Academic Update

[kjo11]

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How long did it take for PTCAS to process your fall grade transcripts and academic updates? My school sent my transcript in on January 11th and I still haven't heard anything from PTCAS. Hopefully it doesn't take much longer.

 

[CherokeeWahine]

My transcripts were sent on December 22nd, PTCAS received them on December 29th, and my AU was completed by PTCAS and sent out to my programs on January 3rd.

 

[NeophyteParkour]

I sent my transcripts on December 20th, PTCAS received them on January 06, and my AU was completed by PTCAS the 12th, and sent out to my programs on January 17.

Funny how mine took longer somehow ...also one of the schools I was in contact with couldn't view the AU on the 18th. Supposedly, according to PTCAS they should be able to though.

 

[CherokeeWahine]

I sent my transcripts on December 20th, PTCAS received them on January 06, and my AU was completed by PTCAS the 12th, and sent out to my programs on January 17.

Funny how mine took longer somehow ...also one of the schools I was in contact with couldn't view the AU on the 18th. Supposedly, according to PTCAS they should be able to though.

Weird... And I like the emoticon, btw 😀

I had another strange incident too: UOP couldn't find my 3rd letter of recommendation after the AU, so the graduate division had to go and search for it. Luckily, they ended up finding it just in time when they were making calls for interviews.

 

[kjo11]

Okay thanks everyone. Did PTCAS email you when the update was processed? I guess they send them out every Tuesday.

 

[CherokeeWahine]

Yes, they send you an email when your GPA has been recalculated and the updated info has been sent to your programs.

 

[Ngozi Onyema]

I'm kind of hesitant to even talk about this problem I have with the current Academic Update since I'm not attending DPT school this cycle but I was at least trying to get a GPA calculation from PTCAS before I did a whole new application so anyway here is my problem.

I sent in my transcript for the Academic Update with the cover sheet or whatever it's called and did everything correct. PTCAS even sent me an email on Feb. 8, 2012 acknowledging that they received the document.

I received another email from PTCAS on Feb. 13, 2012 titled "
Your PTCAS Academic Update has been Verified and GPAs Calculated

The email read:


"Thank you for submitting your Academic Update to PTCAS.

At this time, it is vital for you to have your updated transcripts sent directly to PTCAS, if you have not already done so. Without updated transcripts reflecting your newly entered coursework, PTCAS will not be able to process your Academic Update.

Once PTCAS has received your updated transcripts, your Academic Update will be processed in the order in which it became complete. While processing times may be significantly faster, please allow up to 3 weeks before your changes are processed and your GPAs are recalculated by our staff. Upon processing, your designated programs will be electronically notified of the changes made to your coursework.

Should you have any questions regarding your Academic Update, please contact PTCAS Customer Service at (617)612-2040, M-F, 9am-5pm, or e-mail us at [email protected].

Best Regards,
PTCAS Customer Service"


But here's the problem, when I log in to PTCAS my GPA hasn't changed. Although the total hours has changed from 162 to 180 which is correct because I added 18 credits during the Academic Update but my total GPA still remained exactly the same as it was before the Academic Update. Is that a coincidence or what?


FYI for the AU my grades were for 6 classes and they were: B+, A, F, A-, A and A. Despite the F I thought that my PTCAS GPA would increase with those grades but instead it stayed exactly the same. Is that a coincidence or was it not calculated?

Edit: If it is the true GPA I just want to say that I had no idea how much a single F grade could hold down your GPA because despite that F, I had really great grades that semester. 🙁

I wonder if there is something I can do about that F on my transcript. I believe there is a way I can get it changed to an I (Incomplete) or something like that right? I heard of people doing that. I don't know. It really sucks how hard you have to dig your self out of a single F grade.

 

[NeophyteParkour]

You could try figuring out what your GPA would be by your own calculations.

The way PTCAS does it, and the way most schools do I assume, is multiplying GPA by credits to get points. You then divide points by credits and get cumulative GPA.
For example, in your latest semester assuming every class was 3 credits:

Grade. GPA..Credits......Points
B+ ........3.3...... 3 ............9.9
A ..........4.0...... 3 ............12
F ..........0.0...... 3..............0
A-......... 3.7...... 3............11.1
A ..........4.0.......3.............12
A...........4.0.......3.............12

total..................18............57
57/18 = 3.16 GPA

How much that semester 3.16 GPA affects your undergrad cumulative GPA depends on how many credits you have.

But to me, it sounds like they updated your PTCAS coursework with the spring courses you're taking right now, but haven't calculated your Fall 2011 grades yet. As you can see above, I sent my grades in as early as I could, and it still took a few weeks before everything was calculated.

 

[Kepania]

I'm kind of hesitant to even talk about this problem I have with the current Academic Update since I'm not attending DPT school this cycle but I was at least trying to get a GPA calculation from PTCAS before I did a whole new application so anyway here is my problem.

I sent in my transcript for the Academic Update with the cover sheet or whatever it's called and did everything correct. PTCAS even sent me an email on Feb. 8, 2012 acknowledging that they received the document.

I received another email from PTCAS on Feb. 13, 2012 titled "
Your PTCAS Academic Update has been Verified and GPAs Calculated

The email read:


"Thank you for submitting your Academic Update to PTCAS.

At this time, it is vital for you to have your updated transcripts sent directly to PTCAS, if you have not already done so. Without updated transcripts reflecting your newly entered coursework, PTCAS will not be able to process your Academic Update.

Once PTCAS has received your updated transcripts, your Academic Update will be processed in the order in which it became complete. While processing times may be significantly faster, please allow up to 3 weeks before your changes are processed and your GPAs are recalculated by our staff. Upon processing, your designated programs will be electronically notified of the changes made to your coursework.

