Re-taking a class at a community college?

[divit1234]

does it look really bad to re-take a course at a community college after graduating versus at the school graduated from?

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[LetItSnow]

does it look really bad to re-take a course at a community college after graduating versus at the school graduated from?

I say no (and, in fact, I did almost all my science pre-reqs at a CC, saving thousands of dollars, because my UG degree was not in a science). There are a number of people here who disagree with me, and most of them have opinions I respect, so you should weigh that.

Regardless, you need to be careful to make sure the CC class will meet the pre-req of the vet school(s) to which you are applying. For instance, IIRC my CC offered a microbiology course geared for nursing students that did not meet the requirement, and one that did. You need to do your homework to make sure.

With more CCs offering a coupled 4-year-degree with a college or university, I think that long-term this is likely to become a non-issue. For now, though, you still need to be careful.

 

[macita183]

I have heard that schools prefer that you re-take it at the institution you first took it at (this from a pre-vet advisor). The reasoning behind this was the difficulty of the course would then be the same. If you retake it at a community college the school may think you opted for the easier route. I'm not positive if this applies to all schools but I'm sure if you spoke with the schools you are applying and explained the reasons (scheduling, cost, whatever) it could be fine.

 

[Escalla]

I re-took two classes at a community college this last summer before applying. I contacted the vet schools with the course descriptions ahead of time (before I registered for them) and no one had a problem with it. Just email them with the course that you're looking at taking and see if it meets their requirement. There's nothing wrong with that! 🙂

 

[VeganChick]

Not CC, but I re-took a pre-req that I had gotten a D in with an online class. It was the only way I could fit in the re-take in time to apply. That didn't seem to be an issue.

 

[K9DANE]

My school of choice does not weigh CC's or 4-yr institutions differently as long as the school is accredited. Again, do your homework and check with your school(s) of choice for their requirements.

 

[Poppy327]

On the other hand, a lot of the schools I applied to required me to take the majority of my pre-reqs at a 4 year institution. This meant doing summer classes at my regular school vs a cc. So definitely check with your schools of choice first.

 

[UAmike]

I would say when re-taking/taking courses at a community college you should think about it and consider a few things. For instance, what is the course? If it is something not science related such as an english, political science, etc. I think that looks more favorable than taking a difficult science course such as micro, cell bio, etc. at a CC.

I don't think you will be selected against in the admissions process if you take a few courses at a CC. The main thing to ask yourself is, are you getting the same information that you are going to need for vet school in the CC course.

The mistake a lot of vet students make is tricking themselves into believing that the CC course is the same/easier as a major institution's and thus, they are not prepared for vet school curriculum (I've seen it first hand as a first year vet student). This isn't to say that some CCs offer great courses that are just as good, if not better, than a big college's course. However, I would say more often than not it is a better idea to go ahead and take the course at your college if at all possible.

 

[Dsmoody23]

The mistake a lot of vet students make is tricking themselves into believing that the CC course is the same/easier as a major institution's and thus, they are not prepared for vet school curriculum (I've seen it first hand as a first year vet student). This isn't to say that some CCs offer great courses that are just as good, if not better, than a big college's course. However, I would say more often than not it is a better idea to go ahead and take the course at your college if at all possible.

This paragraph has three different viewpoints, and I'm barely sure what any of them are.

 

[Virginger]

In many schools you cannot retake if you get a passing grade. For me, I could not retake Physics at MSU but it was killing my GPA! So, I re-took 2 semesters of Physics at CC this summer to bump up my grade from a C+ to an A and I am happy I did it. Any boost in GPA is a boost! Dont under value it because from what I am experiencing, thats (almost) all they care about for preliminary selection (especially for OOS selection).

Besides thinking about whether the course meets the schools perquisite requirement, you should look into how the schools (you are planning on applying to) apply the change in grade.

For example, I called up the schools I was interested in and here is what I was told:

These schools replace the grade: 😀
Kansas State
Oregon State
Western
Michigan State
Mississippi State

These schools average the new grade with the initial attempt: 🙂
Auburn
Iowa State (though they told me they replace, but what they calculated is the averaged value)
Tufts
Illinois
MInnesota
Penn State
Purdue

These schools have other opinions: 🙁
Virginia Tech - averages for overall, goes into last 45 (I think?), does not affect Science GPA
Tennessee - does not account for courses retake (at least if passed on the first try)

So, when looking at schools keep in mind that not all of the programs treat retaken courses the same. Do some research on the courses level requirements and how they calculate retaken courses into you GPA (and sometimes things change from year to year, so make sure to recheck things for the next app cycle).

 

[LetItSnow]

The mistake a lot of vet students make is tricking themselves into believing that the CC course is the same/easier as a major institution's and thus, they are not prepared for vet school curriculum (I've seen it first hand as a first year vet student). This isn't to say that some CCs offer great courses that are just as good, if not better, than a big college's course. However, I would say more often than not it is a better idea to go ahead and take the course at your college if at all possible.

Fact: I took organic chemistry from a teacher at a CC who simultaneously taught it at our large state university using the same syllabus (other than class dates, name of school, etc.), the same book, the same assignments, and the same tests.

I think you don't know what you're talking about.

 

[T_Rose]

In many schools you cannot retake if you get a passing grade. For me, I could not retake Physics at MSU but it was killing my GPA! So, I re-took 2 semesters of Physics at CC this summer to bump up my grade from a C+ to an A and I am happy I did it. Any boost in GPA is a boost! Dont under value it because from what I am experiencing, thats (almost) all they care about for preliminary selection (especially for OOS selection).

