screwing up retakes

[planetvenus87]

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How bad is it to retake a class that you got a C in and again end up with a C in it? I was retaking my anatomy II class this past quarter (Post-bacc) and I think Im gonna end up with a C in it again...Im worried 🙁 Twice Ive been screwed over with the retakes with one actually ending up lower than a C (family problems didnt help at that time AT ALL!!!) and now this...although who knows by a miracle I might pull a B come final time tomorrow! But Im really worried about how medical schools will look at it! They'll probably think im an idiot and I so desperately want to get in this upcoming cycle! My mcat is in exactly two months which I have been studying for aside from having a full time job at the hospital and being full time at school (Im taking this upcoming quarter off so I can concentrate more on my mcat...bad idea??? let me know!)...so If you were in my place...what would you do to fix this dilemma? I will be taking classes over the summer with some of them being repeats...Ive done well (B's) in my other repeats but these two classes worry me! Please help me and tell me what to do! I want to make it this upcoming cycle!

 

[lonelyboy]

If i were you i would consider taking the same class at a community college. I called the AACOM admission rep earlier and asked them a question similar to this matter and they told me that they only consider the last retake of the class no matter if it was at the same university or at a community college.

 

[zann0324]

How bad is it to retake a class that you got a C in and again end up with a C in it? I was retaking my anatomy II class this past quarter (Post-bacc) and I think Im gonna end up with a C in it again...Im worried 🙁 Twice Ive been screwed over with the retakes with one actually ending up lower than a C (family problems didnt help at that time AT ALL!!!) and now this...although who knows by a miracle I might pull a B come final time tomorrow! But Im really worried about how medical schools will look at it! They'll probably think im an idiot and I so desperately want to get in this upcoming cycle! My mcat is in exactly two months which I have been studying for aside from having a full time job at the hospital and being full time at school (Im taking this upcoming quarter off so I can concentrate more on my mcat...bad idea??? let me know!)...so If you were in my place...what would you do to fix this dilemma? I will be taking classes over the summer with some of them being repeats...Ive done well (B's) in my other repeats but these two classes worry me! Please help me and tell me what to do! I want to make it this upcoming cycle!

Well, I'm not gonna sugar coat it here....you better do everything possible to at least get a B...getting a C twice, especially in a class as important as anatomy isn't going to look good. And to be perfectly honest, B's aren't that great if they are retakes. If your MCAT turns out good and you can write the poor GPA off as being super busy with working etc, that might be okay. I would work super hard to get A's in all the repeats you are doing this summer...I certainly have personal experience with this...they are fairly forgiving but you have to show them that you are qualified. When I was a young-in I enrolled for 1 full time semester and 1 half time semester and just didn't end up taking the classes because I was working full time and didn't want to be in school. Now, the kicker is that I didn't actually take the classes but I was enrolled in them so I ended up with something like 16 credits worth of F's...serious mistake. So, I took 2 years off school, retook them and got almost all A's..ended up with a 3.6 cGPA, 3.5 sGPA. I applied late to 3 schools this year with a less than stellar but acceptable MCAT score and got 2 interviews and alternate at both schools. They were more concerned about what inspired me to come back and get on track than they were that I had messed up...Best of luck!!

 

[FrkyBgStok]

If i were you i would consider taking the same class at a community college. I called the AACOM admission rep earlier and asked them a question similar to this matter and they told me that they only consider the last retake of the class no matter if it was at the same university or at a community college.

bad advice. i gotta kind of agree with the above. the problem is you are retaking a science class while working. Adcoms aren't going to weigh that. They are going to ask, "why the hell did you work so much if you couldn't handle it?" and to that I ask why the hell did you work so much if you couldn't handle it? On a retake no less. i mean you kind of knew you had to rock this.

i am not trying to be a jerk, and i had a bad day today so I might be biased. When you felt yourself slipping in the beginning, why did you do nothing about it? why didn't you panic when you fell to a B? why did you think your work was more important?

what is your GPA? like above, retakes the are B's aren't that good.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

i just glanced through your past posts. Do you still have a 2.86 cGPA with a 3.0 sGPA? Did you do something about biochem? seriously, you have a problem that needs fixed. med schools are going to be thinking the same thing that I am right now. why are you working full time? clearly you can't handle both. if you want to get into medical school, something has to change. i would follow past advice and hold off applying for a year and retake some classes with a serious mentality.

