COLLEGE FRESHMAN FREAKING OUT!!!

[trideltk]

I am a current biology first-year finishing up my first semester. I took Biology, Gen Chem I and Calculus I as part of my 18 credit hour workload. The transition to college has been especially tough and it took a massive toll on my mental health. I also was in a toxic sorority and spread my time thin, with academics not necessarily always being my top priority. I am super passionate about medicine and am 100% about it after doing two internships at regional hospitals as well as shadow a multitude of physicians, from podiatry to critical care pulmonology. In high school, I earned a 4.30 and NEVER got senioritis. I scored a 1500 on the SAT and have what I thought was a STEM-oriented brain.

My current grades however, do not reflect this. I received a C+ in biology, a C in Calculus, and a C in Chemistry I. This may have been a result of me being in the biology major at a stem oriented school instead of their "pre-med, pre-professional" major. The classes I was in were at a slightly higher level than I needed to be (i.e. CHM 12900 instead of CHM11500) that would fill the same pre-requisites for medical school. Even so, I really only struggled in the first half of the semester as I received A's on all of my finals which indicates I at least know and understand the material well (this sadly did not bring my grades up much). I am switching majors to the pre-professional one next semester. My first choice medical school is IU School of Medicine, and I am pretty set on allopathic medicine. I am stressed about this as starting in the 2020/2021 cycle IU will now require a 3.8 cumulative and science gpa for early decision. I don't want to give up on my lifelong dream over literally 18 weeks of college. I am considering retaking the classes over the summer at another one of my school's satellite campuses in my hometown to help offset my gpa. I understand that AMCAS will still factor in the previous grades into my gpa, but I have heard that taking the classes at a different campus means it will not be counted as a retake. Will it be worth my time/money to do this? I would do literally anything to get into medical school and I know I will have to work harder next semester, and I have sought counseling through my school to work through my mental health problems. I also understand that I need to demonstrate an upward trend, but will that be enough? Please let me know what I should do in regards to this and thank you in advance for any advice!

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[ChymeofPassion]

I am a current biology first-year finishing up my first semester. I took Biology, Gen Chem I and Calculus I as part of my 18 credit hour workload. The transition to college has been especially tough and it took a massive toll on my mental health. I also was in a toxic sorority and spread my time thin, with academics not necessarily always being my top priority. I am super passionate about medicine and am 100% about it after doing two internships at regional hospitals as well as shadow a multitude of physicians, from podiatry to critical care pulmonology. In high school, I earned a 4.30 and NEVER got senioritis. I scored a 1500 on the SAT and have what I thought was a STEM-oriented brain.

My current grades however, do not reflect this. I received a C+ in biology, a C in Calculus, and a C in Chemistry I. This may have been a result of me being in the biology major at a stem oriented school instead of their "pre-med, pre-professional" major. The classes I was in were at a slightly higher level than I needed to be (i.e. CHM 12900 instead of CHM11500) that would fill the same pre-requisites for medical school. Even so, I really only struggled in the first half of the semester as I received A's on all of my finals which indicates I at least know and understand the material well (this sadly did not bring my grades up much). I am switching majors to the pre-professional one next semester. My first choice medical school is IU School of Medicine, and I am pretty set on allopathic medicine. I am stressed about this as starting in the 2020/2021 cycle IU will now require a 3.8 cumulative and science gpa for early decision. I don't want to give up on my lifelong dream over literally 18 weeks of college. I am considering retaking the classes over the summer at another one of my school's satellite campuses in my hometown to help offset my gpa. I understand that AMCAS will still factor in the previous grades into my gpa, but I have heard that taking the classes at a different campus means it will not be counted as a retake. Will it be worth my time/money to do this? I would do literally anything to get into medical school and I know I will have to work harder next semester, and I have sought counseling through my school to work through my mental health problems. I also understand that I need to demonstrate an upward trend, but will that be enough? Please let me know what I should do in regards to this and thank you in advance for any advice!

Do not retake prereqs you got a C on.
Do NOT switch to that pre-professional major, if you were to fail to get into medical school that is useless. Demonstrate an upward trend (you need As from here on out to get that 3.8) and you'll be fine. Kill the MCAT.

 

[rothguy]

Do not retake prereqs you got a C on.
Do NOT switch to that pre-professional major, if you were to fail to get into medical school that is useless. Demonstrate an upward trend (you need As from here on out to get that 3.8) and you'll be fine. Kill the MCAT.

Isn't biology just as useless?

 

[Detective SnowBucket]

Sounds like you sorted your problems out in this post.
got out of the sorority
don't take 18 credit hours.
Problem solved.

 

[ChymeofPassion]

Isn't biology just as useless?

