How to respond to secondary app q

[bellaamj]

How do I respond to this question? ( It is required to, part of WesternU secondary):
Is there anything in your application that you would like to explain to the Admissions Committee?

I wanted to explain a C I received in Ochem, but in a positive light. I also received a C in another science class because my professor didn't show up to half of the lectures and I had to teach myself the material. Should I include this information? Or would it hurt me?

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[DrMikeP]

If you explain it like that then it would hurt you. Did you retake Org? applying with a C in 2 science classes?

Why do you feel ready for med school if you made 2 C's?

 

[Person1345]

If you explain it like that then it would hurt you. Did you retake Org? applying with a C in 2 science classes?

Why do you feel ready for med school if you made 2 C's?

People can make Cs and get into medical school and succeed.

My advice is:
1) Do not at all say you got a C because your professor didn't teach/show up. If you say this, you are toast
2) Unless something truly happened that adversely affected your grade (immediate family member died, you died, you were hospitalized the whole semester), don't make excuses
3) If you do address the grade, you have to evidence how you prevailed. "Although I earned a C in O-Chem, I worked hard the following semester and earned an A- in Biochemistry." If you can't say something like this, don't say anything at all. And I promise more people have made Cs (but not too many Cs) than you know, and have gotten into medical school. Hopefully you have a balanced MCAT to counter the grades.

Good luck!

 

[DrMikeP]

People can make Cs and get into medical school and succeed.

My advice is:
1) Do not at all say you got a C because your professor didn't teach/show up. If you say this, you are toast
2) Unless something truly happened that adversely affected your grade (immediate family member died, you died, you were hospitalized the whole semester), don't make excuses
3) If you do address the grade, you have to evidence how you prevailed. "Although I earned a C in O-Chem, I worked hard the following semester and earned an A- in Biochemistry." If you can't say something like this, don't say anything at all. And I promise more people have made Cs (but not too many Cs) than you know, and have gotten into medical school. Hopefully you have a balanced MCAT to counter the grades.

Good luck!

Was hoping to help op think a bit... but yes those are the things to say and not say. The question I asked is exactly what adcoms will be thinking.

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[bellaamj]

People can make Cs and get into medical school and succeed.

My advice is:
1) Do not at all say you got a C because your professor didn't teach/show up. If you say this, you are toast
2) Unless something truly happened that adversely affected your grade (immediate family member died, you died, you were hospitalized the whole semester), don't make excuses
3) If you do address the grade, you have to evidence how you prevailed. "Although I earned a C in O-Chem, I worked hard the following semester and earned an A- in Biochemistry." If you can't say something like this, don't say anything at all. And I promise more people have made Cs (but not too many Cs) than you know, and have gotten into medical school. Hopefully you have a balanced MCAT to counter the grades.

Good luck!

Hi, thanks for replying in an actually positive manner, unlike another person who was a bit too blunt/ rude in replying to my honest question. Yes, I will take your advice and not attribute my grade to the aforementioned reasoning, but truth be told that did happen and my school ( a highly regarded liberal arts school known as being an Ivy League of the West) did let that happen, affecting many students in my batch. I do have a really nice upward trend in my gpa, so I'll highlight that as how I've prevailed and how I've managed to become a better student.

 

[Person1345]

Hi, thanks for replying in an actually positive manner, unlike another person who was a bit too blunt/ rude in replying to my honest question. Yes, I will take your advice and not attribute my grade to the aforementioned reasoning, but truth be told that did happen and my school ( a highly regarded liberal arts school known as being an Ivy League of the West) did let that happen, affecting many students in my batch. I do have a really nice upward trend in my gpa, so I'll highlight that as how I've prevailed and how I've managed to become a better student.

Believe me, I trust you when you say it was the teacher. That's really awful—inexcusable—that the teacher didn't show up. Just do the best you can to positively spin the C. You can say you learned how to teach yourself material, etc. I think that your upward GPA trend proves that what happened in that class wasn't entirely on you—you clearly did well in later coursework. Good luck!