Hello this was supposed to be my last semester in my SMP but I had to withdraw from a course. In all honesty, I bit way more than I can chew this semester. I’m a research assistant for three different projects, a student mentor for the pre health club at my community college, I’m in a leadership position for a club in my program, and I’m the microbiology tutor for my program as well. I was way too preoccupied with my other responsibilities and I’m failing a class. I have to withdraw. Passing with a C isn’t possible. I have a 3.8 SMP GPA, a 3.7 GPA in another master’s degree non- STEM, and a 3.4 undergrad cGPA/ 3.1 science. Are my chances over? I’m applying this upcoming cycle.
Are my chances over with a W in an SMP?
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This is contradictory to your post about getting kicked out.
So what's the truth?
As a teaching moment for SDNers seeiking to reinvent themselves. Your grades are tour #1 priority, period. This is not the time to be doing ECs.
Hi yes I actually spoke to my professor to clear up the confusion. I was wrong. The consequence of missing a mandatory class is a 0 on the next exam. So with that being said, I have no option but to withdraw. I was too stressed and preoccupied with studying for anatomy and I missed the mandatory session.
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I've deleted the now duplicate closed thread.
I wasn't aware that withdrawing from individual classes was a "thing" in an SMP--can you still graduate from the SMP without this class? If so... then the W definitely looks weird, but if you have a strong GPA and MCAT it might not get overly scrutinized if this is the only real blemish.
Yes, if you are spread so thin that you are missing a mandatory session and getting yourself a 0, you are way overloaded and need to balance your priorities better. You are in this program because you need to prove yourself academically, and any activities that take away from your ability to handle these should be cut.
I wasn't aware that withdrawing from individual classes was a "thing" in an SMP--can you still graduate from the SMP without this class? If so... then the W definitely looks weird, but if you have a strong GPA and MCAT it might not get overly scrutinized if this is the only real blemish.
Yes, if you are spread so thin that you are missing a mandatory session and getting yourself a 0, you are way overloaded and need to balance your priorities better. You are in this program because you need to prove yourself academically, and any activities that take away from your ability to handle these should be cut.
Thank you for your response. I am a reapplicant so I took on a massive load out of fear of being rejected again.. I attend a private university, so I think that may be why a W is possible in my SMP. As far as my other grades, I have three A’s and a B right now so I will be finishing strong and maintaining my GPA. I’ll just have to retake the W in the fall. I’m worried that all of my hard work will be overlooked because of a stupid mistake I made in one class.
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At some SMPs the courses are given Grad school credits individually and even though the cohort of students all take the same things together, a student who feels at risk for failing one of them can withdraw and possibly retake it the next semester to complete the Masters degree.
When asked, I always tell students to consider the SMP their full time job and not to overextend themselves or try to hold down a job while doing the SMP. Some don’t take the advice
When asked, I always tell students to consider the SMP their full time job and not to overextend themselves or try to hold down a job while doing the SMP. Some don’t take the advice
I wish I had known that prior to taking on all these extracurriculars. After doing so great the first semester, I got cocky and thought I would be able to manage my classes with all of my activities. Thankfully, it only affected one class rather than all of them. And also I’m very glad I didn’t get kicked out of the program, I was just being irrational lol. Hopefully this doesn’t negatively impact my chances this cycle too much. I realized my mistake and I learned from it.
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I don't know where you attended your SMP, but the few SMP directors I know usually have a sit-down moment with the incoming students spelling out the roadmap to success: stop working, don't overextend yourself, and nail all the exams. Your faculty director/s apparently didn't do this or you didn't take their advice seriously.
My adcom faculty want an evaluation letter from your SMP faculty who are your strongest advocates. I would expect them to have told you to not be so involved outside of your studies. When they write your evaluation letter, they must explain why you withdrew or failed your class. If your chances are over (for now), you will need to convince them that they aren't.
My adcom faculty want an evaluation letter from your SMP faculty who are your strongest advocates. I would expect them to have told you to not be so involved outside of your studies. When they write your evaluation letter, they must explain why you withdrew or failed your class. If your chances are over (for now), you will need to convince them that they aren't.
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Catastrophic thinking like this isn't going to be helpful to you and there will be a lot of times in the future where decisions will lead you to doubt yourself.
Instead of "I did everything so well up until this one class and now it's all for nothing"
try a more reflective self-pep talk
"wow I really took on too many things last semester, I'll remember to pace myself better next time"
The W will be on your transcript. If someone asks about it, explain briefly. If they don't ask, then breathe a sigh of relief
Unfortunately, I did not have a talk with the directors of my program. They did encourage getting involved in some of the extracurriculars offered but there was no mention of spreading ourselves too thin. Either way, I take full responsibility for my mistake. I should have done more self reflection before committing to all of these activities I’m involved in. I have a good relationship with quite a few faculty in the program. I think I could get a letter from the director explaining my reasons for my withdrawal.
You’re right. I have been pretty self destructive throughout this entire pre med process as I am a GPA reinventor. I’ve worked so hard to maintain my current GPA and I’m very proud of my academic growth thus far. I can imagine a W looking bad, but I don’t think it’s the end all. Thank you for your kind words and grounding me back to reality.
D
deleted982921
There are more than a handful of students in my SMP who withdraw or fail courses, end up adding another semester or year of coursework and still get into medical school
Thank you for telling me this 😊
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Talk about your options. Ending your application story with a W isn't a great ending. We naturally appreciate redemption stories, so if you were able to show improvement after a W or LOA that the faculty can write a very strong letter (down the road), who knows. You want these faculty to be invested in you and champion you once you show you have overcome these challenges.
You have been reading Goro's Guide to Reinvention, yes?
Yes, I've probably read the guide like ten times by now haha. I guess you could say my application has a bit of a "theme" in terms of reinvention, especially in my personal statement. I almost failed out of high school and was headed down a very dark path and this carried over into the beginning of college. It's been a long road but I have definitely demonstrated a ton of improvement over the years. The W is definitely discouraging but I do believe I can talk about where I went wrong and have a faculty member vouch for me.
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