Making a Final Decision on Whether to Designate Organic Chemistry Laboratory as Pass/Fail or Letter Grade - Need Advice

[oldpremed38]

Hello everyone. My school has given students the option to designate classes as Pass/Fail instead of receiving a letter grade. I am currently only taking one class - Organic Chemistry Laboratory (my last prerequisite course). Please let me know under which circumstances, if any, it would be appropriate for me to designate Organic Chemistry Laboratory as Pass/Fail. I had a 91.2 average with 31% of the grade in before we switched to online classes. I have not received back any grades for the assignments that I have submitted since switching to online classes. I have a 3.86 overall gpa and 3.84 science gpa. Would it look worse if I received below an A minus for a final grade or if I designated the class as Pass/Fail? I have until the last day of class to designate if I want to make the course Pass/Fail. Any input on what I should do would be greatly appreciated!!!!

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[Mr.Smile12]

Hello everyone. My school has given students the option to designate classes as Pass/Fail instead of receiving a letter grade. I am currently only taking one class - Organic Chemistry Laboratory (my last prerequisite course). Please let me know under which circumstances, if any, it would be appropriate for me to designate Organic Chemistry Laboratory as Pass/Fail. I had a 91.2 average with 31% of the grade in before we switched to online classes. I have not received back any grades for the assignments that I have submitted since switching to online classes. I have a 3.86 overall gpa and 3.84 science gpa. Would it look worse if I received below an A minus for a final grade or if I designated the class as Pass/Fail? I have until the last day of class to designate if I want to make the course Pass/Fail. Any input on what I should do would be greatly appreciated!!!!

OChem is a prerequisite, including all associated laboratories. If your lab grade falls below a B, then go P/F. I don't know how many credit hours your lab course is worth to know how it might affect your GPA, but you're still good above a 3.8.

 

[oldpremed38]

OChem is a prerequisite, including all associated laboratories. If your lab grade falls below a B, then go P/F. I don't know how many credit hours your lab course is worth to know how it might affect your GPA, but you're still good above a 3.8.

Mr.Smile12, thank you very much for your response. I have graduated college and accumulated a lot of credits through the years (since a stayed in school longer than four years to complete all the medical school perquisites). As a result of all the credit hours I have accumulated, I believe that the grade I get in the course should not effect my overall gpa and may only slightly effect my science gpa. My main concern is how anything below an A (and especially an A minus) will look on my transcript since I have a perfect 4.0 (every mark is an A and 0 marks at an A minus or below) in the prerequisite classes. At my school the science classes are usually 4 credits and come with the lab portion, however, for Organic Chemistry the lecture series (Organic Chemistry I and II) is separate from the lab and all three courses are worth 3 credits a piece. I received an A in Organic Chemistry I and II. Do you believe that schools will accept Pass/Fail for Organic Chemistry Lab in lieu of the coronavirus pandemic? Ultimately, given the above information, will a letter grade of B minus, B or B plus look better or worse than if I designated the class as Pass/Fail?

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

One B won't hurt that much given you are at 3.8+. Lab is 1 credit only in most schools. Also, any curving for the class?

 

[oldpremed38]

One B won't hurt that much given you are at 3.8+. Lab is 1 credit only in most schools.

Thank you for your response, srk2021. The class is worth 3 credits at my school, but it should not hurt my gpa too much if at all because of all the credits I have accumulated. Do you believe that getting a B minus looks better than designating the class as Pass/Fail (given that I have a perfect 4.0 in all the other prerequisite classes)?

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

Thank you for your response, srk2021. The class is worth 3 credits at my school, but it should not hurt my gpa too much if at all because of all the credits I have accumulated. Do you believe that getting a B minus looks better than designating the class as Pass/Fail (given that I have a perfect 4.0 in all the other prerequisite classes)?

Med school require letter grades in required classes before COVID. Now each school may come with their own policy and also since P/F is optional they may get suspicious. Also, with 91% upto now, why are you expecting B-? Since it's a lab class and schools are not in session, what's the course plan for rest of the semester? One or two Cs won't hurt as long as GPA is 3.8+.

P.S. I am not an adcom but follow admissions closely.

 

[oldpremed38]

Med school require letter grades in required classes before COVID. Now each school may come with their own policy and also since P/F is optional they may get suspicious. Also, with 91% upto now, why are you expecting B-? Since it's a lab class and schools are not in session, what's the course plan for rest of the semester? One or two Cs won't hurt as long as GPA is 3.8+.

P.S. I am not an adcom but follow admissions closely.

srk2021, thanks again for your response. It provides more validity that my gut instinct of sticking with a letter grade is the best course of action (since I assume at least some if not most medical schools will frown upon a Pass/Fail for a prerequisite course). I brought up the grade of B- as a kind of worst case scenario. Since classes are online, what my professor is having us do is read the lab procedure in the textbook and subsequently write a lab report on the procedure given some designated results (for example in our last lab, we assumed an 80% yield of product and calculate our numbers based on that).

