Individual grades VS. GPA?

[Jla791]

When regarding grades, what is more important GPA or individual grades?

During my first few semesters of college I racked up two F's (Math and history) and one D (math) with one C in a lab course (Life science) however, ever since my break, I've received about 10 A's in my courses (including all retaken classes), right now I have a 3.2 GPA and I'm still very early in college, so I'm not worried about bringing up my GPA by the time I graduate. I have a perfect upward trend excluding my current lab.

Right now during this semester, I have high 90's in four of my classes and a C in my lab class, I will most likely be ending the semester with four A's in lectures and one C in a lab; Since my GPA will probably be 3.4 afterwards despite the C, how important are individual grades compared to GPA?

I have several bad grades including two F's but the rest are A's and they average my GPA to a reasonable level. The classes I failed were due to valid reasons including family issues, there's no causation between math classes, I'm actually pretty good at math and have an A in my Pre-cal/Trig combo right now (again, also in the retakes too); they were College algebra, intermediate algebra, Life science, and history. Currently getting a C in gen bio 2 lab just due to bad studying habits. How bad is this C in a lab even if it doesn't affect my GPA drastically?

** Disclaimer: I have goals to attend an MD school, so grade replacement is not an option.

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[Goro]

cGPA >>>>>individual course grades.

Now that said, the year by year arc of your trajectory is also important. After your disastrous start, you can't afford to be getting any bad grades. The whole point is to show that the you of now is not the you of then. It's like a juggling act...you have ot keep all the knives and hatchets in the air, and not have any land on your foot.

The classes I failed were due to valid reasons including family issues
This is actually NOT a valid reason. I have to be blunt here...you made some bad choices, but deciding to bulldoze your way through instead of taking Ws. It seems at times that pre-meds are more afraid of W than they are of Fs, Ds and Cs.

 

[Jla791]

You aren’t acrewed by any means. Cs here and there won’t kill you. It’s clear you are actively trying to improve your academic performance. Begin reading Goro’s guide to reinvention. He’s a DO adcom, but his advice is sound for both pre-DOs and pre-MDs. Upward trends are a great starting point, but you’ll also need to sweeten the deal with ECs and a solid MCAT. Schools will look at your overall GPA but also your grades. If they see a 3.2, they will want to know if that’s a student always getting B+s or a student who had a couple of bad grades among stellar grades.

The issue I’m seeing is that most of your poor grades have been in BCPM courses, which will bring that number down. They will look and see that it was early on though. Plus the fact that you retook the courses and got As in them also speaks well of you. It is to be expected that if you’ve already seen the material, you should pass with flying colors.

Also, not that a few bad courses is going to kill your chances, but perhaps don’t be so proud... You may need to include DO schools in your applications, particularly if these grade trends continue. Do you want to be in the 60% of applicants that don’t get an acceptance? There are plenty of applicants who don’t have blemished academic records and still don’t make it in and have to reapply.



I’d shy away from this line of reasoning as much as possible. It’s hard to say that you failed two courses due to external reasons when none of your other courses were affected. Also, to get Fs in courses can be pretty hard. It’s typically not just one bad grade that causes it, unless it’s they rare brand of course where the only grades are a midterm and final. It’s sustained poor performance, which isn’t reflected in your other courses. These were likely just flukes in the context of your other grades but make sure you take a level of personal accountability and don’t just blame it on external causation.



Now we are on the right track. It’s hard to figure the logic behind “I got Fs, Ds, and Cs in other courses due to external reasons, but that in this course I acknowledge I f’ed up due to personal habits.” I suspect that these habits were present before hand, and you can acknowledge that you’ve actively worked on it, showed by your upward grde trend. In general, you will need to show that the you that got Fs and Ds is not the you applying to med school.

Thank you very much for the advice. I understand completely what you mean and I’m just glad I’m back on track (still pretty pissed about the lab grade, but what can I do.)

 

[chemdoctor]

The only concern I have is that you got bad grades in BCPM, which will bring down your sGPA. I’ve had bad semesters too, but I think it’s still possible. Keep doing well and try to do better in the lab you currently have a C in. Are you a sophomore?

 

[Jla791]

cGPA >>>>>individual course grades.

Now that said, the year by year arc of your trajectory is also important. After your disastrous start, you can't afford to be getting any bad grades. The whole point is to show that the you of now is not the you of then. It's like a juggling act...you have ot keep all the knives and hatchets in the air, and not have any land on your foot.

The classes I failed were due to valid reasons including family issues
This is actually NOT a valid reason. I have to be blunt here...you made some bad choices, but deciding to bulldoze your way through instead of taking Ws. It seems at times that pre-meds are more afraid of W than they are of Fs, Ds and Cs.

