How badly did I screw up my transcripts? (Personal issues, health issues) Need advice

[MoonFlower1319]

Hello, fellow SDN'ers! Just joined the forums, but I've been a lurker for quite a while. I'm sure you guys must get this kind of question often, but I would like some insight on my specific situation. Beware, this is a long post. I will summarize red flags on my transcripts at the end, but first, I will provide more detail.

I did dual enrollment during high school at a four-year college (57 credits). I got As in everything (including courses like Functional Anatomy, Human Nutrition, College Algebra, and other sciences), except for a B in American Government, a B in Forensic Science, and a C in Stats 1. This is not really the part I'm worried about. This college did not offer plus or minus grades.

Once I graduated high school, I started at a university and started dorming. I had a difficult time adjusting and had a bad first semester. I got an A in my chemistry lecture, but I dropped the lab (dropped grades appear as a DR on my university's transcripts). I also got a C+ in my combined Pre-Cal/Trigonometry class, a C in this 1-credit Freshman Experience course, and then an A in a 5-credit Spanish II class.

Next semester, I re-took my chemistry lab and got an A. I was taking Calculus I and dropped it. I took three other courses (Social Psych, Sociology, and LGBT and Beyond) and got A's in all of them. The reason I dropped Calculus is because I got really sick during this semester and had to be hospitalized for most of the first two weeks of the semester. I still felt pretty unwell throughout the rest of the semester, but not enough to be hospitalized again. I ended up falling really behind in Calculus. This medical issue has been resolved.

Now, this is where it looks really bad. I took some some summer classes: Chemistry II with lab and legal psychology. I ended up getting an F in the chemistry lecture while dropping the lab. Fortunately, I got an A in legal psychology. I was going through a really difficult time during this semester. I experienced a bad sexual assault, and I had trouble coping. Chemistry was a lot more work-intensive when it came to homework than legal psychology, so my chemistry lecture and lab grades are the ones that suffered. I don't really know how to explain this section of my application to ADCOMs without getting really personal, especially considering the other problems I have with grades (despite the fact that my overall GPA isn't bad).

Grades for my next semester (Fall):
Stats 2: Dropped
Memory and Memory Improvement: C+
Abnormal Psychology: A-
Psychology of Adolescence: A-
Behavior Analysis: A

Spring:
Re-took stats and got a B-
Social and Personality Development: A
Psychology of Drugs and Alcohol: A
Child Psychology: A-
Human Growth and Development: A-

Summer:
Took two psych classes and got A's

Fall:
Research Methods (4 credits): A
Social Deviancy: A
Happiness and Fulfillment: A
Biology I: B
Biology I Lab: B

Spring:
- Re-taking Chemistry II: I'm pretty sure I'll get an A in this. I know my chemistry well. I had actually taken AP Chemistry and scored a 5 in high school, but I had heard that medical schools prefer the classes taken at a university.
- Re-taking Chemistry II Lab: Also anticipate an A
Physics without Calc I
Physics without Calc I Lab
Senior Seminar in Behavior Analysis
(I anticipate an A in all classes this semester. I also took AP Physics in high school and scored well, and behavior analysis is a subject I excel at)

TL;DR SUMMARY

Red flags on my transcript:

- Got a C in Stats I while doing dual enrollment at a college during high school
- Took Stats II and dropped it. Re-took it and got a B-
- Dropped Calc I due to medical issues
- Dropped Chem I lab. Re-took it and got an A
- Got an F in Chem II and dropped Chem II lab. Experienced bad sexual assault during this time. Re-taking now. I strongly anticipate an A in both (scored a 5 in AP Chem in high school)
- Got a C+ in combined Pre-Calc/Trigonometry
- Got a C+ in Memory and Memory Improvement

Overall GPA (not counting dual enrollment grades or courses I'm currently enrolled in): 3.49
Overall GPA with dual enrollment grades: Around a 3.7-3.8
First GPA is expected to rise above a 3.5 after the completion of this semester. I plan on continuing to get A's in the rest of my prerequisites (Physics II, Bio II, Orgo I and II, Biochem) as I'm more well-adjusted now and all my personal/medical issues have been resolved.

How badly will the red flags on my transcripts stand out to medical schools? How should I explain them given what you guys know of my situation?

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[Goro]

Just maintain a solid academic record and you'll be fine. You can explain the assault in your secondaries under "Greatest challenge" or "Anything else we need to know?" prompts. Readers will be able to connect the dots.

Rising GPA trends always look good.

 

[MoonFlower1319]

Just maintain a solid academic record and you'll be fine. You can explain the assault in your secondaries under "Greatest challenge" or "Anything else we need to know?" prompts. Readers will be able to connect the dots.

