Questions about a few classes

[RMAM10]

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Hey guys,

I took physics I and II last semester and I'm taking organic this summer and had a few questions.

Physics I end up with a C and Physics II I got a B. I did very well on the exams, in fact I got top 5 in the class on every exam, but due to carelessness I didn't hand in a few labs/homeworks which were very heavily weighted in his class (my mistake I know). I know for a fact this grade does not represent my ability in the class especially since math is my strong point in academia, and I'm assuming no medical school would listen as to why I got a C. However I did better in the much harder second portion of the class, so should I still retake the class? I also have gotten A's in every single math class I've taken so far including some 300 level ones so perhaps that might help give medical school's an idea as to my ability?

As for organic, I was taking it 2 years ago but withdrew as I was going through some personal problems then and couldn't focus on the class. I just finished Orgo I a week ago and finished with a B- (again I had an A but due to the lack of effort towards when it came to the memorization portion of things my grade dropped). I plan to really put some effort in in Organic II (which I'm taking right now) to try and end up with an A. How bad does this look for medical school?

Also I was hoping my MCAT score can reflect my ability to makeup for my lack of effort in the past, something I'm working on fixing. My GPA is around a 3.3 right now, I have 2 C's (one of which is psych 100 which again I took during that rough period - should I retake this too? I took an upper level psych class after this but again after not doing the homework I ended up with a B- -, the other one being physics) and 2 W's (Orgo and computer science). Any chance I might still be able to get into the likes of Yale if I really grind it out and get an extremely good MCAT? I have 1.5 years left. Be as brutal as you like haha, thanks for reading.

 

[Lost In Transcription]

Hey guys,

I took physics I and II last semester and I'm taking organic this summer and had a few questions.

Physics I end up with a C and Physics II I got a B. I did very well on the exams, in fact I got top 5 in the class on every exam, but due to carelessness I didn't hand in a few labs/homeworks which were very heavily weighted in his class (my mistake I know). I know for a fact this grade does not represent my ability in the class especially since math is my strong point in academia, and I'm assuming no medical school would listen as to why I got a C. However I did better in the much harder second portion of the class, so should I still retake the class? I also have gotten A's in every single math class I've taken so far including some 300 level ones so perhaps that might help give medical school's an idea as to my ability?

As for organic, I was taking it 2 years ago but withdrew as I was going through some personal problems then and couldn't focus on the class. I just finished Orgo I a week ago and finished with a B- (again I had an A but due to the lack of effort towards when it came to the memorization portion of things my grade dropped). I plan to really put some effort in in Organic II (which I'm taking right now) to try and end up with an A. How bad does this look for medical school?

Also I was hoping my MCAT score can reflect my ability to makeup for my lack of effort in the past, something I'm working on fixing. My GPA is around a 3.3 right now, I have 2 C's (one of which is psych 100 which again I took during that rough period - should I retake this too? I took an upper level psych class after this but again after not doing the homework I ended up with a B- -, the other one being physics) and 2 W's (Orgo and computer science). Any chance I might still be able to get into the likes of Yale if I really grind it out and get an extremely good MCAT? I have 1.5 years left. Be as brutal as you like haha, thanks for reading.

Try to retake the things like Psych, IMO. Orgo and physics can be forgiven if you do really well in upper-div classes (I got a B- in one term of phys and a *gasp* C+ in OrgoI, but got As in physical chemistry and the rest of orgo).

Also remember getting into the most prestigious school isn't the goal. The goal is to be a physician. You have a long and sad road ahead if prestige is what you are after...

 

[confidentandgood]

OP, you need to assess your academic habits. The fact that you have been excelling in classes only to have your grade drop due to carelessness towards the end of the semester is likely not going to help you in future coursework. You cannot let this happen in Organic II if you hope to work towards an upward trend. You seem like a bright student (judging by the fact that you can maintain a high grade) so don't let a lack of motivation get to you.

Your GPA is not competitive for MD schools, and adcoms do not like to see an inconsistency in grades. Don't worry about top schools right now, and don't even worry about reviewing for the MCAT until you have a firm grasp on the subjects being tested. Worry about improving that GPA and strengthening the rest of your application (shadowing, EC's, etc.).

 

[RMAM10]

Try to retake the things like Psych, IMO. Orgo and physics can be forgiven if you do really well in upper-div classes (I got a B- in one term of phys and a *gasp* C+ in OrgoI, but got As in physical chemistry and the rest of orgo).

Also remember getting into the most prestigious school isn't the goal. The goal is to be a physician. You have a long and sad road ahead if prestige is what you are after...

Thanks for the reply, unfortunately my school has a really crappy excuse for a physics department so we don't have anything past general physics. As for chemistry I'm not a chemistry major so all I'll be taking after this is analytical and biochem for my chemistry minor.

And to clarify I definitely am not one to get caught up in prestige, I just have a lot of family who attended Yale and so there is a bit of pressure to follow that path.