No

 

[ak-aka-dak]

No matter where you retake classes, they will count as a retake and will be averaged with your original grades. If you took any dual enrollment classes while in high school, those will also be counted. You must submit every transcript from every college/university that you attended. If you omit a transcript, your acceptance can be rescinded. There is a clearing house of some sort where schools can see all of your grades, so do not omit submitting any transcripts due to a few C’s. Getting caught down the line is not worth it.

The good news is that medical schools love upward trends. Many students start out freshman year like you did. You realized your mistakes and have adjusted accordingly. You are a very bright student and capable of getting very good grades and a high MCAT score. Go do it and leave the first semester behind. Being able to show your growth and own your early college mistakes will be an asset to you later on.

One last thing... Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket by limiting yourself to only one medical school. Most people apply to many schools. The average is 15 or 16. Just because you might not be able to apply early decision to your dream school doesn’t mean you won’t get in through the regular decision process. Frankly, most adcoms here would advise you to NOT apply early decision because then you won’t be able to apply to any other schools until sometime in September which puts you wayyyy behind the 8 ball and can ruin your application cycle. Submit to many schools within the first few weeks of the application cycle opening (the earlier the better), keep up with your EC’s, kill the MCAT, and get good grades from here on out. You will be fine.

 

[ANaturalWizard]

You're currently a college freshman and there is certainly time to recover. The first step I would take is to surround yourself with others who are also highly motivated in pursuing a medical profession after their undergrad. You don't need to be best friends with them but its a good idea to study with students who are more focused than yourself and it will help focus yourself. One of the things I did was join the premedical clubs at my school. Next, focus on getting a 4.0 your next semester (I assume youre on a semester schedule). Try and be more proactive with your work and get things done when they are assigned rather than simply doing them prior their due dates. This gives you extra time to learn the concepts properly rather than feel rushed and end up googling some answers and calling it a day.

As far as I can see your course load should be okay for now and as long as your manage your time well you should be okay. I would also *highly recommend not being active in your sorority over your next semesters as it seems to be interfering with your academics.

Lastly don't be afraid to take advantage of resources on campus to help with your academics in case you are struggling in a course. This varies by college but at my colleges there were tutoring sessions multiple days a week for most lowerdiv courses and optional discussion sections that worked on example problems and review. You paid for these resources as part of your tuition so take advantage of it!

 

[DocOrBust2019]

It sounds like you need to learn how to study. You probably coasted in H.S. and need to develop good study habits now. It happens to a lot of students. Don't sweat it.

Don't retake classes you've passed. It isn't worth it. If I were you, I would do the following: 1) Go to my school's academic success center and get the help I needed, whenever I need it.

2) Go to office hours or to the TA if you're not understanding material. Don't just assume you'll get it.

3) Reduce course load. There's no need to do 18 credit hours. Do 12-15. That's full time. This is a marathon and believe it or not, you're young as heck - take the time you need to make sure you do college RIGHT the first time. This semester won't preclude you from graduating with a 3.8+... But you need to average a 4.0 from here on out to get there... So you need to do whatever it takes to ensure that happens. As a premed, you need to get your ECs in also. Try to go for a lighter course load. If you're worried about falling behind pace... The average bachelor's degree takes 5.1 years. You can always do a summer course or two to make sure you stay on "pace" but this is a marathon. You will be in school until your late 20s no matter what.

4) Don't worry about early decision. You may not even want to do med school in two more years. If you do, great - apply everywhere that interests you. You're probably 18-19? So if you do it totally traditionally, you're applying at 22-23. In by 23-24 if you're lucky and have set yourself up right. Graduate at 27-28. Done with residency between 31-34. You'll be done with residency at the same age that I'll be starting med school if I'm lucky enough to get in.

 

[trideltk]

I do not think it will be worth my time to retake both of the sciences, but should I retake Calculus I? I know that it will still be averaged out, but wouldn't getting an A in it the second time at least somewhat remedy my C gpa-wise? Why are retakes "frowned upon" instead of taken as initiative and drive to improve myself?

 

[DocOrBust2019]

Your future As will remedy the C. You have already made the mistakes of getting poor grades in a few courses. It's fine, it happens to a lot of people. You will show improvement by succeeding in future classes.

A retake is an expected A. You've taken Calc already, you're not proving anything to anyone by doing well on material you've already seen, studied, and been tested on. Anything less than an A suggests that you have poor judgement and don't learn from your mistakes.

 

[Goro]

I do not think it will be worth my time to retake both of the sciences, but should I retake Calculus I? I know that it will still be averaged out, but wouldn't getting an A in it the second time at least somewhat remedy my C gpa-wise? Why are retakes "frowned upon" instead of taken as initiative and drive to improve myself?

No. Do better in other rigorous classes, that will balance things out. Retakes are frown upon because you're expected to ace them the second time around, and so if you don't it blows up in your face.