 

[planetvenus87]

Thank you so much for all of your replies. I will address them accordingly:

@Lonelyboy:
I do understand the retake policy but I would like to be as far away from cc classes as possible...their poor rep in the eyes of the adcom is a well known fact amongst premed students but I apprecite you for the taking the time to reply 🙂

@Zanna0324
I congratulate you on your success (Im sure that you will get the good news in no time 🙂 )and I thank you for replying for my post but your reply is very much similar to the next person that posted after you so I will answer it there.

@FrkyBgStok
Quite the ray of sunshine there, arent ya? 🙂 The reason behind why I was working full time and taking classes was because I had to work full time in order to afford my classes. It wasnt easy and it has been a rough quarter for me and so far I have received only one grade thus far and its in a psych class that I took as a buffer which I got a B in. My college tuition is expensive and its better to take a couple classes as oppossed to just one in order to feel less as though you are selling a limb. As for the warning signs, I had high hopes that I would do well and I worked hard, it was tiring and sometimes I didnt have enough sleep but I worked hard at both my job and my studies even though it was unwise of me to take a heavy work load with an important class...Ive never been the type of person to withdraw if times got tough in a class...you can see that from my biochem history that you saw in previous posts. I go down till the end (I dont have any F's in my record if you care to know...I have had 3 Ds which were all replaced) and I try try again if I must. Ive always been a B student but I understand your concern. I ended up retaking the biochem class and to my dismay I ended up with a C...I known, as you put it, its not good enough. And the cliche excuse about the whole "family problems"...well, I will tell you the truth, it effected me during the time i was taking those classes. I dont want pity from the adcom if they see my application and ask me why I did how I did in classes...I want them to see that I am adamant in becoming a physician and that it is my passion and I will do whatever it takes (including taking a class over and over again) in order to get there. I want them to see that I am willing to work as much as possible to get to where i want to be. I also want them to see that I am patient and NOT wishy washy. And as for your final statement about my mentality, I should inform you that Im not some wide-eyed rookie in this game...I know what Im up against and if I do well on the mcat (which is why im taking the next two months off from school to dedicate a good 10 hours a day into studying for it) I will apply this upcoming June. It all rides on that. My current cgpa is a 3.01 with my sgpa sitting at a 2.92. Its low and i know it...but I dont want you to feel as though Im slacking off...Im really trying and thus I kindly seek your advice (give me the benefit of the doubt)...that is all I ask. Thank you very very much.

 

[Goro]

As an AdCom member, you'd not get very far with any med school AdCom when getting a C to replace a C. It tells us you can't handle the load of medical school. And frankly, you're not competetive with a 3.0 GPA either.

Work a few years, save your money, and if your're still interested in medicine, take a post-bac program.


@FrkyBgStok
Quite the ray of sunshine there, arent ya? 🙂 The reason behind why I was working full time and taking classes was because I had to work full time in order to afford my classes. It wasnt easy and it has been a rough quarter for me and so far I have received only one grade thus far and its in a psych class that I took as a buffer which I got a B in. My college tuition is expensive and its better to take a couple classes as oppossed to just one in order to feel less as though you are selling a limb. As for the warning signs, I had high hopes that I would do well and I worked hard, it was tiring and sometimes I didnt have enough sleep but I worked hard at both my job and my studies even though it was unwise of me to take a heavy work load with an important class...Ive never been the type of person to withdraw if times got tough in a class...you can see that from my biochem history that you saw in previous posts. I go down till the end (I dont have any F's in my record if you care to know...I have had 3 Ds which were all replaced) and I try try again if I must. Ive always been a B student but I understand your concern. I ended up retaking the biochem class and to my dismay I ended up with a C...I known, as you put it, its not good enough. And the cliche excuse about the whole "family problems"...well, I will tell you the truth, it effected me during the time i was taking those classes. I dont want pity from the adcom if they see my application and ask me why I did how I did in classes...I want them to see that I am adamant in becoming a physician and that it is my passion and I will do whatever it takes (including taking a class over and over again) in order to get there. I want them to see that I am willing to work as much as possible to get to where i want to be. I also want them to see that I am patient and NOT wishy washy. And as for your final statement about my mentality, I should inform you that Im not some wide-eyed rookie in this game...I know what Im up against and if I do well on the mcat (which is why im taking the next two months off from school to dedicate a good 10 hours a day into studying for it) I will apply this upcoming June. It all rides on that. My current cgpa is a 3.01 with my sgpa sitting at a 2.92. Its low and i know it...but I dont want you to feel as though Im slacking off...Im really trying and thus I kindly seek your advice (give me the benefit of the doubt)...that is all I ask. Thank you very very much.[/QUOTE]

