Really rough fall freshman semester... Help!!!

[CEUDS]

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Hey everyone,
I'm kind of new to the site but have seen some posts that are similar to mine, so I apologize in advance, but I just kind of wanted to put my exact stats out there and get answers that fit me more specifically. I had a rough first semester of college, and obviously it's that lovely time of year that I got the gpa back. I was not happy with it by any means: a 2.67. I got a c- (ouch I know) in chem, a c+ in calc, and a c+ In English ( that was a feresukt of a terrible unfair grader... The other two we're entirely my own fault...) It was very upsetting as high school was fairly easy for me, and this is far worse than I had ever done. It was petty devastating for me, as I really want to be a doctor. I would consider DO but my first choice is MD. It was hard to see this gpa because it was a pretty cut and dry indication of my failure, in my mind. Though I know that I am capable of far better, this was definitely a kick to the ego and was hard to look at in terms of my med school future. Though it might be less than adult, I am sort of looking for some reassurance that if I can pull the grades together, this won't destroy my chances gpa wise, or just because it stands out with entry level classes. I am retaking Chem for comprehension and gpa boosting purposes, so that should help. Sorry for the long post; I was just hoping to get a sense of what those who had lower first semester gpas did Ito bring it up and get competitive for med school. Was it focused on a lot in interviews? Is there specific you did differently while studying that was a 'game changer' in helping raise your grades? I would greatly appreciate any input!!

 

[CEUDS]

Oh and I took 18 credit hrs if that makes a difference... I think I would've done better with less first semester ...

 

[Tangeriine]

I'm in a similar but lesser situation to you. My first semester gpa was a 3.22 with a B in chemistry, and one of my other grades (English like you) was manipulated to be lower to prevent me from gaining an exemption from a foundation requirement. I'm aware that a 3.22 and a B in a pre-req is a bit easier to recover from, but I can still tell you what I plan to do to make up for it and maybe you can get something out of it.

So the most important thing is to ace your pre-reqs, so focus a lot on Chemistry and prioritize to make sure you get at least a B+ in the second part of the course. Then make sure you are taking advantage of all the resources available to you; my school offers free tutoring for an hour per subject once a week and I intend to use that very frequently. Also, re-evaluate your study habits; first semester I would blow off studying to go smoke weed with friends the night before a test for about 75% of my tests, although this only backfired on one or two tests I could have probably done slightly better on the ones that went OK anyway. Aside from not getting high the night before a test, stay ahead of the game and study for your next test the day after you have a test, this includes reading the textbook doing extra practice problems and reaching out to your professor when you don't understand a concept. Besides that just don't overwhelm yourself with too many credit hours or EC's until you are comfortable enough to maintain a good enough GPA.

Also realize that adcoms understand why first semester grades would be lower and are a bit more lenient than if this was fifth semester, and also would be happy to see an upward trend. And if you want to look at it numerically, if you took 18 hours every semester until the end of junior year (just to make it simple) and got a 4.0 every semester (just to see what the best possible outcome is) you would have a 3.78 at the end of junior year. Waiting until the end of senior year makes it possible to have an even higher GPA. Now you probably won't get straight 4.0's, but if you buckle down a 3.7 by application time isn't out of reach. Hope this was helpful and good luck!

 

[jd989898]

Hopefully you learned your lesson. If you truly want it bad enough, you'll do what needs to be done. If you get As from here on out you could graduate with a 3.83.

 

[llore_lie]

The only thing medical schools like better than blind and impossible perfection in every way is failure
medical schools LOVE failure, its an opportunity for you to learn which it sounds like you did
if you start to improve and kick ass from here on out you'll be fine
also GPA is one small piece of a very big picture. start volunteering in hospitals or other clinical settings and shadowing doctors, the BARE minimum you should have by the time you apply is 100 hours and thats only if you have alot of other leadership and research. showing a commitment to medicine is KEY

but don't let yourself get obsessed about grades and being in a hospital - you need to have something you're passionate about to discuss to try to find extracarriculars you legitimately enjoy (for both your application and sanity)

I know it sounds like you have to do everything all the time always, but I got scared and didn't do enough my freshman/sophomore years

also FIND A GOOD ADVISOR NOW - go make appointments with almost every available advisor you can depending on your program - they can give you way better advice than anyone on SDN can

 

[hoihaie]

You're fine. I had 2.7 first quarter of freshmen year, then 2.5 2nd quarter. I still got accepted into MD school. Just make sure you're showing improvements

 

[RC4L]

Embrace it and learn from it. You have in no way hurt your chances for med school. In fact, you may have helped yourself. Come back from it and bust ass until you graduate. Showing that you are human and that you have overcome struggles is better than appearing as if you've never had one. I had more than one semester under a 2.0 and failed more than one class. I learned from it and made As in every class for the remainder of my college career including retakes of those classes I screwed up in. I think it actually gave me an advantage and it gave me something to talk about when I interviewed.
As for good study habits, I would sit in the front of class and pay very close attention. I took detailed notes and when I didn't understand something, I either asked for clarification or talked to my professor after class. I would go to the library every day following class and learn what was presented that day in class which never took terribly long. When tests came around, all I had to do was review and the grades came quite easily. Stay ahead of the game and never put yourself in a situation where you need to get lucky. Also, look for leadership opportunities in campus organizations and volunteer in a medical setting where you can work closely with patients - hospice, MDA, St. Jude, etc. Stay in shape and eat healthy. You wont fail if you do this.

 

[Relax!]

I agree with what everyone here said. Take it as a learning experience and try to modify your study skills, if that's where you think you went wrong. Getting stellar grades in higher level courses impresses med schools and shows that poor grades in lower level/freshman courses are not indicative of your capability.

was just hoping to get a sense of what those who had lower first semester gpas did Ito bring it up and get competitive for med school. Was it focused on a lot in interviews? Is there specific you did differently while studying that was a 'game changer' in helping raise your grades? I would greatly appreciate any input!!

It only came up in one interview, and I was asked about it very casually. The strategy there is to basically own up to your mistakes and mention that you have shown improvement by rectifying prior mistakes. As far as a "game changer" strategy for studying--I don't think there is one but one thing that universally works is to seek help early if you are struggling (getting B- or lower consistently on assignments, quizzes, self-assessments, etc) before a midterm or something major comes up. Lastly, although this sounds terrible, try to take classes with easier professors (those who give a high % of A's or B's).

 

[username456789]

I had a 2.91 after 2 years of college.

Then it dawned on me that I was being stupid and needed to study/work harder.

Got a ~3.95 for the next 3 years (extra year due to changing majors) and had a 3.57 or so cumulative GPA.

Got a dozen or so med school interviews, 8ish acceptances. Honored every course in medical school, crushed STEP I/II, matched my #1 Dermatology program, and graduated #2 in my medical school class.

How bad do you want to succeed? Make it happen.

 

[bluejay456]

Everyone loves a comeback bro. Admissions especially love trends so steadily bring up your grades over the next 7 semesters (you have such a long time to make this up don't worry). And definitely talk with an older student in your program to know how to schedule the rest of college. Students will know better than advisors who are the hard professors and how to play Tetris with your classes.

 

[Kimbee]

It's only your first semester. Give yourself a few more to see if you can bring up your GPA. Having bad professors sucks!