Besides thinking about whether the course meets the schools perquisite requirement, you should look into how the schools (you are planning on applying to) apply the change in grade.

For example, I called up the schools I was interested in and here is what I was told:

These schools replace the grade: 😀
Kansas State
Oregon State
Western
Michigan State
Mississippi State

These schools average the new grade with the initial attempt: 🙂
Auburn
Iowa State (though they told me they replace, but what they calculated is the averaged value)
Tufts
Illinois
MInnesota
Penn State
Purdue

These schools have other opinions: 🙁
Virginia Tech - averages for overall, goes into last 45 (I think?), does not affect Science GPA
Tennessee - does not account for courses retake (at least if passed on the first try)

So, when looking at schools keep in mind that not all of the programs treat retaken courses the same. Do some research on the courses level requirements and how they calculate retaken courses into you GPA (and sometimes things change from year to year, so make sure to recheck things for the next app cycle).

Now that the VMCAS is open, I wanted to bump this thread up because I find it very helpful. It might help some people decide where to apply if they've repeated a bunch of courses. Thanks Virginger! 😀

And to add to this: Someone from Cornell told me that they do whatever your school does with the repeated course on your transcript. 😕 NC State averages the new grade with the initial attempt.

 

[adams30]

Not CC, but I re-took a pre-req that I had gotten a D in with an online class. It was the only way I could fit in the re-take in time to apply. That didn't seem to be an issue.

I have a similar issue. The first time I took calc I was a freshman in college taking it over the summer in a condensed community college class. I thought I could handle all of it, do the class and work like 50 hours a week. Boy was I wrong. It didn't turn out as well as I hoped and I got a D in the class.

I retook the class at my primary school (University of Illinois) and got a B-. I'm applying to vet school for the first time this year and am a little concerned about the D. It is my only D and the rest of my grades are B- and higher (the second lowest is physics with a B-). Based on your experience, you don't think one D would matter? especially if you took in 2 years ago? thanks for your help!

 

[gnomie]

Fact: I took organic chemistry from a teacher at a CC who simultaneously taught it at our large state university using the same syllabus (other than class dates, name of school, etc.), the same book, the same assignments, and the same tests.

I think you don't know what you're talking about.

I had the same experience. I am a non-trad as well, with a degree from a liberal arts college, where going back to take additional classes after graduation just isn't allowed, and I couldn't afford to take classes at my local university as a non-matriculated student.

All of my CC science classes were taught by professors who were actively teaching the same class at my local university, or had within the last year. In fact, most of my classes were full of pre-med students who had been sent from that same university (which has one of the top med schools in the county,) who could not get into the classes they needed there because budget cuts had slashed the number of sections available.

I was however very careful to make sure that the classes I was taking counted for the schools I was applying to. Obviously this is not going to be the case at all CC's, but a CC class is not automatically inferior.

 

[VetDrKate]

I retook physics at a CC and didn't have any problems. I just called the schools I was applying to (MN and IA) to verify that they would accept the class. MN had no problem with it; they actually had a computer program that listed a bunch of colleges, where they could look up classes and verify that they fulfilled the vet school's requirements. IA was ok with the CC class too. They just told me that they weight university and CC credits differently. Difficulty of institution plays into their calculation of your "grade" score and CC credits will drop your difficulty score by one pt, which isn't that big of a deal if your other grades are good and if retaking the course will make a significant increase in your GPA, (which in my case it did, C+ to A) .

Each school will be different, so I would contact the ones you are considering and ask them specifically.

 

[CanHardlyWait]

I retook 2nd semester organic at a CC after getting a D from my university. I retook it at CC, along with both semesters of physics, the year after I graduated from university. I planned all along to take a year off in between graduating and applying, and to take the last few pre-reqs. I didn't plan on retaking organic🙁
However I didn't have any issues getting schools to take my CC classes, although even with a D my GPA from university was pretty high, so maybe that played a part.

 

[SnowyRox]

An opportunity to use my favorite word!

Suboptimal.

 

[OtterMayhem]

I know this post is years old but it's the only one I found with a kind of similar question. I had a question about C's. I got a C+ in calc last semester at a university. If I retake the course will the schools that replace and/or average grades do that? Or do they only do that with D's and F's?

 

[dyachei]

I know this post is years old but it's the only one I found with a kind of similar question. I had a question about C's. I got a C+ in calc last semester at a university. If I retake the course will the schools that replace and/or average grades do that? Or do they only do that with D's and F's?

is that the only course you have a C+ in? If so, why retake?

 

[OtterMayhem]

is that the only course you have a C+ in? If so, why retake?

I don't know, I'm so mad about the course honestly. I tried so hard and had some personal stuff going on last semester. I guess it's more for my own personal satisfaction. But if schools will replace its a win-win.


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[dyachei]

I don't know, I'm so mad about the course honestly. I tried so hard and had some personal stuff going on last semester. I guess it's more for my own personal satisfaction. But if schools will replace its a win-win.


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I wouldn't bother. It's a waste of your time and money. 1 C+ isn't going to hurt you much (if at all).

 

[OtterMayhem]

I wouldn't bother. It's a waste of your time and money. 1 C+ isn't going to hurt you much (if at all).

I appreciate it. Thanks!


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