Didn't do so well in bio classes

[Ansar]

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Hi all,

So I did pretty bad in my two bio classes...
Intro Bio-Physiology : B-
Intro Bio-Cell Bio/Development: C
(I still haven't taken Bio lab, which is a separate course at the college I attend)

Obviously, these will be very bad on my transcript, but will the glaring red flags be put down if I do very well in a more advanced class like Microbiology and Biochemistry and can score well on MCAT's BS section? 😳

Uh, if it matters, I attend Cornell, Physics major.

 

[lobo.solo]

Upward GPA trends might be looked at favorably. Also your major and school might help you too, if you don't get a 3.5 GPA. Suerte.

 

[katymalady]

An upward trend is definitely a good sign, and doing well in advanced classes will prove that you have the ability to do well in Bio and that your low grades in the intro classes were just a fluke. I doubt that a few bad grades will be "glaring red flags." Just do better next time and remember that it's your overall performance that matters. I also heard Cornell has a bit of grade deflation (just curious, what's your opinion on this?), so perhaps that factor will be taken into consideration as well. Good luck!

 

[Ansar]

Suerte.

Gracias hombre

I also heard Cornell has a bit of grade deflation (just curious, what's your opinion on this?), so perhaps that factor will be taken into consideration as well. Good luck!

The intro Bio and Chem classes are curved to a B-, which I've heard is to discourage anyone who doesn't rock the classes (because if you get mean grade, you get B-...if you get one standard deviation above, you get A-, and don't even think about getting below mean) to drop premed, so I suppose there is grade deflation early on, but if you take honors version of classes (e.g. gen chem, ochem, physics), the curve is B+, which is a lot nicer and more forgiving if you are in the middle of the pack. I think it is slightly exaggerated, there's just a lot of smart people here, I suppose.

 

[katymalady]

The intro Bio and Chem classes are curved to a B-, which I've heard is to discourage anyone who doesn't rock the classes (because if you get mean grade, you get B-...if you get one standard deviation above, you get A-, and don't even think about getting below mean) to drop premed, so I suppose there is grade deflation early on, but if you take honors version of classes (e.g. gen chem, ochem, physics), the curve is B+, which is a lot nicer and more forgiving if you are in the middle of the pack. I think it is slightly exaggerated, there's just a lot of smart people here, I suppose.

Ah, I see. Good to know. This is a very similar grading scheme compared to the one at my university. I used to think that our Gen Bio class (which was curved at a B-) was really generous, but now that I step back and contemplate it, a 2.7 isn't pretty at all for a premed transcript. Maybe I was just distracted by how harsh our Gen Chem curve was (C+)...