Petition to Ignore Academic Record Completed Over Six Years Ago

[Kyoht]

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Okay so I know that some schools do this, UofI is one of them. I have a few bad grades (F's) that were not pre -reqs from over six years ago. These classes were some electives that were online and I was young and stupid and didn't keep up with them (this was before I decided what I wanted to do with my life). I want to petition to ignore them but the year before I have some english classes that I earned A's in and I don't really want those ignored because they count towards my BS.

I will be completing a BS in 2014 so my question is - if those past english classes are ignored along with the bad grades will the vet schools still accept that I have all my prereq's? Should I not ignore grades over 6 years because they might make my BS irrevelant to the vet schools? My GPA now is 3.66 with many of the science pre-req's completed. The only reason it is this high is because when I transfered from the CC where I took classes a long time ago my GPA reset at the 4yr uni. If all of my classes from both schools are added I would guess that my GPA would drop to a 3.2 or 3.1. I have the opportunity to take some of these electives over but I am not sure it is worth it. Really I am just confused on what to do 😕

I am 28 now and I am definately kicking myself for all the stupid things I did when I was 19 and 20 lol. I just hope this doesn't keep me out of vet school.🙁

 

[Minnerbelle]

A couple of things. Vet schools are pretty lenient about stupid things you've done in your teens/early 20's if you've shown them that you've turned things around. So, no, it won't keep you out of vet school. You may have to apply more than once, or go the extra mile in terms of taking extra upper division courses or getting extra experience, but it's definitely not impossible. If you search threads about non-trads and also many of the successful applicant stats threads from previous threads, you will find many many stories of people who were in the same exact situation as you.

That being said, a petition to ignore old grades may be beneficial to you so you may want to take advantage of it. BUT I'm pretty sure you can't cherry pick and only disregard bad grades and keep the A's you've had. If the F's are going, so must the A's. If those were the only English classes you've already taken, I'm fairly certain they'll make you take them because you need them for your pre-reqs.

My GPA now is 3.66 with many of the science pre-req's completed. The only reason it is this high is because when I transfered from the CC where I took classes a long time ago my GPA reset at the 4yr uni. If all of my classes from both schools are added I would guess that my GPA would drop to a 3.2 or 3.1.

Here's the thing. Even if your transcript for your 4 yr uni says that your GPA is not 3.66 because it "reset" after you transferred, you HAVE TO report your CC grades for the VMCAS application. They make you calculate and report your GPA including every class you've taken in higher education.

So I guess your choices are (of course ask the adcom at UF to clarify their policy first):
1. Don't put in a petition and keep your 3.2 GPA (which is kinda crappy, but not impossible at all. Many people get in with a 3.2 if they've improved and had good experiences). Your saving grace here will be your last 45 unit GPA, which I'm guessing is super high.

2. Put in a petition at UF and retake your English pre-reqs. That would be annoying, but you'll be able to have your 3.6+ GPA, which gives you a much better chance.

That being said though, most schools don't have this type of grade forgiveness program, so it'll be a moot point anyway if you're applying to other schools. You can put in a petition at UF to hopefully up your chances there with the higher GPA, and still apply to a bunch of other schools with your 3.2. The increased GPA at UF might increase your chances for admission to UF, but even with a 3.6, an acceptance is far from guaranteed esp if you're applying there out of state. So I dunno, I guess it's up to you whether you think that extra English class is worth taking.

 

[mnkyrat]

Okay so I know that some schools do this, UofI is one of them. I have a few bad grades (F's) that were not pre -reqs from over six years ago. These classes were some electives that were online and I was young and stupid and didn't keep up with them (this was before I decided what I wanted to do with my life). I want to petition to ignore them but the year before I have some english classes that I earned A's in and I don't really want those ignored because they count towards my BS.

