Grade change got denied. Now I'm lost and looking for help

[Horses4you]

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Hello,

So, my first semester at my undergrad (my junior year because I transferred from CC) was really hard on me. I was going through tough times that I just recently went to get help for. Because of that I got a D+ in my stats class. On top of that, my adviser had told me to take the class but it turned out he was wrong and that particular stats class did not count toward my major (Animal Science). So now I was stuck with a D+ for a class that I did not need to take.

Like I said, I recently received help for the issues at the school's counseling center. I have been seeing someone there for a couple of months. When I told her about my issues, she decided to look over my transcript. She felt that because of my issues, which she saw as valid, the grade should be dropped for medical reasons. She wrote a letter to the dean and he signed off on it. However, I just got an email back from the grade change committee and they denied my request. It seems that they did not even look at the letter and based their entire decision on the fact that I should have known the correct class to be put in. The advising issue was only said as context for why I was in that particular class, not why I received a bad grade. They said nothing about the letter or the dean signing off on the change.

Sorry for the novel, but I'm lost here. My GPA is 3.4ish and I got a 156 verbal and 157 quant. on the GRE. So I'm on the bubble and this grade is going to really bring me down. I am retaking stats but its actually a harder 5 unit class this fall and hope to keep the recent streak of A's up. Is there anything I can do? Appeal? Talk to the President? How do I make sure that any addendum I provide will be taken into account? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[hai1983]

Hello,

So, my first semester at my undergrad (my junior year because I transferred from CC) was really hard on me. I was going through tough times that I just recently went to get help for. Because of that I got a D+ in my stats class. On top of that, my adviser had told me to take the class but it turned out he was wrong and that particular stats class did not count toward my major (Animal Science). So now I was stuck with a D+ for a class that I did not need to take.

Like I said, I recently received help for the issues at the school's counseling center. I have been seeing someone there for a couple of months. When I told her about my issues, she decided to look over my transcript. She felt that because of my issues, which she saw as valid, the grade should be dropped for medical reasons. She wrote a letter to the dean and he signed off on it. However, I just got an email back from the grade change committee and they denied my request. It seems that they did not even look at the letter and based their entire decision on the fact that I should have known the correct class to be put in. The advising issue was only said as context for why I was in that particular class, not why I received a bad grade. They said nothing about the letter or the dean signing off on the change.

Sorry for the novel, but I'm lost here. My GPA is 3.4ish and I got a 156 verbal and 157 quant. on the GRE. So I'm on the bubble and this grade is going to really bring me down. I am retaking stats but its actually a harder 5 unit class this fall and hope to keep the recent streak of A's up. Is there anything I can do? Appeal? Talk to the President? How do I make sure that any addendum I provide will be taken into account? Thanks for any suggestions.

I'd follow up with the committee or their contact person to be sure they evaluated your request on the proper grounds (the trouble you were having, not the bad advising). If that fails, I suppose it'd go in the Explanation Statement on your VMCAS. Good luck!

 

[Horses4you]

Thanks for the reply. In terms of the explanation statement would they read those before the first initial cut? I'm worried that they won't read it and go directly off of my GPA, which is obviously lower because of the grade, and throw out my app instead of reading the statement and hopefully recalculating my GPA first.

 

[Emiloo4]

Thanks for the reply. In terms of the explanation statement would they read those before the first initial cut? I'm worried that they won't read it and go directly off of my GPA, which is obviously lower because of the grade, and throw out my app instead of reading the statement and hopefully recalculating my GPA first.

I'm pretty sure your GPA is above the "throw out" range for most schools.

 

[LetItSnow]

Sorry for the novel, but I'm lost here. My GPA is 3.4ish and I got a 156 verbal and 157 quant. on the GRE. So I'm on the bubble and this grade is going to really bring me down. I am retaking stats but its actually a harder 5 unit class this fall and hope to keep the recent streak of A's up. Is there anything I can do? Appeal? Talk to the President? How do I make sure that any addendum I provide will be taken into account? Thanks for any suggestions.

Couple thoughts.

First, you've got a lot of other classes, a 3.4 is not the end of the world, and so long as you just keep killing it with A's ... nobody will give a rat's ass about that stats class. Ever. Anyone. Anywhere. So cheer up - you've got a long road and you're doing well.

Second, if it were me I'd write a very politely-worded letter to the chair of the committee asking for an explanation of the denial. You said it "seems they did not even look at the letter." Do you KNOW that? Or are you just saying it because you got denied? They very well may have read the letter, looked over the evidence, and decided the case doesn't meet their criteria for the drop. On the other hand, if they explain the reasoning and something doesn't line up ... then you can follow up from there. I know some people believe in going tooth and nail on every little thing, but if it were me .. this isn't one to go nuts over. That's just me; I respect the peeps who would make it their life's mission to get the grade drop, but I'd move on.

Third, if you ever go to explain it to a vet school, drop all the references to the adviser telling you to take that course. Nobody wants to hear how your grades are someone else's fault - it makes it sound like you don't accept the responsibility. Someone may have given you bum advice, but in the end it's your responsibility for taking it, and your work that led to the grade.

 

[Horses4you]

I agree with all of your points. And thanks for the kind words. In the email they sent me they explicitly said that "grades are not dropped for academic reasons" then went on to explain how it was my responsibility to make sure that I was in the class that I was supposed to be in, and the fact that my adviser told me to take the wrong class is not a sufficient basis. It seemed to be a thorough explanation of their reasoning and they did not mention the letter or my circumstances once. And if all else fails then I will definitely write the explanation and leave out any mention of the advising.

 

[LetItSnow]

Thanks for the reply. In terms of the explanation statement would they read those before the first initial cut?

That will differ from school to school. They all evaluate candidates a bit differently. At my school, the explanation statement wouldn't get read first (but on the other hand, they only look at last-45-credits gpa and pre-req gpa, so the class wouldn't matter anyway). Other schools do it differently.

 

[Camelidcrazy]

That will differ from school to school. They all evaluate candidates a bit differently. At my school, the explanation statement wouldn't get read first (but on the other hand, they only look at last-45-credits gpa and pre-req gpa, so the class wouldn't matter anyway). Other schools do it differently.

Agreed 100%. It's going to be a case-by-case bit. My school for example does a 'tiered' system where if you are top tier (a set criteria published in the admissions website) for EITHER GPA -or- GRE your application is automatically moved to the next round of review (eg. warrants closer review where they will likely read your explanation section). No idea how the new GRE grading system works, but assuming your GRE is solid- I suspect you can overcome the grade.

Good luck!

 

[NStarz]

I had a D+ on my application (retook and got an A-) so all hope is not lost.

 

[CanHardlyWait]

For what it's worth- I got a D in calculus and never retook it. I just applied to schools that didn't require it.
I also got a D in 2nd semester organic at a 4 year school. I retook it and got an A, but retook it at CC. I did this purely for monetary reasons.
I got in on my first try and wasn't outright rejected to anywhere I applied (wait listed), but besides those two classes I got A's in all but 2 of the rest of my other undergrad classes (organic 1st semester and trig I got B's in, no surprise there) so that may be why those D's were overlooked.

 

[TigerWillow]

Are you implying a 3.4 is the throw out grade?!?! 😱

Mine was a 3.42. For LSU, yes, they literally threw me out one day and took my check the next day (I'm not bitter ). Just be smart about where you're applying.

But no. One miserable grade is not the end of the world.