grad vs. undergrad gpa advice

[con1988]

I know there's been many posts on Grad vs undergrad GPA. I'm in a very unique situation and I'm wondering what you guys think I should do.

I'm in a 4 year dual degree program (AB/AM) and have taken only 2 classes towards my Masters degree and didn't do well in either one of them. I'm not going to make excuses or explain myself as that doesn't change the fact.

My undergrad GPA is 3.7 while my grad is 2.66. I got a C in one of my grad classes which was taught by two professors. One of them really liked me, convinced me to take the class, and gave me an A at the end of the first half. He even offered to write me a letter of recommendation given my C..... The second one apparently didn't like me at all. But the bottom line is that my adviser will also explain this letter grade in his letter and told me not to worry since it has no relevance to medicine.

I have the option of combine the two grad classes with my undergrad degree, and thus lowering my undergrad GPA but not have a 2.66 on my app or listing them separately to count for my GRAD GPA. I'm just wondering what you guys think I should do to minimize the damage of these two classes.

Thanks.

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[armybound]

personally I'd take the hit on the undergrad GPA.. it's still going to be a good 3.6+ and you won't have this bomb of a master's grade.

the problem is that you'll have to explain the Cs either way.

good luck

 

[con1988]

My overall would be 3.59 if i included the two in my overall undergrad GPA... My other concern was that if I do include the C (which is a non BCMP), my non science gpa would probably also be very low given i've only take a few non-science classes ~ 3.2-3.3ish i'm guessing...

Whether or not I list them separately,will the med schools know that I took them at the same time with a bunch of undergrad classes? The last thing I want them to think is that I took 2 classes a year and bombed both...

 

[con1988]

bump

 

[armybound]

there's a list of all classes you took and they'll be able to see that you took all of those courses at the same time.

 

[sawood]

I know there's been many posts on Grad vs undergrad GPA. I'm in a very unique situation and I'm wondering what you guys think I should do.

I'm in a 4 year dual degree program (AB/AM) and have taken only 2 classes towards my Masters degree and didn't do well in either one of them. I'm not going to make excuses or explain myself as that doesn't change the fact.

My undergrad GPA is 3.7 while my grad is 2.66. I got a C in one of my grad classes which was taught by two professors. One of them really liked me, convinced me to take the class, and gave me an A at the end of the first half. He even offered to write me a letter of recommendation given my C..... The second one apparently didn't like me at all. But the bottom line is that my adviser will also explain this letter grade in his letter and told me not to worry since it has no relevance to medicine.

I have the option of combine the two grad classes with my undergrad degree, and thus lowering my undergrad GPA but not have a 2.66 on my app or listing them separately to count for my GRAD GPA. I'm just wondering what you guys think I should do to minimize the damage of these two classes.

Thanks.

$0.02

I would instead ask if there is a way you can appeal the department chair for a grade change (even to a B?). If a prof (who was co teaching this course) is willing to write you a letter of rec to explain why you got an unfair poor grade, then that same prof might be able to make a case for you to the dept chair. What did other people get in the class? If they all got C's, then this approach wouldn't work. Either way, I would leave the undergrad GPA as is, especially since this grad class is not relavent to medicine?

 

[con1988]

$0.02

I would instead ask if there is a way you can appeal the department chair for a grade change (even to a B?). If a prof (who was co teaching this course) is willing to write you a letter of rec to explain why you got an unfair poor grade, then that same prof might be able to make a case for you to the dept chair. What did other people get in the class? If they all got C's, then this approach wouldn't work. Either way, I would leave the undergrad GPA as is, especially since this grad class is not relavent to medicine?

The class had 5 grad students and myself. They all got A's or A-'s... A few of them even work in the professor's lab (the one who assigned the final grade). I did email him to see if I could talk to him about my progress in the course, his reply basically said "if it's about the grade, there is no chance i'm changing it." The prof who is writing me a letter (not meant to explain the grade, but more to comment on my performance in the half he taught) said the other prof has to agree to change the grade though he is willing to do the paper work... I didn't pursue the matter further since the email sounded pretty definite...

This happened in the fall semester, but I didn't worry too much UNTIL this past semester when I didn't do as well as I should have in another grad class for my masters degree... this course is a BCMP class and has relevance to my area of research... that's why I became very concerned - that the two classes add together might be a problem, even though the C is not BCMP and will be explained..

 

[pianola]

Unless you add more classes to your "grad" load, I would definitely lump UG and Grad together.

A 2.66 alone anywhere just doesn't look good.

3.59 is fine anywhere particularly with a good MCAT.

Also just my 2 cents.

 

[con1988]

Also, I'm not sure if this would make a difference, but my grades have been going up significantly since freshman year - 3.45, 3.75, 3.9 if I don't include the GRAD classes... If I listed them under GRAD, my BCMP will be 3.3 and AO will be 2 (due to the C).

On the other hand, my AO will be 3.45ish if I include the C with my undergrad...

I worked extremely hard to try to get my GPA around 3.7 and to me, it would be very disappointing to see all that work wasted due to one class that I took as an elective... But I definitely see your point.. 2.66 will not leave a good taste in their mouth, even for a GRAD gpa