe? That kid is the man!), you really need to have a good post-bacc gpa to be competitive. There is no point in dropping your grade lower, cause you'll just have to overcome it later. Take the withdraw, and come back to it. Besides, I don't know if you are hoping to do the linkage program with one of the philly schools, but it's pretty competitive, so again, it will be tough if you are trying to get there from scratch while juggling your job and the rest of your life.

[Canabanana]

hey something that has not been mentioned yet is Educational leave? Many jobs will give out X/per month so you could be able to take a class in middle of the day? Or try and use personal time/vacation time at end of work days to take class a little earlier?

Main issue and not sure if it was covered is that your taking one class at a time. yes i understand your working full time but its not showing your ability to handle multiple classes at the same time and get a good GPA.

I am taking one class this semester and my professor told me if i was serious i would stop messing around and get into a SMP. needless to say it was a gut-shot but it made me realize i could do this for the next three years and where will it get me?

so i pose that question to you. where do you want to be in three years? still working as an MA and taking one class a semester?

[Doctor Bagel]

People have different opinions on strategies for postbaccs, and I don't know if there's one right answer. I did the taking one class at a time while working fulltime and am glad I did it that way -- one because it gave me more work experience which just helps me as a person, and two because I already have enough debt. I wouldn't want to add $80k to the total.

Now getting back to this one class, if you're coming down between getting a bad grade or withdrawing, withdrawing is the better option.