I will be completing a BS in 2014 so my question is - if those past english classes are ignored along with the bad grades will the vet schools still accept that I have all my prereq's? Should I not ignore grades over 6 years because they might make my BS irrevelant to the vet schools? My GPA now is 3.66 with many of the science pre-req's completed. The only reason it is this high is because when I transfered from the CC where I took classes a long time ago my GPA reset at the 4yr uni. If all of my classes from both schools are added I would guess that my GPA would drop to a 3.2 or 3.1. I have the opportunity to take some of these electives over but I am not sure it is worth it. Really I am just confused on what to do 😕

I am 28 now and I am definately kicking myself for all the stupid things I did when I was 19 and 20 lol. I just hope this doesn't keep me out of vet school.🙁

I had the same issues. . .except mine were in a science class (of course, I later got a PhD and that prob wiped it out)! Anyway this was 10+ years in the past! You can always explain these things in an extra part of the application, and some secondary apps even asked about stuff that you overcame. . .so I put that discussion in there.
Granted, I only applied to 2 schools, but I got into both this cycle (Michigan and Penn)! I agree with the others. It was in the distant past and I think (just my 2&#162😉 that it is what you have done since then that they will see. BTW- It never came up in my interview either. . .which I thought for sure it would! I would just apply and see how it goes, they will let you know how that factored in and then you can fix it- if even necessary.
It does suck that all of the things we do while young and learning (and "stupid") set our future path. . .but I guess that's what makes us who we are! The adcoms are human too 😉

Sent from my SCH-I800 using SDN Mobile

 

[adams30]

Having a few bad grades from a long time ago should not keep someone out of vet school. In your case it seems like that they were done over 6 years ago so those should not really be taken into consideration. Plus if you show them that you did much better especially with the science classes, then that is a good thing. You can call them and ask them what they do for admissions.

 

[dvmdreamer]

Having a few bad grades from a long time ago should not keep someone out of vet school. In your case it seems like that they were done over 6 years ago so those should not really be taken into consideration.

It seems like that, but if the school is one that does raw numberical calculations with heavy weighting of GPA to rank students, it does matter.

Also a nontrad student, I choose to do a 6 year drop this year for Mizzou to bring my GPA up a tenth of a point. What I did not consider (something for the original poster to think about), that meant I also lost all the semesters I was a full time undergrad, and was left mostly with part time semesters (while I was working full time but that doesn't figure into the academic equation). So that decimated my average courseload score. My overall score came out to be about the same as if I had not done it- I think I gained .05 points or something very miniscule.

 

[adams30]

The nice thing about U of I is that they don't take grades or GRE score into the final decisions at all. I know people who got in with only a 3.3 or a 3.2. If you score well on the GRE then that can help counterweight the lower GPA.

If you make it past Phase 1 grade parts then you have a chance to pass Phase 2 if you have lots of experience and make it to an interview.

U of I's final decision is based only on the VMCAS (experience, personal statement, essay, eLORS etc) which makes 75% of the final decision and the interview makes up the remaining 25% No grades at all 🙂

 

[Kyoht]

Thanks everyone for the help! My question was answered..I don't think I will be able to ignore the past grades because my english courses that count to my BS were taken before them. I just needed to know if they would be ignored as well.

I have already started some studying for the GRE and I am going to take it early so that I have another chance to take it if I bomb it. Right now I'm counting on my last 45 GPA being really high and the fact that I will have over 10000 vet hours where I am a vet assistant/Office manager(large/food, small, shelter). Even more than that in animal hours (exotics, food, small). I also have a research publication that is in the process of being published on spider behavior done under a Phd and I am doing more research this summer.

I knew that they look at all the grades you ever had so that was why I was asking because it will bring my GPA down. I am hoping that all my experience and a high GRE will help me but I understand that it will be harder because of the lower GPA.

 

[LetItSnow]

I knew that they look at all the grades you ever had so that was why I was asking because it will bring my GPA down. I am hoping that all my experience and a high GRE will help me but I understand that it will be harder because of the lower GPA.

Not all schools look at all the grades you ever had. I didn't see if you have a specific school in mind, but another option for you would be to use schools' evaluation criteria as a selection factor.

