Should I just choose a different career?

[Khadif12]

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Hello,
I’m currently a Freshman at a small state school in the South; and due to family issues I have flunked out my first semester. Initially, my grades were stellar but as time passed a bunch of problems in my home life surfaced and I found it hard to focus on my studies. On the drop date I withdrew from one class thinking that a decreased course load would ease things a bit but ultimately I came out of this with 4 F’s and a W. My plan is to take the Spring semester off to recoup mentally then reenroll for the Fall to retake my failed courses. Is this my best course of action? My entire life medicine has been my dream profession and I would hate for it to be derailed all b/c of 4 months. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[calivianya]

Nah, you're plan's solid. There are plenty of people here who have screwed up at some point or another. It's not an automatic death sentence.

Just figure out what went wrong - if the actual events were out of your hands, figure out what went wrong as far as your coping mechanisms go, which are going to have to be up to snuff to handle any obstacle in life from here on out. Good luck!

 

[deleted480308]

It’s not dead but you have to get your crap together. You can’t do this again, figure out how to keep functioning when life is trying to distract you

 

[alkylgroup]

Also, when you apply for medical school, there will be opportunities on the application to explain the difficult circumstances you faced this past semester and/or how the affected your academics. Your grades won't just be seen by medical schools in a vacuum. Best of luck!

 

[Goro]

I’m currently a Freshman at a small state school in the South; and due to family issues I have flunked out my first semester. Initially, my grades were stellar but as time passed a bunch of problems in my home life surfaced and I found it hard to focus on my studies. On the drop date I withdrew from one class thinking that a decreased course load would ease things a bit but ultimately I came out of this with 4 F’s and a W. My plan is to take the Spring semester off to recoup mentally then reenroll for the Fall to retake my failed courses. Is this my best course of action?

YES. And there are plenty of med schools that reward reinvention (and punish poor choice making, like staying in school when you are not capable of your best.