Any input from anybody else regarding whether I should go with a letter grade or Pass/Fail will be greatly appreciated!!!

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

srk2021, thanks again for your response. It provides more validity that my gut instinct of sticking with a letter grade is the best course of action (since I assume at least some if not most medical schools will frown upon a Pass/Fail for a prerequisite course). I brought up the grade of B- as a kind of worst case scenario. Since classes are online, what my professor is having us do is read the lab procedure in the textbook and subsequently write a lab report on the procedure given some designated results (for example in our last lab, we assumed an 80% yield of product and calculate our numbers based on that).

Any input from anybody else regarding whether I should go with a letter grade or Pass/Fail will be greatly appreciated!!!

My guess is you will see grade inflation for current semester/quarter at most schools. Since you already have A- I will be surprised if you don't get an A. GL!

 

[AnotherCatProfile]

To my knowledge, admissions are not going to be looking at +/-, and a B (at worst) is not going to look bad. With the current situation, it seems like most schools are still encouraging applicants to opt for letter grades in prereq courses when given the option.

But that's just one internet rando's opinion.

 

[oldpremed38]

My guess is you will see grade inflation for current semester/quarter at most schools. Since you already have A- I will be surprised if you don't get an A. GL!

Srk2021, thank you for the encouragement!!! I want to confirm with as much people as possible what the right decision is (which I want to believe at this point is taking the course as a letter grade). The problem with the course is that the professor grades the labs very easily and the quizzes very harshly. I have a 95 lab average but only a 83.3 quiz average. The labs are worth more so my average before we switched to online classes was 91.2. I haven't seen any of my grades since we switched to online classes (since the professor doesn't post the grades and can't hand me anything back). I am concerned about the final cause it is probably going to be like the quizzes and is worth 20% of the grade. I very much hope I get at least an A minus so my transcript doesn't look too bad.

 

[oldpremed38]

To my knowledge, admissions are not going to be looking at +/-, and a B (at worst) is not going to look bad. With the current situation, it seems like most schools are still encouraging applicants to opt for letter grades in prereq courses when given the option.

But that's just one internet rando's opinion.

Thank you for your reply. Each reply that says take the letter grade makes me think my gut instinct is the correct thing to do.

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

To my knowledge, admissions are not going to be looking at +/-, and a B (at worst) is not going to look bad. With the current situation, it seems like most schools are still encouraging applicants to opt for letter grades in prereq courses when given the option.

But that's just one internet rando's opinion.

+/- have different GPA (A- is 3.7 and B+ 3.3) at most schools and I believe very few medical schools round them down.

 

[AnotherCatProfile]

+/- have different GPA (A- is 3.7 and B+ 3.3) at most schools and I believe very few medical schools round them down.

Sorry! My mistake...have gotten too used to TMDSAS. Ignore that part

 

[Moko]

Each reply that says take the letter grade makes me think my gut instinct is the correct thing to do.

I agree that going for a letter grade here is the best option barring major personal extenuating circumstances. A B in a lab will not have a material effect on your GPA or application. For those attending schools that allow for letter grading, adcoms may require an explanation from students who opted for pass/fail grading instead.

 

[oldpremed38]

I agree that going for a letter grade here is the best option barring major personal extenuating circumstances. A B in a lab will not have a material effect on your GPA or application. For those attending schools that allow for letter grading, adcoms may require an explanation from students who opted for pass/fail grading instead.

Moko, thank you very much for your reply and advice. Your advice reaffirms my most current decision to fight it out and stick with a letter grade. I will try my best to finish strong in hopes of getting a final grade of at least an A minus.

Any other input from individuals who have strong knowledge of what is the best thing to do in my situation will be greatly appreciated.

 

[CheeseCucumberSandwich]

Yeah, I recommend NOT pass/failing. Your GPA is really strong and I doubt that a lab class will deter you from med school officials.

Good luck! Hope you're not diene, heh.

 

[oldpremed38]

Yeah, I recommend NOT pass/failing. Your GPA is really strong and I doubt that a lab class will deter you from med school officials.

Good luck! Hope you're not diene, heh.

CheeseCucumberSandwhich, thanks for your input. I am about 99% sure that I will stick with the letter grade. I am pretty much convinced that a letter grade is best option, even if I get a grade below an A minus.

Any other input is still appreciated.

 

[CHIOTR]

I have no insight into medical admissions. But I do have insight into things backfiring on me, lol. That and overthinking. If I were you, the thing I would be concerned about is if other students in your class are applying to med school. So, adcoms might not necessarily be concerned that a grade shows up as a pass/fail this semester. BUT, if classmates are applying too, they might notice that oldmed38 had a pass/fail grade when several other students from the same university had letter grades.