Should you have any questions regarding your Academic Update, please contact PTCAS Customer Service at (617)612-2040, M-F, 9am-5pm, or e-mail us at [email protected].

Best Regards,
PTCAS Customer Service"


But here's the problem, when I log in to PTCAS my GPA hasn't changed. Although the total hours has changed from 162 to 180 which is correct because I added 18 credits during the Academic Update but my total GPA still remained exactly the same as it was before the Academic Update. Is that a coincidence or what?


FYI for the AU my grades were for 6 classes and they were: B+, A, F, A-, A and A. Despite the F I thought that my PTCAS GPA would increase with those grades but instead it stayed exactly the same. Is that a coincidence or was it not calculated?

Edit: If it is the true GPA I just want to say that I had no idea how much a single F grade could hold down your GPA because despite that F, I had really great grades that semester. 🙁

I wonder if there is something I can do about that F on my transcript. I believe there is a way I can get it changed to an I (Incomplete) or something like that right? I heard of people doing that. I don't know. It really sucks how hard you have to dig your self out of a single F grade.

Yes it really does suck how much an F brings your whole GPA way down. More so than an A brings it up, it seems. If you CAN get it changed to an incomplete, do that. It would probably be something you'd have to take up with the professor. An "I" isn't great, but it's better than an F.

Other than that, the F will forever be on your transcript. You'll have to retake the class for a better grade, but the F will still be there! I've been there, and it really is a bummer, but retaking it and getting an A or B will make it look a lot better down the road. When your transcripts are reviewed later, your efforts to improve the grade should not go unnoticed.

Good luck!

 

[Ngozi Onyema]

It's kind of weird how I'm just now really noticing that the GPA for that semester is only a 3.167. That F grade really hurt me.

I don't understand what you mean when you say they may have made a mistake by updating my PTCAS coursework with the spring courses I'm taking right now, because I didn't even submit the spring courses that I am taking right now. They don't even know what courses I'm taking this spring. I only sent them my fall grades for the AU.

Now that I realize that that fall semesters GPA is only a 3.167 i think my GPA staying the same makes sense because it was a 3.18 and so a 3.167 semester would probably make it stay the same.

I could probably pull off a 3.75 GPA this spring semester but I wonder how much that would help my total GPA. I'm only doing 12 credits this (spring) semester.

You say it took a few weeks before everything was calculated for your total GPA but you don't mean that your total GPA was changing within those few weeks right? I assume that your total GPA on PTCAS was fully calculated at the same time you received the email saying it was. Or are you saying that PTCAS may still be calculating my total GPA even after they sent the email saying that they already have?

Anyway I think that most likely that my GPA staying the same is correct. Although that F held my GPA down that semester, I think pulling off a 3.75 this semester should bring my total GPA up, hopefully above a 3.5 total GPA.

 

[Ngozi Onyema]

Thanks Kepania. The F grade was in a class that was a major elective so I don't necessarily have to take the class over. Although I failed the class I don't suppose taking it over is necessary because it was only a major elective. Although if I did take it over and got an A in it, it would look better plus it would probably give the professor or whoever would do it more incentive to change the previous F grade to an I. I'll think about it. I probably should take it over, I still have the text book for it and despite the F grade I did learn allot in that class.

 

[NeophyteParkour]

It's kind of weird how I'm just now really noticing that the GPA for that semester is only a 3.167. That F grade really hurt me.

I don't understand what you mean when you say they may have made a mistake by updating my PTCAS coursework with the spring courses I'm taking right now, because I didn't even submit the spring courses that I am taking right now. They don't even know what courses I'm taking this spring. I only sent them my fall grades for the AU.

Now that I realize that that fall semesters GPA is only a 3.167 i think my GPA staying the same makes sense because it was a 3.18 and so a 3.167 semester would probably make it stay the same.

I could probably pull off a 3.75 GPA this spring semester but I wonder how much that would help my total GPA. I'm only doing 12 credits this (spring) semester.

You say it took a few weeks before everything was calculated for your total GPA but you don't mean that your total GPA was changing within those few weeks right? I assume that your total GPA on PTCAS was fully calculated at the same time you received the email saying it was. Or are you saying that PTCAS may still be calculating my total GPA even after they sent the email saying that they already have?

Anyway I think that most likely that my GPA staying the same is correct. Although that F held my GPA down that semester, I think pulling off a 3.75 this semester should bring my total GPA up, hopefully above a 3.5 total GPA.

If you take out that one bad grade, you would have a 3.8 that semester with 5 classes. That is impressive. It's unfortunate how the GPA tells a whole different story. An 18-credit semester for undergrad is beyond what I seem to be capable of, anyway. The most I've done is 15 credits, and I seemed to do my best with only 12.

Anyway, you may want to call PTCAS to clarify the situation. I forget what the email said when they finished my AU, but it was about 2 weeks after they received my transcripts that the grades were actually calculated. It was at that point that my cGPA changed a little. I would assume in your situation though that they probably have already calculated everything.

 

[Ngozi Onyema]

Yeah, I'm not even going to bother contacting PTCAS about it because I'm going to do the application over anyway for next cycle plus I think it's correct in staying the same now that I realize my GPA for that semester was only a 3.167. I'll just try to get really good grades for the rest of my undergraduate classes and hope that my total GPA increases. I'm shooting for above a 3.5 total GPA by the time I'm finished with my undergraduate. I'll also try to see if I could get that F turned in to an I (Incomplete). Thanks.