Rising GPA trends always look good.

Thank you for the reply! I feel more relieved now. I didn't think of explaining that in the secondaries, so thank you again. It seems more obvious now.

 

[ciestar]

Thankfully you still have a good GPA. Goro’s advice is sound.

 

[bioboy23]

I’m amazed your GPA is still so good throughout all of that. I really hope everything works out for you!!

 

[MoonFlower1319]

I’m amazed your GPA is still so good throughout all of that. I really hope everything works out for you!!

Honestly, me too, haha. Thanks for the encouragement! I hope so, too

 

[MonkeyArrow]

With all due respect, how are you (@Goro) not concerned about this person’s academic performance?

In most BCPM classes, OP either dropped it the first time around or did poorly. I recognize that the GPA is high, but this person has not performed well in rigorous classes.

 

[MoonFlower1319]

With all due respect, how are you (@Goro) not concerned about this person’s academic performance?

In most BCPM classes, OP either dropped it the first time around or did poorly. I recognize that the GPA is high, but this person has not performed well in rigorous classes.

This is the part I've been worried about. I would like more input on this as well. I know I can perform well in rigorous science classes, and I feel I will prove that this semester and those following, but I worry about how committee members will weigh the pattern of me not performing well in them initially.

 

[Goro]

With all due respect, how are you (@Goro) not concerned about this person’s academic performance?

In most BCPM classes, OP either dropped it the first time around or did poorly. I recognize that the GPA is high, but this person has not performed well in rigorous classes.

The early poor performance HAS to be re-mediated by an unbroken stretch of good performance. The candidate is not applying to med school right now...I interpret that the OP is a junior? OP, where exactly are you in your schooling? Can we get a year by year GPA summary?

 

[MoonFlower1319]

The early poor performance HAS to be re-mediated by an unbroken stretch of good performance. The candidate is not applying to med school right now...I interpret that the OP is a junior? OP, where exactly are you in your schooling? Can we get a year by year GPA summary?

You’re correct — I’m not applying to medical school right now. I’m also planning on taking a gap year to strengthen my application and prepare for the MCAT.

I have confidence that I’ll be able to remediate that early poor performance with an unbroken stretch of good performance, like you mentioned.

With the dual enrollment credits, I’d technically be considered a senior. But, weirdly enough, my school lists my status as a junior. Also, I just turned 20 last month, so I guess I’d be considered a bit young given my status as a junior/senior (I don’t think that matters, though, but mentioning it just in case).

My school listing my status as a junior is also a bit odd because I can technically graduate this semester upon the completion of my senior seminar, as all of my university’s core curriculum requirements have been met along with all of my major’s requirements. I only have my med school prerequisites left to finish, but I’m also in the process of completing two certificates.

I’ll try and get a year-by-year GPA summary up later. Since starting at university, you can notice a definite upward GPA trend.

 

[861843]

For some long, sad reasons I had an entire year with a 2.0 average (including some really critical science classes). But I made it up with a 4.0 my junior and senior year and published quite a bit. It's easy to feel hopeless when you read SDN too much, but I made it and, from what I've read, so can you! Good luck, and take care of yourself

 

[Drez06]

Hey there, I just wanted to weigh in for what it’s worth. First thing’s first, forget grades and GPAs and med school for just a second: I’m so sorry for what happened to you. It is not your fault, and the grade drops as a result are completely understandable - how does school even exist in your universe when you’ve gone through something like that. I hope very much that, if necessary, you have reached out to a mental health professional and gotten help to heal from your sexual assault (if you haven’t, I would highly recommend it, speaking from experience.) As for how you address it in your application, I can only tell you how I did it (which got me an acceptance). I was completely open and honest in my personal statement about my sexual assault and the rather severe PTSD I developed (and still struggle with) as a result. The most important thing you can do is to not use it as an excuse, but to show how you used it to motivate you even more because you were detemined not to let it define you, grew into a more resilient, compassionate person as a result, and how this will all make you a better physician. But be prepared, if you bring it up in the personal statement, it may come up in an interview. Try to reach a point where you can talk about it in these terms of strength and resilience; take back that control over the situation. Prove that you’ve healed by getting the grades you projected for those upcoming classes. Even with an inconsistent transcript and a history of trauma, an acceptance is possible - I got mine, and you will too!

 

[growacet]

Sorry for what happened to you. Just wanted to let you know that I have a background of similar, but not the same circumstances. My transcript is actually much, much uglier than yours. I don't have an acceptance, but I do have an interview next week (just one, but that's all it takes). All you can do is the best that you can and hope for the best. Good luck!