OP, you need to assess your academic habits. The fact that you have been excelling in classes only to have your grade drop due to carelessness towards the end of the semester is likely not going to help you in future coursework. You cannot let this happen in Organic II if you hope to work towards an upward trend. You seem like a bright student (judging by the fact that you can maintain a high grade) so don't let a lack of motivation get to you.

Your GPA is not competitive for MD schools, and adcoms do not like to see an inconsistency in grades. Don't worry about top schools right now, and don't even worry about reviewing for the MCAT until you have a firm grasp on the subjects being tested. Worry about improving that GPA and strengthening the rest of your application (shadowing, EC's, etc.).

I appreciate the reply, you're completely right I really do need to take a loot at my studying habits and improve it's just sometimes the motivation is not there (which I know is not an excuse). So far Organic II is going good and I've been putting in some work preparing for my upcoming exam. What would be a competitive GPA for medical school, let alone a top school? If I retake Physics and Psych 100 and get A's I can drastically improve my GPA, is it worth it? I'm hoping I can improve my GPA to 3.6-3.7 by the time I graduate. I plan on shadowing a few doctors next month and definitely during the winter break.

Thanks again guys.

 

[Lost In Transcription]

Thanks for the reply, unfortunately my school has a really crappy excuse for a physics department so we don't have anything past general physics. As for chemistry I'm not a chemistry major so all I'll be taking after this is analytical and biochem for my chemistry minor.

And to clarify I definitely am not one to get caught up in prestige, I just have a lot of family who attended Yale and so there is a bit of pressure to follow that path.

Ha, my school had a terrible phys department as well. It was SO awful. I'm not one to "project" failure onto others, but the term I did poorly was nearly 100% due to the prof. She ended up being so horrible that she was fired after that term. Ugh. Everyone at my school hates the physics series more than anything because it is ridiculously poorly taught and also ridiculously difficult. More than it should be.

Hopefully you will be able to overcome that. I didn't have it, but family pressure is so hard. There are a lot of threads on here talking about it actually. Just go search for them.

Retaking to improve GPA is always good. Retaking to understand the material is also good!!

 

[RMAM10]

Ha, my school had a terrible phys department as well. It was SO awful. I'm not one to "project" failure onto others, but the term I did poorly was nearly 100% due to the prof. She ended up being so horrible that she was fired after that term. Ugh. Everyone at my school hates the physics series more than anything because it is ridiculously poorly taught and also ridiculously difficult. More than it should be.

Hopefully you will be able to overcome that. I didn't have it, but family pressure is so hard. There are a lot of threads on here talking about it actually. Just go search for them.

Retaking to improve GPA is always good. Retaking to understand the material is also good!!

Sounds exactly my school haha, everyone dreads taking any class with this professor but oh well not much we can do.

As for retaking the classes, my school keeps both grades on your transcript but only factors the higher one into your GPA, do medical schools do this any differently? And I actually remember all the material pretty well, it was just the lack of effort in the homework and such which ended up taking me down which was pretty stupid of me in hindsight.

 

[confidentandgood]

What would be a competitive GPA for medical school, let alone a top school? If I retake Physics and Psych 100 and get A's I can drastically improve my GPA, is it worth it? I'm hoping I can improve my GPA to 3.6-3.7 by the time I graduate.

3.6-3.7 is below the average for top schools, but definitely fine for an MD applicant in general (partnered with a strong application). Like I said, I'm not doubting your abilities as a student, but don't count your chickens before they hatch. Improve your GPA and take the MCAT, and then worry about your school list.

 

[RMAM10]

3.6-3.7 is below the average for top schools, but definitely fine for an MD applicant in general (partnered with a strong application). Like I said, I'm not doubting your abilities as a student, but don't count your chickens before they hatch. Improve your GPA and take the MCAT, and then worry about your school list.

Awesome, I'll work hard and see what the future has in store for me. Thanks!

 

[Toutie]

Sounds exactly my school haha, everyone dreads taking any class with this professor but oh well not much we can do.

As for retaking the classes, my school keeps both grades on your transcript but only factors the higher one into your GPA, do medical schools do this any differently? And I actually remember all the material pretty well, it was just the lack of effort in the homework and such which ended up taking me down which was pretty stupid of me in hindsight.

Medical schools will use both grades. Med schools will use every grade you have ever earned in a college level class. DO schools do allow for grade replacement though.

 

[RMAM10]

Medical schools will use both grades. Med schools will use every grade you have ever earned in a college level class. DO schools do allow for grade replacement though.

In that case, would you say it's worth retaking Psych 100 and Physics I, both classes I got a C in and which I'm confident I could get an A if I were to retake?

 

[Toutie]

In that case, would you say it's worth retaking Psych 100 and Physics I, both classes I got a C in and which I'm confident I could get an A if I were to retake?

No. If you feel confident that you learned the material sufficiently for the MCAT, then there's really no reason to re-take a C. You would be MUCH better off taking a couple upper level BCMP courses and acing them.