BOMBED an Exam -- Need Advice (Drop Class or ????)

[mreyno18]

So I just bombed an exam -- I mean a 66% on my first physical chemistry 2 exam. I have worked very hard in college to have a good GPA. My current GPA is 3.98 and I have always had A's + 2 A-. In order to get an A in this class, I need a 92% on the next 3 exams + final. I truly don't think that I can do that. In order to get an A- in the class, I need an 85% on the next 3 exams + final. Do I just drop the course? I can retake it next spring after I apply and am hopefully accepted and the grade is a little less important. I don't want to a B/B+ to ruin my chances. If I get a B that would make my GPA 3.96 and with a B+ that would make my GPA 3.97.
I would love advice on what to do.... do I drop the course?

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[drbatsandwich]

I don’t think you should drop a class because of the possibility your gpa would drop a couple hundredths of a point. Having a W would be much worse than the difference between a near-perfect GPA and another near-perfect GPA.

 

[TheDataKing]

A 3.96 vs a 3.98 is negligibly different at best. Honestly, you're fine. Almost everyone struggles in one course or another and this may be a good learning experience on how to revamp study methods. PChem is notoriously difficult. Getting a B or a B+ will not ruin your chances

 

[Goro]

So I just bombed an exam -- I mean a 66% on my first physical chemistry 2 exam. I have worked very hard in college to have a good GPA. My current GPA is 3.98 and I have always had A's + 2 A-. In order to get an A in this class, I need a 92% on the next 3 exams + final. I truly don't think that I can do that. In order to get an A- in the class, I need an 85% on the next 3 exams + final. Do I just drop the course? I can retake it next spring after I apply and am hopefully accepted and the grade is a little less important. I don't want to a B/B+ to ruin my chances. If I get a B that would make my GPA 3.96 and with a B+ that would make my GPA 3.97.
I would love advice on what to do.... do I drop the course?

do you honestly believe that you need a close to 4.0 GPA to get into medical school?

Getting a b in a sea of As simply shows that you are a human being.

 

[Goro]

And as a caveat, perfectionism is actively weeded out in the admissions process.

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

Even C in Organic Chemistry won't prevent you getting into medical school so don't worry about B in physical chem. Not even schools like WashU and Vandy will notice 3.98 to 3.96. Focus on MCAT if you haven't already taken than on one grade.

 

[JimKimSlim]

I thought this was a troll post but then I realized I used to be like you many years ago. No, you will be fine, and you’re probably overthinking! Also, the real question is why would you take physical chemistry 1 AND 2?!

 

[Gaius Diocletianus]

Better pack your sunscreen, friend.

 

[DNAJB6]

I thought this was a troll post but then I realized I used to be like you many years ago. No, you will be fine, and you’re probably overthinking! Also, the real question is why would you take physical chemistry 1 AND 2?!

Chem major probably and some programs recommend it... Harvard HST and Stanford recommended it at one point IIRC but I can no longer find it on the updated site.

 

[DNAJB6]

What was the class average? Is there a curve? Any chance Covid would allow you to convert to P/F?

 

[m1redsox]

B with a 3.96 >> W with a 3.98

 

[Banco]

I don't want to a B/B+ to ruin my chances. If I get a B that would make my GPA 3.96 and with a B+ that would make my GPA 3.97.

BRUH, please...relax. This will make literally 0 difference in your life.

 

[deleted1041819]

So I just bombed an exam -- I mean a 66% on my first physical chemistry 2 exam. I have worked very hard in college to have a good GPA. My current GPA is 3.98 and I have always had A's + 2 A-. In order to get an A in this class, I need a 92% on the next 3 exams + final. I truly don't think that I can do that. In order to get an A- in the class, I need an 85% on the next 3 exams + final. Do I just drop the course? I can retake it next spring after I apply and am hopefully accepted and the grade is a little less important. I don't want to a B/B+ to ruin my chances. If I get a B that would make my GPA 3.96 and with a B+ that would make my GPA 3.97.
I would love advice on what to do.... do I drop the course?

Okay, look. Not sure if you're trolling or if you're genuinely that high-strung.

In Gen Chem 2 I ended with a B+ in the class and a B in the lab. The first half of my transcript is a sea of B's. I should show you the 37% I got on an engineering calc 4 exam sometime if you want a good scare, something tells me it'd be more effective than your morning coffee when it comes to getting your heart rate up. But, that aside, I have six MD interviews, one of which converted to an acceptance (haven't heard from the others yet) and I'm ORM. With a 3.5. Barely a 3.5.

Adcoms don't care about your grades in a vacuum. They care that you learned from your failures (which, by the way, you are nowhere near approaching). I'm less worried about your transcript and more worried about your mental health. Please take a step back, remind yourself that you are a student and your priority should be learning, and take care of yourself by relaxing now and then. Learn how to deal with not reaching your goals now because it'll only get harder.

 

[deleted1082375]

So I just bombed an exam -- I mean a 66% on my first physical chemistry 2 exam. I have worked very hard in college to have a good GPA. My current GPA is 3.98 and I have always had A's + 2 A-. In order to get an A in this class, I need a 92% on the next 3 exams + final. I truly don't think that I can do that. In order to get an A- in the class, I need an 85% on the next 3 exams + final. Do I just drop the course? I can retake it next spring after I apply and am hopefully accepted and the grade is a little less important. I don't want to a B/B+ to ruin my chances. If I get a B that would make my GPA 3.96 and with a B+ that would make my GPA 3.97.
I would love advice on what to do.... do I drop the course?

66% on a pchem exam should be at least a C. Is this real pchem or is it gen chem 2? If it's gen chem 2, drop the class.

 

[deleted555445]

I just moved to a new area, and was searching for PCPs. Naturally, I asked all of them for their college transcripts to make sure I wasn't getting an idiot. This one guy I had such high hopes for, went to Harvard for college and med school, dual boarded neurosurgery and family medicine both from JHU, I was excited. But then I saw he got a B+ in OChem 3. I was sad, but of course I had to pass on him. What if he couldn't differentiate between an -OH and -NH stretch on an IR spectrum?

 

[GreenDuck12]

I am completely sincere in writing this: congratulations! You took an exam and it didn’t go as planned. This is a great experience to have now and not for the first time in medical school. So much of what you will encounter over the next 4 years of medical school and beyond is going to be the result of things not going as planned. It’s best to develop those coping skills now instead of in medical school. I can confirm that multiple folks in my class with 3.95+ GPAs have struggled greatly when tests didn’t go as well as they were accustomed to. Keep taking the class, learn to roll with the punches and develop some new strategies. You got this!

 

[deleted1082375]

I am completely sincere in writing this: congratulations! You took an exam and it didn’t go as planned. This is a great experience to have now and not for the first time in medical school. So much of what you will encounter over the next 4 years of medical school and beyond is going to be the result of things not going as planned. It’s best to develop those coping skills now instead of in medical school. I can confirm that multiple folks in my class with 3.95+ GPAs have struggled greatly when tests didn’t go as well as they were accustomed to. Keep taking the class, learn to roll with the punches and develop some new strategies. You got this!

better to bomb something now than to be sobbing in the lobby of your med school after you bomb your first anatomy exam.

 

[GreenDuck12]

better to bomb something now than to be sobbing in the lobby of your med school after you bomb your first anatomy exam.

And then having a breakdown requiring a LOA.