How bad is a W?

[cms07c]

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So I'm taking Biology 2 lab (worth 2 credits) and am obviously not doing too well. This class has a separate lecture jsut for the lab if that tells you anything..but I'm sure everyone else is dealing with this so I shouldn't complain. Anyway, to be honest, I've gotten a 61% on my lab practical and then a 76% on my lecture midterm for the class. This is the worst I've done in any class, but working plus school is really burning me out this semester. I can drop it and get a W on my transcript or stick it out , work my butt off and hopefully get a C..if i'm even lucky enough to get that. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...(by the way my gpa is 3.49, and Im a sophmore..if that helps)

 

[IvyLynx]

one W won't kill you, repeated offenses might though

 

[Tsuky2008]

I definitely don't think a W counts against you, as long as there aren't a lot of them, and you make sure to rock the class next time you take it. I had 2 W's on my transcript over 4 years and I don't think they gave them a second glance. The only thing I would make sure of is that since it is Bio II, you wouldn't have to wait until next spring (possibly throwing off other courses that require it as a pre-req) to take it. I know that at my university Bio II isn't offered in the summer or fall semesters, so I would just make sure to check that it still fits into your schedule and time table! 🙂 Hope that helps, good luck!

 

[Truth74]

I agree with everybody else. And, above all, make sure it isn't a W that will turn into an F! 😱 Check and make sure it will stay a W forever, if you don't plan on repeating or completing the course. Talk about torpedoing a gpa...

 

[oregonhopeful]

I have 3 Ws I believe, including one in general Biology. Something like that isn't a make or break thing, it's what everything else looks like. And a W is better than tanking all your other classes to try to make a C in one.

 

[Lckynmbrslefman]

What do you all think about W's in geneds for a last senior semester? I am taking an econ class for one of the vet schools, but if I don't get in I want to drop it. Do you think this would be looked at unfavorably by the vet schools that have already accepted me?

 

[aussie86]

What do you all think about W's in geneds for a last senior semester? I am taking an econ class for one of the vet schools, but if I don't get in I want to drop it. Do you think this would be looked at unfavorably by the vet schools that have already accepted me?

I was taking a public speaking class because it was a requirement for a lot of schools, but Tufts doesn't. After I was accepted, I emailed and asked if they would care if I dropped it, and they said it was absolutely fine! I don't think any school would care or that it would affect your acceptance unless it was a prereq. So I would say go for it and make your last semester enjoyable!

 

[oregonhopeful]

You ought to email the school and check before you drop it though. It would be horrible to think it makes no difference and then discover you were wrong.

 

[BayleeVet2B]

You ought to email the school and check before you drop it though. It would be horrible to think it makes no difference and then discover you were wrong.

You especially need to be sure that dropping a class doesn't lower your credits below the requirement for any scholarship you might have! I dropped a one credit class and my parents got a bill for $5000 when they took away my scholarship for the semester! Fortunately I was able to pick up a one credit "Express" class that began today...Electronic Resources for Research....should be fascinating!!! Oh and...I did get my scholarship back!!! 😀

 

[KittyRex]

OK, not to hijack the thread, but what if you are planning on applying for internships/residencies after vet school? Do we need to show our undergrad transcripts for that or just our vet school transcripts?
(also considering withdrawing from a potentially unnecessary pre-req, pending admission decision at the last school I'm waiting on).

 

[brwnIdprevetgal]

I got accepted with a W from biochem. I was forced to take one due to an illness. I missed over a month of class in a semester and the Prof, who I still hate to this day, offered me the option of a W or an F. He felt the W was a fair option b/c I was originally getting an A-. He said he only granted one other W previously in all of the years he taught it. My other Profs for my other courses offered me incompletes and allowed me to finish my classes. I ended up not taking the incompletes and finished them on time. I had hospitalization documentation and I explained everything in my VMCAS in the section where we are allowed to explain anything on our transcript. It did not seem to be a problem. Now I realize your situation is different. But honestly, I have heard a lot of people have had to take Ws for various reasons. I immediately retook the course the next semester which showed that I was not trying to avoid it. Perhaps, you should take the W this semester and focus your efforts on that course the next semester.

 

[tealamutt]

the effect W's are completely dependent on circumstance, in the committees eyes. Don't tell them it was because you couldn't handle work and school, unless you are prepared to say you learned a valuable time management lesson or something to turn it into a positive point when that time comes. Drop the class, if it is your only W you won't even have to mention it in your app. I had two entire semesters of W's and then one or two others after I took a few years off and went back to school. I had a really good explaination for the two botched semesters and got in to two schools on my first try without any mention of the subsequent W's. They will be evaluating you as a whole and a D or F now could seriously hurt your GPA, or at least make it more difficult to recover. If you drop, you can just repeat the course next time and rock it, GPA intact!

 

[cms07c]

thank you to everyone who responded..im so glad theres a place that we can receive honest advice and support. 🙂

 

[Sherman01]

I withdrew from a class, my senior semester (mammology), I just emailed the admissions director of the school I accepted an admissions offer to. She said they don't look at W's, they just look for successful completion of the rest of my course work. She said they would prefer I didnt withdraw, but it wasent that big of deal, and it was up to me.

 

[Mistoffeles]

just to add to the chorus, I basically took Ws and W->F in most of the classes my second semester Jr year that weren't related to one of my two majors. I was a wreck emotionally, and that was that. my undergrad GPA was 2.71. i had two careers before going back to school, and ate my post-bac courses for lunch.

I had one W in post bac, the first time I took o-chem. i got a 40% on my 2nd test (chapters 6-10 in Wade), and was also taking Physics, Genetics, and Cell/Molecular bio. i had a meltdown, walked out of class halfway through the lecture (prof gave tests back at the *beginning* of class!), and texted my friend that I was abandoning the whole thing. she called me later, and we talked through it, i withdrew the next day. then i retook the class the next semester, and got a B (with the hardest professor in the department).

as an older student, the schools where I've been accepted/alternated have looked at my undergrad GPA (and its drag-down effect on my overall), my age, my VMCAS explanatory statement, then looked again at my science GPA, and said "yeah, I guess you can handle the curriculum."