Can current optometry students give me advice on what to do?

[Vee9]

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I'm in my first semester of second year and would like to drop a course this semester. I'd like to end up with a higher grade rather than keep this course, get an unsatisfactory grade and have to retake it again.

I've emailed the schools in the US and they have all replied similarly. This was from Pacific, for example:

If you feel the need to drop the course right now and re-take it later in order to get a satisfactory grade, that is fine. You will be fine dropping one course, especially since this is not a pattern for you. The Optometry Admissions Committee understands that a student may have to drop a course or two during their college career!


Waterloo, however, responded like this:

Assuming you are applying to Waterloo, they do require you to have a full course load (5 courses per semester) during the Fall and Winter terms regardless of whether you have taken additional summer courses. So if you were thinking of dropping a first term course at this point in time, I definitely wouldn't recommend it as you won't be able to enroll in another course to fulfill the full course load requirement.


I am currently taking 5 courses. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[Blondiechick919]

I guess it depends on how badly you want to go to Waterloo. And also, consider how many credits each course is and how many the one you want to drop is.

 

[Vee9]

All of the courses are weighted at 0.5 credits. It's only when we get to 3rd year, especially the physiology courses, that it's weighted more heavily :\
Waterloo is one of my options because it's the closest to my home, only an hour drive away but I know I'll also have to apply to US schools because the chances of getting into the only English speaking optometry school in Canada is slim :\

 

[Gigan988]

That's all so different than WesternU. We cannot drop courses, because we do not pick courses. We have a whole lot more than 5 in a semester, because they start and end randomly throughout the school year. Some are 2 weeks long, some are 9 weeks long, etc. And it's a fixed curriculum, we don't pick any of our courses, we're automatically enrolled.

 

[Vee9]

That's interesting o_o
My main concern is whether to drop this undergraduate course or not. The US schools that I have emailed seem to be fine with it but it's just Waterloo that is picky. What the admission lady said, clashes with what is said on the website:

"If you are taking extra course(s) in the summer, you don't have to take a full course load. All course work must be finished by May 31 of the year of application (e.g. May 31, 2013 for applications for September 2013)."

Should I drop the course rather than risk getting a low grade and having to retake it?

 

[Gigan988]

That's interesting o_o
My main concern is whether to drop this undergraduate course or not. The US schools that I have emailed seem to be fine with it but it's just Waterloo that is picky. What the admission lady said, clashes with what is said on the website:

"If you are taking extra course(s) in the summer, you don't have to take a full course load. All course work must be finished by May 31 of the year of application (e.g. May 31, 2013 for applications for September 2013)."

Should I drop the course rather than risk getting a low grade and having to retake it?

oh I thought you meant your second year at optometry school. You probably should've posted this in the pre-optometry forum since I assumed you were already admitted. Good luck with everything!

 

[Vee9]

Sorry for the confusion.
I happened to post in that forum too. I posed here as well because I thought that it would be good for some current optometry students to give some advice for my situation.