Thank you. So by your definitions of reinvention, as long as I keep a consistently good gpa for future semesters (3.8>) I’ll be fine, even if I have a C for a lab?.. also, can you extend on what you meant by W’s?

 

[Jla791]

The only concern I have is that you got bad grades in BCPM, which will bring down your sGPA. I’ve had bad semesters too, but I think it’s still possible. Keep doing well and try to do better in the lab you currently have a C in. Are you a sophomore?

I’m a dual enrolled senior in high school. I get my AA next semester, and I transfer this coming Summer.

 

[Goro]

Thank you. So by your definitions of reinvention, as long as I keep a consistently good gpa for future semesters (3.8>) I’ll be fine, even if I have a C for a lab?.. also, can you extend on what you meant by W’s?

Yes, you have to keep aceing things.

Ws = withdrawals.

 

[Jla791]

Yes, you have to keep aceing things.

Ws = withdrawals.

Yes, I know what a W is, but we’re you implying that a W is better than an F or D?

 

[ciestar]

Yes, I know what a W is, but we’re you implying that a W is better than an F or D?

Yes. Especially if you had issues going on

 

[DoctorSnow]

cGPA >>>>>individual course grades.

Now that said, the year by year arc of your trajectory is also important. After your disastrous start, you can't afford to be getting any bad grades. The whole point is to show that the you of now is not the you of then. It's like a juggling act...you have ot keep all the knives and hatchets in the air, and not have any land on your foot.

The classes I failed were due to valid reasons including family issues
This is actually NOT a valid reason. I have to be blunt here...you made some bad choices, but deciding to bulldoze your way through instead of taking Ws. It seems at times that pre-meds are more afraid of W than they are of Fs, Ds and Cs.

To add to what the almighty Goro said, my cGPA and individual grades were asked about during both of my interviews. They specifically asked about what made my freshman grades so low and how I dealt with them (went from getting 3.0 to 3.9s). Medical schools try to project who will be a great student and with a bad semester or year, they will want reassurances that you can handle it. If you turn it around and start kicking butt, you will still have a chance. I basically made it clear that I came in without the study skills and time management abilities that I now possessed, which you should do because family issues do come up for everyone and you will need to explain why you continued your semester instead of withdrawing. Good luck!

 

[676188]

Just here to add: DO doesn’t do grade replacement anymore either. Just FYI.

 

[Jla791]

Just here to add: DO doesn’t do grade replacement anymore either. Just FYI.

Wow, that’s insane. I feel like there’s such a big pool of students who depend on grade replacement (including non-trads).

 

[Jla791]

To add to what the almighty Goro said, my cGPA and individual grades were asked about during both of my interviews. They specifically asked about what made my freshman grades so low and how I dealt with them (went from getting 3.0 to 3.9s). Medical schools try to project who will be a great student and with a bad semester or year, they will want reassurances that you can handle it. If you turn it around and start kicking butt, you will still have a chance. I basically made it clear that I came in without the study skills and time management abilities that I now possessed, which you should do because family issues do come up for everyone and you will need to explain why you continued your semester instead of withdrawing. Good luck!

Thank you! I feel a bit more reassured. I’m just glad I had a hiccup towards the beginning so I have a few more years to truly show what I’m capable of.

 

[676188]

Wow, that’s insane. I feel like there’s such a big pool of students who depend on grade replacement (including non-trads).

I think they phased it out in 2016?

 

[Jla791]

I think they phased it out in 2016?

Never knew. Do you know what the reason for ditching grade replacement was?

 

[Jla791]

@Goro , When regarding courses taken during high school, will adcoms be able to see the semester by semester grades to see my upward trend? My first 20 credits were the issue but my last 20 credits and my current semester (excluding this lab) were all 4.0 semesters. It’d be pretty disappointing if all adcoms could see were an average of the 60 credits I took in high school, since they would average my good and bad semesters.

How are grades formatted for adcoms? Can they see beyond the “HS, FR, SP, JR, SE” blocks?

 

[Goro]

@Goro , When regarding courses taken during high school, will adcoms be able to see the semester by semester grades to see my upward trend? My first 20 credits were the issue but my last 20 credits and my current semester (excluding this lab) were all 4.0 semesters. It’d be pretty disappointing if all adcoms could see were an average of the 60 credits I took in high school, since they would average my good and bad semesters.

How are grades formatted for adcoms? Can they see beyond the “HS, FR, SP, JR, SE” blocks?

We see everything, but I don't recall how HS grades are shown. The wise @gonnif does!

 

[Jla791]

@Goro @gonnif Thank you both.