W vs C/C-??

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premed66

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Hello,

I've looked at past threads but am still on the edge about what to do. My advisors have all gave me conflicting advice.
I'm a second year pre-med at a university (sophomore). I am enrolled in an advanced program that required me to take:
Physics with Calculus along with Organic Chem and Lab this semester. Along with other courses for my major (KIN), full 17 credits.

I essentially failed the first two physics exams, leaving me with two options:
(1) Try harder and continue on pretty much the same trajectory, getting about B- (if lucky) C (most likely) as a final grade..
I already have one C, it KILLED my GPA and I would hate to have another.....
(2) Drop the class by Friday, take the W, and take the college level, non-calculus based physics next semester/junior year.

Advice? I am worried that dropping out of the program and taking a W will have detrimental effects, but so could another C ?
My parents got divorced over the summer, I recently started working part-time along with my 17 credits, and I was diagnosed with anxiety and am struggling to find the appropriate treatment (counseling vs. medication).

Input on a W vs. a C?
Would it look bad to drop from Calculus Based Physics to Algebra?
I feel like I really screwed up and I don't want this one class to be the end of my pre-med career. ):

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I'm not an ADCOM, but I'm applying to med school right now. Personally, I would much rather explain a W than a second C. One C is acceptable (a whoops!), but two C's can show a pattern. I say you should take the W and try the course again when you've got your personal life sorted out. I am sorry to hear what you're dealing with at home and in school. Many interviewers will ask what adversity you've faced, and so you may have the opportunity to explain what's happened here.

Also, I took algebra-based physics and I'm pretty sure almost no one cares either way.

Bottom line, your pre-med career is NOT over! Focus on treating yourself right, and work your ass off, and you'll get where you want to be!
 
I say take the W. I'm a current applicant (who has received multiple interviews) and I have a W from an upper-level Biology elective. I withdrew while on the edge of C+/B- not entirely because of the grade, but also because I had a very tough semester otherwise in which I was finishing up my major requirements and writing a senior thesis. Withdrawing allowed me to focus on classes and activities that were, frankly, more important than an elective.

No interviewer has asked me about it yet, and it doesn't seem to dissuade them from giving me interviews in the first place. So if you know you can't pull the grade up to a B, just withdraw and make sure you do better next time.
 
I have multiple Ws and it hasn't come up once so far. Take it and run.
 
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