 

[FrkyBgStok]

and i am do not feel as though you are slacking off, but I am seriously wanting you to reevaluate your plans. and if you retake your classes and get As, it is different, but you are not understanding that we are talking about medical school.

think about this as an adcom. you get 2 applications. one of them has a couple retakes, a 3.3 GPA, a 27 MCAT, very minor research, part time work, a little shadowing, a little hospital work, and time in a club.

another application has a 3.0 GPA, good hospital work, but the classes that you are directly related to what your medical school is teaching, the applicant just cannot do well. why would they take a chance on the second applicant? and the first applicant resembles an average of every DO applicant.

i am really not trying to be mean. I know you are working hard. I am taking 20 credits this semester (biochem and physics 2 retake, plus some BS classes), working 50 hours a week full time at one job, 20 hours a week part time at a hospital job, and raising 3 kids. i try to fit in some volunteer time at my daughters school. I am also maintaining a 3.6 GPA throughout the semester. it is about time management. i also work well under pressure. i know others that can't work more than 20 hours in order to do well, but doing well>>>>>working and making Bs.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

As an AdCom member, you'd not get very far with any med school AdCom when getting a C to replace a C. It tells us you can't handle the load of medical school. And frankly, you're not competetive with a 3.0 GPA either.

Work a few years, save your money, and if your're still interested in medicine, take a post-bac program.

i am not saying for certain that this member as an admission committee member. the low post count and little information makes it hard to guage, however if they are, there you go. if they aren't, they are right.

 

[Amalgamate]

I do understand the retake policy but I would like to be as far away from cc classes as possible...their poor rep in the eyes of the adcom is a well known fact amongst premed

What looks worse to adcoms, an A from a cc, or a C from a university. There's no guarantee you'll get an A from the CC but it's way cheaper and way easier to schedule flexibly around work so you have way better odds.

 

[shushumiga]

What looks worse to adcoms, an A from a cc, or a C from a university. There's no guarantee you'll get an A from the CC but it's way cheaper and way easier to schedule flexibly around work so you have way better odds.

I disagree with you. I go to university and I have friends that attend CC and what they tell me is that...earning good grades is a lot more difficult at the CC compared to the uni. It is cheap and instructors/professors tend to make classes harder to pass so that the student can repeat again for more $$$. Of course, I am not there to witness it but a CC cannot be looked upon an easy place for getting good grades.

OP, I agree with the other users. It is not acceptable to repeat the same course and ger the same grade...seriously. Something in your study/test taking technique isn't right. You can't get a satisfactory grade in anatomy which in undergrad is a basic/overview material...nothing in depth. I suggest re-evaluating your abilities in mastering science work.

 

[Amalgamate]

I disagree with you. I go to university and I have friends that attend CC and what they tell me is that...earning good grades is a lot more difficult at the CC compared to the uni. It is cheap and instructors/professors tend to make classes harder to pass so that the student can repeat again for more $$$. Of course, I am not there to witness it but a CC cannot be looked upon an easy place for getting good grades.

OP, I agree with the other users. It is not acceptable to repeat the same course and ger the same grade...seriously. Something in your study/test taking technique isn't right. You can't get a satisfactory grade in anatomy which in undergrad is a basic/overview material...nothing in depth. I suggest re-evaluating your abilities in mastering science work.

I've attended both cc and university, it really is hit or miss, its not the school its the professor. There's no such thing as one being easier or harder, but given the fact this guy is about to be on his third time trying to fix this C, and the fact he works full time, he should take the cheaper route that offers better flexibility

 

[shushumiga]

I've attended both cc and university, it really is hit or miss, its not the school its the professor. There's no such thing as one being easier or harder, but given the fact this guy is about to be on his third time trying to fix this C, and the fact he works full time, he should take the cheaper route that offers better flexibility

You are right, sometimes it is all about how the professor teaches/grades the students. Knowing which professors are better/worse may help the OP in getting the desired grades.

