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Illegal retakes calculated in AACOM GPA?
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what in the world is a illegal retake? are you crossing over to Mexico to take it? The UC I went to allowed retakes for any grade lower then a C.
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Even if the uni doesn't fully recognize it, if you received credit and a grade on your transcript, aacomas will recognize it.
Just retake it anyways! Technically you are not eligible to repeat a course that you got C- in because C- is a passing grade (at least for the UC system), that's why you were told it will be an "illegal" retake (which I think illegal is not the best term to describe this). But for AACOMAS purposes, all you have to do is register for the class again, retake it, get a better grade and AACOMAS will take the latest grade. However, that new grade will not be counted for your UC school transcript. I did the same thing and I can tell you UC counselors/advisors probably don't know enough about DO schools and their grade replacement policies to understand why you are retaking.
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illegal retakes? that is crazy stupid.
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Some schools, especially ones that have huge populations of students try hard to block students who have passed classes from retaking them as it means someone who has not taken it will be behind in their schedule.
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I would check with your school's registrar.
Same exact situation for me, but at UCI, they wont let you repeat classes that are C+ or above.
What they would usually do is instead of showing you a grade on the transcript, the grade would instead show as a UR = unauthorized repeat.
Luckily for me, I have graduated already, and so my records have been frozen.
So instead the grade shows with a M4 written next to it, meaning that no credit was given for the class.
As long as the grade shows
Same exact situation for me, but at UCI, they wont let you repeat classes that are C+ or above.
What they would usually do is instead of showing you a grade on the transcript, the grade would instead show as a UR = unauthorized repeat.
Luckily for me, I have graduated already, and so my records have been frozen.
So instead the grade shows with a M4 written next to it, meaning that no credit was given for the class.
As long as the grade shows
actually the bio.dept says "A student may repeat any course where a grade of C- or below was received" hence they won't even allow a repeat for a C, which really sucks. 🙁
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One of the many reason I, a California native, have disowned that state. Too much pressure, too many people, too many rules, too many hoops.
You need to call AACOMAS yourself and ask them these questions. This is what I would do if I were in your shoes.
aww come on. Think of our unbeatable weather conditions! 🙂 Yes, its tough competing with so many highly qualified applicants, but having to prove myself amongst the best of the best and with such a tough grading scale, prepares me for the worst.
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You have a point, competition sometimes brings out the best. I guess I better not state how I feel about the state in an interview. Seriously though, high property taxes and rent, inflated home values, ridiculous costs just to register a car. And to think the state is tens of billions of dollars in debt....
I know what you mean. The other day I was watching House Hunters and for the price of a small house here in Cali you could buy a mansion in Taxes. My face looked like this:😱 Still, if I could stay here in California for medical school it would be a dream come true.
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Here is a direct quote from when I emailed a UCI bio counselor about this exact question last year:
"A review of your transcripts revealed that you already passed Bio XX and DXXX with grades higher than C-, which makes you ineligible to repeat these courses.
After sending another email, here is another response:
"UCI Summer Sessions does not enforce a repeat restriction for Bio Sci classes. You may enroll in Bio XX or DXXX in summer if you would like to do so. If you choose to take Bio XX and/or Bio DXXX via Summer Session, you will earn grades for these classes and they will be listed on a UCI Extension transcript, not your UCI student transcript. However, please consider whether re-taking these classes will have great effect on improving your competitiveness for graduate and professional schools. If the grades from Summer Session are considered, prospective schools will likely average them with your original grades, which will not improve your GPA greatly."
So (1) try to take summer classes because you won't get in during the year (they'll likely deny you like they did to me), and (2) don't listen to their comments because they don't understand DO grade replacement...they will question you every step of the way because they claim you're wasting your time with re-takes...just ignore them.
Another quote:
"If you would like to take other Bio courses via Access UCI, you may submit your application(s) to the Bio Sci Student Affairs office beginning November XX, 20XX. We can look up your transcripts to verify whether you are eligible to enroll in Bio classes. Depending on the number of seats available in the class(es) you request, you will receive a decision between weeks 1 through 3 of the quarter you are applying for."
Access UCI is available but it's very frustrating and they WILL wait until the very last day of the 3rd week to accept/deny you. They WILL tell you your chances are like 0.1%. It's like being in re-take limbo he*ll, but don't give up if you really want to be in the class because there IS a chance.
"A review of your transcripts revealed that you already passed Bio XX and DXXX with grades higher than C-, which makes you ineligible to repeat these courses.
After sending another email, here is another response:
"UCI Summer Sessions does not enforce a repeat restriction for Bio Sci classes. You may enroll in Bio XX or DXXX in summer if you would like to do so. If you choose to take Bio XX and/or Bio DXXX via Summer Session, you will earn grades for these classes and they will be listed on a UCI Extension transcript, not your UCI student transcript. However, please consider whether re-taking these classes will have great effect on improving your competitiveness for graduate and professional schools. If the grades from Summer Session are considered, prospective schools will likely average them with your original grades, which will not improve your GPA greatly."
So (1) try to take summer classes because you won't get in during the year (they'll likely deny you like they did to me), and (2) don't listen to their comments because they don't understand DO grade replacement...they will question you every step of the way because they claim you're wasting your time with re-takes...just ignore them.
Another quote:
"If you would like to take other Bio courses via Access UCI, you may submit your application(s) to the Bio Sci Student Affairs office beginning November XX, 20XX. We can look up your transcripts to verify whether you are eligible to enroll in Bio classes. Depending on the number of seats available in the class(es) you request, you will receive a decision between weeks 1 through 3 of the quarter you are applying for."