For instance, her at UMN they only calculate two GPAs: most recent 45 credits and pre-req credits - neither of which would be impacted by your F's.

.... something to consider.

 

[Kyoht]

Not all schools look at all the grades you ever had. I didn't see if you have a specific school in mind, but another option for you would be to use schools' evaluation criteria as a selection factor.

For instance, her at UMN they only calculate two GPAs: most recent 45 credits and pre-req credits - neither of which would be impacted by your F's.

.... something to consider.

Cool, I think I'm going to consider this. My 1st choice is IL but I plan on applying to multiple schools. Thank you for bringing this up 🙂 I will add UMN to the list.

 

[wolfspeaker]

Something else to consider: Some schools(not sure which ones though) require all your pre-reqs be taken within 6 years of being accepted to Vet School. So, depending on where you apply, you may need to re-take those English classes anyway.

 

[kakurubird]

Not all schools look at all the grades you ever had. I didn't see if you have a specific school in mind, but another option for you would be to use schools' evaluation criteria as a selection factor.

For instance, her at UMN they only calculate two GPAs: most recent 45 credits and pre-req credits - neither of which would be impacted by your F's.

.... something to consider.

Very solid advice. Check on Iowa State as well. I think they also only consider last 45 and pre-reqs also.

 

[Kyoht]

Something else to consider: Some schools(not sure which ones though) require all your pre-reqs be taken within 6 years of being accepted to Vet School. So, depending on where you apply, you may need to re-take those English classes anyway.

Do you know if I need to retake those if i will have a BS or does it not matter? That would suck and I would not be able to apply for this upcoming cycle. I'm pretty sure I am okay with IL though..hopefully. Oh and they were Eng Comp classes I took in 2002 & 2003, got A's.

 

[LetItSnow]

Do you know if I need to retake those if i will have a BS or does it not matter? That would suck and I would not be able to apply for this upcoming cycle. I'm pretty sure I am okay with IL though..hopefully. Oh and they were Eng Comp classes I took in 2002 & 2003, got A's.

You should call them and ask. 🙂

 

[Kyoht]

You should call them and ask. 🙂

Thanks again! I will make a list of the schools I like and get to calling to make sure I am good to go 🙂

 

[kakurubird]

Thanks again! I will make a list of the schools I like and get to calling to make sure I am good to go 🙂

I had some funky things going on with chemistry credits and actually emailed all the schools I was applying to so that I would have responses in writing, just in case there were any questions when I was actually applying. Just something to consider.

 

[EngrSC]

Do you know if I need to retake those if i will have a BS or does it not matter? That would suck and I would not be able to apply for this upcoming cycle. I'm pretty sure I am okay with IL though..hopefully. Oh and they were Eng Comp classes I took in 2002 & 2003, got A's.

I'm pretty sure the prereqs in last 6 years thing only applies to math and science courses. BUT, you'd be safer calling the schools directly to ask 👍

 

[StartingoverVet]

You should call them and ask. 🙂

This is should be the boilerplate disclaimer on EVERYTHING said on this site.
VERIFY VERIFY VERIFY.


Inside joke perhaps for LIS: IDENTIFY, VERIFY, FEATHER

 

[Minnerbelle]

This is should be the boilerplate disclaimer on EVERYTHING said on this site.
VERIFY VERIFY VERIFY.

WHAT!? You're telling me that if a stranger says something on the interwebs, it's not always true????

(I kinda feel like disclaimers shouldn't be put on these things cause like survival of the fittest and stuff. I'd be scared if anyone who doesn't think to verify info critical to their own success went on to become a doctor whose common sense saves/destroys lives)

 

[Kyoht]

Yes verifying info is very important in so many things. I know I do it a lot at work. For example when shipping cattle from state to state I always call to verify what needs to be on the HC instead of listening to the owner. One tech that worked in our office just listened to the owner one time and I had to go back and fix everything after we got the HC sent back by the state 🙁