 

[Everglide]

If I were you - I would evaluate whether I was truly ready for the MCAT or not. I question if you are based on your story. An average MCAT isn't helpful with a 3.0 gpa.

I would then take a long hard, honest look at what went wrong with anatomy and other classes and fix it - a lot easier said than done, get help if you need it.

 

[Postal]

I know its difficult to give up on your dream of pursuing medicine so I'm not going to tell you to do that.

If I were you, I'd take my remaining pre-req classes(if you have any to retake) and smoke them with A's. Then find a way to get into to a post-bac program with linkage.

 

[milosavljevic]

It seems like a lot of people are telling the OP to figure out why no improvement is being seen in terms of grades.

I can empathize with the OP's situation, as I am currently needing to re-take many, many classes and cannot afford to get less than A's the second time around. In order to reach my goals, I am currently trying to figure out the best methods of studying.

OP: Here is a link to what seems like a few solid strategies in terms of studying smart and not just studying a lot. The majority of the comments are relating to med school, but it can (and should) be applied to undergrad and post-bac as well. I hope you find the suggestions as helpful as I did.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=805379

 

[Amalgamate]

I know this sounds bad but utilize ratemyprofessor and use it to find classes to retake that have easy professors, I bombed 2 accounting classes about 5 years ago (signed up, and never dropped, both Fs) I really have no interest in accounting classes so I'm retaking them with the easiest professor I can find. I don't like the idea of doing this for science classes because it's knowledge youll need for mcat, but it's competitive

 

[Goro]

AdCom member for at least 8 years; faculty for 11+
Somewhere west of the Mississippi. You'll simply have to take me at face value as I prefer the anonymity.

And what I said in my previous post still goes.

i am not saying for certain that this member as an admission committee member. the low post count and little information makes it hard to guage, however if they are, there you go. if they aren't, they are right.

 

[planetvenus87]

Thank you all so very very much for all of your posts! I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the time you have taken to do so! I apologize for the delayed reply as I was slammed with finals and was busy doing major mcat studying this past week! I have some bitter sweet news...I ended up getting 2 B's ( One of them as for a retake and the other for a new class) and sadly a C for the other retake that I was doing this past quarter. I have contacted the Adcom of my school of interest and so far he has been encouraging and has told me to work hard on my mcat thus far which I am adamant on doing and am already doing so 🙂 He also told me to start stringing in A's from now which I will heartily do so come this summer after I take the mcat...as I have changed my job position from full time to part time which is an incredible relief! But I would still like to hear more on your thoughts so let me know what you think after this current update. Thank you so much again!!!! 🙂

P.S. I am applying for a masters program for the fall of this upcoming year which I think would be most helpful but then again, I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter 🙂 Thanks again 🙂

 

[shushumiga]

Thank you all so very very much for all of your posts! I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the time you have taken to do so! I apologize for the delayed reply as I was slammed with finals and was busy doing major mcat studying this past week! I have some bitter sweet news...I ended up getting 2 B's ( One of them as for a retake and the other for a new class) and sadly a C for the other retake that I was doing this past quarter. I have contacted the Adcom of my school of interest and so far he has been encouraging and has told me to work hard on my mcat thus far which I am adamant on doing and am already doing so 🙂 He also told me to start stringing in A's from now which I will heartily do so come this summer after I take the mcat...as I have changed my job position from full time to part time which is an incredible relief! But I would still like to hear more on your thoughts so let me know what you think after this current update. Thank you so much again!!!! 🙂

P.S. I am applying for a masters program for the fall of this upcoming year which I think would be most helpful but then again, I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter 🙂 Thanks again 🙂

Good job! 👍

 

[md2b111]

I can totally relate to the O.P. as i have been going thru the same stress. i am currently retaking bio 1 and chm2 and had to drop chm 2 due to work and family. now that i look back at it,.. some of the posts here are tru. the adcomss are going to frown on dropping re-takes. but my question to everyone would be.. how can someone who retakes and goes from a c-c and then maybe drops chm2 on a retake try to get back into the swing of this so that they can maybe have a chance again?? its a hard battle and trust me i am going thru it as we speak but im sure theres gotta be someway of redeeming ones grades again.... plz advise.. 🙁