Access UCI is available but it's very frustrating and they WILL wait until the very last day of the 3rd week to accept/deny you. They WILL tell you your chances are like 0.1%. It's like being in re-take limbo he*ll, but don't give up if you really want to be in the class because there IS a chance.
I don't understand why they make it so difficult honestly when we as students are paying them and not asking for any favors. A lot of times classes do have availability but the stringent policies are just so annoying.
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welcome to UCI (and probably most of the UC schools?), the bio degree generator where you're just a number no matter what SPOP or anyone else says. this is just my opinion, but i know many of my friends share the same feelings. i should have gone to a private school.
i also have to agree with the posts about california being so difficult. while i would love to stay here for medical school, my chances are slim to none with the hundreds (thousands?) of much more qualified CA applicants. i'll be applying to anywhere and everywhere just to try to get in somewhere. i've also contemplated moving to out of state after my post-bacc, but we'll see.
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at UCLA they won't let you repeat anything above a C-. I did, though, and AACOMAS counted it. It just showed up as "UR" on my UCLA transcript
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glad to see that someone else shares the same sentiments. My kids are going to private schools the UC system is nothing but a waste of time and money at this point. I'm at a small private school right now and the treatment I receive here vs at the UCs I was at...vastly different. Nice to know I'm more than a number here.
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my grade was there, it just said **UNAUTHORIZED REPEAT** right underneath it.
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No matter how AACOMAS calculates this into your GPA, it is a good idea to retake the C-. My medical school required that any science pre req with a C- or lower be retaken before matriculation. I am sure there are others that do this, as well.
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I wonder what it is about pre-med advisors (mine was great, but I keep reading horror stories on SDN)
I started researching the med school application process because I wanted to apply to med school. Now I have finally applied. Even beside that, though, it's kind of become a hobby for me.
Advisors get paid to research this stuff... why are they so often so misinformed?
I started researching the med school application process because I wanted to apply to med school. Now I have finally applied. Even beside that, though, it's kind of become a hobby for me.
Advisors get paid to research this stuff... why are they so often so misinformed?
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glhfdd
yes, you can retake and as long as it fulfills AACOMAS's requirements, they will count it. You can even take it at a CC.
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My premed advisor was a total D-bag. If you e-mailed him a question, he would never provide an answer... would only say to "Check the website", often in a very rude and condescending tone. This website contained a lot of information, but was extremely difficult to use. Oh well. He basically was one of those advisors who wanted you to have a 4.0 and a 40 MCAT to be given the time of day.
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Personally, I wouldn't put myself through the stress and trouble of retaking a class when it's unauthorized. Even if the grade shows and it's replaced, do you think it will look good that you are the type of person that does unauthorized retakes? How do you know midway through the course you won't be dropped? Can you be sure the grade will show and it hasn't changed since other people did these retakes? Don't put the trip wire on yourself. Just go to another school to retake it or do it as an extension student when it's legal.
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go CC. easy peazy. no "dirty lawbreaker" stamp on your transcript to worry about...
i've only taken classes at one CC, so idk how it is out there around the country, but the stuff i've taken there has been no slouch at all compared to the local university. i took chem I at CC, then chem II at uni... we had 1 fume hood in our university chem lab, 4-6 i believe in CC chem lab. the CC professor was a way better teacher, the classes were 1/5 the size... in fact the CC class was a LOT more rigorous! the kind of experiments we did in lab, the difficulty level, the massive reports we had to write each week.
also took pre-calc/trig (twice lol)... once at university, once at CC. honestly the CC class was tougher, and again the professor was a lot better.
to sum up my take on it, i know it probably looks better if you're taking classes at the university over the CC. and we should all just try to do what the adcoms want. but if you're in a situation where you need to go CC here and there (as in my case), based on what i have experienced first hand, if any interviewer brings up a question about me taking some CC classes as if it's a shameful secret i need to explain away, i'm not accepting that premise. i will tell them what i'm saying here, that the educational value there was at least on a par with my university, and in many ways, it was better.
i've only taken classes at one CC, so idk how it is out there around the country, but the stuff i've taken there has been no slouch at all compared to the local university. i took chem I at CC, then chem II at uni... we had 1 fume hood in our university chem lab, 4-6 i believe in CC chem lab. the CC professor was a way better teacher, the classes were 1/5 the size... in fact the CC class was a LOT more rigorous! the kind of experiments we did in lab, the difficulty level, the massive reports we had to write each week.
also took pre-calc/trig (twice lol)... once at university, once at CC. honestly the CC class was tougher, and again the professor was a lot better.
to sum up my take on it, i know it probably looks better if you're taking classes at the university over the CC. and we should all just try to do what the adcoms want. but if you're in a situation where you need to go CC here and there (as in my case), based on what i have experienced first hand, if any interviewer brings up a question about me taking some CC classes as if it's a shameful secret i need to explain away, i'm not accepting that premise. i will tell them what i'm saying here, that the educational value there was at least on a par with my university, and in many ways, it was better.
That's a really ****ty university chem lab.
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hehe well that was gen chem... now for orgo lab here we're in a room with plenty of fume hoods... although the damn ventilation system is so loud you can barely hear the professor and it never shuts down. oh well. parking is also the most ridiculous situation i've ever seen since i left NYC. but hey the school just built a brand new gym! messed up priorities if you ask me
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Yeah retake it anyways. I have no idea what an illegal retake is either.
