Post-bacc student considering withdrawing from a class. What would an "EX" on a transcript mean?

[Sharknad0]

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My first gap year was an unsuccessful cycle and now I'm in my second gap year. I'm taking 3 classes and I can manage an A in 2 of them, but in the third class I'm worried about getting a B+ or a B. My sGPA isn't the best (mid 3.4) and a B+ would just lower it. I'm not raking in interviews so maintaining my GPA through the cycle feels important to me. I don't want to give schools an updated transcript. Getting an A- could bump me to a 3.5 sGPA but that doesn't seem super likely.

My transcript would show a grade of EX. Does this look as bad as a W? I have one W from freshman year, one from Junior year, and one repeat class.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

It's really hard to definitively say what the correct choice here would be. However, all things considered, a B+ is not necessarily a bad grade. I would almost always recommend taking a B+ over a W, especially if there are already a couple Ws on your transcript. If "EX" is the equivalent of a W, I would take the B+, and just try my hardest to get that to an A-.

In response to your worry of lowering your sGPA, I'll say this. If you have a 3.45 and ~40 credit hours (hypothetical numbers) in science courses, a B+ in a 3 credit course would only lower that to a 3.44, which is negligible. Additionally, if all 3 courses you are in right now are science courses, then your sGPA this semester is a 3.77, which is nothing to scoff at.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[deleted936470]

It's really hard to definitively say what the correct choice here would be. However, all things considered, a B+ is not necessarily a bad grade. I would almost always recommend taking a B+ over a W, especially if there are already a couple Ws on your transcript. If "EX" is the equivalent of a W, I would take the B+, and just try my hardest to get that to an A-.

In response to your worry of lowering your sGPA, I'll say this. If you have a 3.45 and ~40 credit hours (hypothetical numbers) in science courses, a B+ in a 3 credit course would only lower that to a 3.44, which is negligible. Additionally, if all 3 courses you are in right now are science courses, then your sGPA this semester is a 3.77, which is nothing to scoff at.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

Beat me to it, fully agree.
OP your GPA would be a 3.7+ with a B+, don't take the EX.

 

[Sharknad0]

I thought a B+ is a 3.3?

 

[deleted936470]

I thought a B+ is a 3.3?

GPA stands for grade point average.

 

[Sharknad0]

GPA stands for grade point average.

True, I guess I was just concerned with the individual course's appearance

 

[deleted936470]

True, I guess I was just concerned with the individual course's appearance

A B+ would appear just fine among a cluster of A's.