Feeling Disgruntled

[Eiot]

So my first couple semesters of college were awful. 2.28, 2.5 etc... I joined the Marine Corps and since then have been back on track in terms of my grades. I've been pulling mainly As with a B here or there. My last semester ended a 3.75. A cousin of mine in medical school told me that most schools are mainly concerned with an upward trend.

Here's my problem. I am currently on the path to a Bachelors in Business Administration. To get this degree I must complete Calculus, a course which I am taking now. Unfortunately, I am doing AWFUL in the sense of understanding the material. I have always excelled in science and most other departments, but never have been able to succeed in math subjects. My questions if I end up receiving a C; how bad is this going to reflect on my "upward trend"? What would you guys do if you were in my shoes? Thanks SDN.

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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

It will be a unattractive blemish on your application. But if your overall is high enough or semester gpa is high enough it won't be too bad.

 

[HalfListic]

This fully depends on what your GPA end up as, and what your MCAT is. One C if you end with a 3.5 isnt a problem. But if you end with a 2.9 and are still getting C's, that may be a bigger problem.

Good luck though!

 

[ColeMine]

Find out what your school's policy is if you take the class again. At mine, they take the highest and lowest and average them together. That don't remove the old one from the transcript, but it does give a bit more hope where GPA is concerned if you can bring it up by taking the class again if you end up running it into the dirt.

 

[CopToEM]

If the only tick on your upward trend is Calculus then you will likely join an entire subset of physicians who were in your same shoes. I had an attending tell me the hardest class he took in his entire life was Calculus 2. At this point I have to echo that - that class was terrible.

Again, like others indicated, the real answer depends on what your overall GPA looks like with this C. If you get the C, you need to calculate your GPA with the C and your GPA with both a B and an A. That will tell you whether or not it's worth it to retake. AACOMAS does not count Calculus in your science GPA so it's only going to affect your cumulative. If it moves it by a minuscule amount there's no point in retaking it.

 

[Eiot]

Thank you for the replies everyone. You've been extremely helpful.

 

[Eiot]

Great news, I ended up getting an A in all of my summer courses including my Calculus class! Thanks again to everyone that helped me out.

 

[ShabNasty]

Great news, I ended up getting an A in all of my summer courses including my Calculus class! Thanks again to everyone that helped me out.

way to pull it out.

 

[Goro]

Just keep rocking the science courses and this one setback will be overlooked.

So my first couple semesters of college were awful. 2.28, 2.5 etc... I joined the Marine Corps and since then have been back on track in terms of my grades. I've been pulling mainly As with a B here or there. My last semester ended a 3.75. A cousin of mine in medical school told me that most schools are mainly concerned with an upward trend.

Here's my problem. I am currently on the path to a Bachelors in Business Administration. To get this degree I must complete Calculus, a course which I am taking now. Unfortunately, I am doing AWFUL in the sense of understanding the material. I have always excelled in science and most other departments, but never have been able to succeed in math subjects. My questions if I end up receiving a C; how bad is this going to reflect on my "upward trend"? What would you guys do if you were in my shoes? Thanks SDN.