Advice about dropping a class/etc.

[Dentmonster]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Right now I am a sophomore and my gpa is a 4.0
I usually am a hard worker but this semester has got me a little down.
We're only a month in but my grades are slipping (I have some C's currently, which is not an indicator of my dedication). I go to tutoring for at least an hour each time, about 4 times a week for my classes, and I still seem to struggle just a little bit with chem.
Now to all the people who have too much free time and feel like blasting junk my way, I HAVE been studying weekdays and weekends (8+ hours is normal per sunday and saturday). Even with putting in hours during the weekdays and the weekends, I cannot seem to get all of my homework done, and it really restrains my time for exam studying (Time management skills are sucking a little possibly).
1st question:
I decided to not take calc yet and take trig instead. Do you think this is extremely beneficial for things like the DAT and future calc classes? Or do you think this is unnecessary? The teacher isn't very helpful and what they say to study for the exam had nothing to do with the last exam. Things he told us not to study for ended up being on the exam regardless.
Should I stay with this class or drop it so I can focus on my other classes more? And yes I know that trig is "easy" but it takes more time than it seems it's worth most times, and it's pretty much a guess for what will be on the test.
If I do drop, there will be a big nasty W on my transcripts.

2nd question:
Who has started out pretty crappy on their second year after doing so well, and how did you manage/turn everything around, if you even did? What steps did you take, did you get any help? It would be nice keeping my current GPA, but the way things are right now, I am not too sure what's going to happen.


-a tired, frustrated student.

 

[velocicaur]

Hello,

I have not taken the DAT, however, I think taking trig would be beneficial to get your mind in "math mode." It will also be helpful in physics if you have yet to take that. Calculus 1 is a pretty intense class and will require a lot of dedication. It does not relate to trig per say, but it is difficult and you really will have to focus a lot of time into it if you are struggling in trig.

About Dropping/Withdraw/whatever. If you can manage a B in the class, I would not worry about it. A lower grade is not the end of the world. Granted you have a 4.0 and I'm sure you want to keep it. A lower grade will drop your GPA significantly now, but you still have 2.5 years left to average it out and in the long run, will only have a minor effect on your overall GPA when you graduate.

Strong semesters towards the end of your undergrad career are much more important, especially if you are dealing with upper level science courses.

 

[Ghettob1aster]

First, how many credits are you taking? I've had a fully loaded schedule every semester and the classes never demanded more than 4-hours a weekend on average. There is such a thing known as over-studying, but I don't know how you operate personally.

Second, I have some time management advice, but you don't seem like the type of person that would go for it. There are some classes that you just have to skip. If it's something you can learn from a book, don't waste your time.

You can't just sit in a class and assume you are learning. You have to at least criticize the class to figure out if it is actually helping you or not. Think of all those lecture hours you could have to yourself.

 

[DrReo]

First, how many credits are you taking? I've had a fully loaded schedule every semester and the classes never demanded more than 4-hours a weekend on average. There is such a thing known as over-studying, but I don't know how you operate personally.

Second, I have some time management advice, but you don't seem like the type of person that would go for it. There are some classes that you just have to skip. If it's something you can learn from a book, don't waste your time.

You can't just sit in a class and assume you are learning. You have to at least criticize the class to figure out if it is actually helping you or not. Think of all those lecture hours you could have to yourself.

This is so true. Too bad a majority of my class require attendance and have random quizzes... Figure out what works, every semester is different.