I have no idea if they will even notice. But if the same reviewer has your transcript and a handful of your classmates transcripts, it might trigger a "hey, did oldpremed38 take the easy way out?" Not worth the risk, to me, when your potential grade is either pretty good, or not that bad in the grand scheme of things.

 

[CheeseCucumberSandwich]

CheeseCucumberSandwhich, thanks for your input. I am about 99% sure that I will stick with the letter grade. I am pretty much convinced that a letter grade is best option, even if I get a grade below an A minus.

Any other input is still appreciated.

P.S., I'd do anything to get a GPA like yours. Any advice you can spring your way to me?

Also, is there any other way you can try and aim for an A? Not that you need to worry about it.

 

[oldpremed38]

P.S., I'd do anything to get a GPA like yours. Any advice you can spring your way to me?

Also, is there any other way you can try and aim for an A? Not that you need to worry about it.

I wish that I could provide you with a secret trick on how to achieve a high gpa, however, I believe that hard work and having an ample amount of time allowed me to perform well as an undergraduate. I believe the biggest thing that made a difference for me was when I began to start studying in the library instead of at home. In addition, I would have someone drop me off at the place I was going to study as frequently as possible. This forced me to study, as I was left at school or the library for several hours with minimum distractions. If you can avoid having your phone and can study without the use of the internet (I am personally very distracted by the internet), it can potentially make a difference, I believe.

 

[CheeseCucumberSandwich]

I wish that I could provide you with a secret trick on how to achieve a high gpa, however, I believe that hard work and having an ample amount of time allowed me to perform well as an undergraduate. I believe the biggest thing that made a difference for me was when I began to start studying in the library instead of at home. In addition, I would have someone drop me off at the place I was going to study as frequently as possible. This forced me to study, as I was left at school or the library for several hours with minimum distractions. If you can avoid having your phone and can study without the use of the internet (I am personally very distracted by the internet), it can potentially make a difference, I believe.

Thank you! I get so distracted as well. I'll be sure to place my phone and tablet in another room while studying.

 

[oldpremed38]

I have no insight into medical admissions. But I do have insight into things backfiring on me, lol. That and overthinking. If I were you, the thing I would be concerned about is if other students in your class are applying to med school. So, adcoms might not necessarily be concerned that a grade shows up as a pass/fail this semester. BUT, if classmates are applying too, they might notice that oldmed38 had a pass/fail grade when several other students from the same university had letter grades.

I have no idea if they will even notice. But if the same reviewer has your transcript and a handful of your classmates transcripts, it might trigger a "hey, did oldpremed38 take the easy way out?" Not worth the risk, to me, when your potential grade is either pretty good, or not that bad in the grand scheme of things.

CHIOTR, you bring up a point that I didn't think too much about. I do go to a large school and I am sure that there are perhaps a lot of students from my school who will also be applying to medical school. Therefore, if I go the Pass/Fail route, it will likely be frowned upon by medical schools. Another good reason to go with the letter grade. Thanks.

 

[Icebird]

Hello everyone. My school has given students the option to designate classes as Pass/Fail instead of receiving a letter grade. I am currently only taking one class - Organic Chemistry Laboratory (my last prerequisite course). Please let me know under which circumstances, if any, it would be appropriate for me to designate Organic Chemistry Laboratory as Pass/Fail. I had a 91.2 average with 31% of the grade in before we switched to online classes. I have not received back any grades for the assignments that I have submitted since switching to online classes. I have a 3.86 overall gpa and 3.84 science gpa. Would it look worse if I received below an A minus for a final grade or if I designated the class as Pass/Fail? I have until the last day of class to designate if I want to make the course Pass/Fail. Any input on what I should do would be greatly appreciated!!!!

Just curious; this at FSU?

 

[oldpremed38]

Just curious; this at FSU?

Actually, I attend a school up north. I was under the impression that there are a lot of students in a similar position to myself since virtually all colleges across the nation have gone to online classes. I always had difficulty with lab classes and making the class online is a very unique thing to do. I do not even know if it is a good or bad thing for me because I do not physically have to do the experiments, but I have to read about them and watch lab videos. I am just trying my best and hope this all works out for the best.

 

[chemphysicsinstructor]

Actually, I attend a school up north. I was under the impression that there are a lot of students in a similar position to myself since virtually all colleges across the nation have gone to online classes. I always had difficulty with lab classes and making the class online is a very unique thing to do. I do not even know if it is a good or bad thing for me because I do not physically have to do the experiments, but I have to read about them and watch lab videos. I am just trying my best and hope this all works out for the best.

Online classes with labs have been around for many years. It is not a new idea, but it is much more publicized now.