Should I write about 1 W in Secondaries?

[irisponsible]

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Title basically, since lots of secondaries ask about "being unsuccessful" or "academic discrepancies", is it better to explain the W or try not to draw attention to it? Retook for an A, 3.97/524. I slept through a midterm. Thanks!

 

[Med Ed]

Nothing has changed since you last posed this question.

Don’t waste their time or yours.

 

[MedSchoolPilot]

Might be better to address it rather than try to avoid it, especially since some secondaries explicitly ask about academic issues or inconsistencies. Keep it factual and brief, one W is usually minor if it’s explained cleanly.

 

[Med Ed]

An academic issue/inconsistency is getting a semester GPA of 1.7 because your mom got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

A single W is not worthy of one iota of explanation.

 

[Goro]

Title basically, since lots of secondaries ask about "being unsuccessful" or "academic discrepancies", is it better to explain the W or try not to draw attention to it? Retook for an A, 3.97/524. I slept through a midterm. Thanks!

Absolutely do not talk about your withdrawal. The Prompt is for F's,. A w is just that. And the being unsuccessful prompt is an assessment of your coping skills. Talking about academics is not a good idea, for that prompt

 

[astrophage]

I do think that if you have a secondary that explicitly asks you to explain a W, you should do it. Otherwise, I would not mention it. I say this as someone who also has a W.

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

No. With one W (non-science), I know someone who got into top 3 medical schools with two giving scholarships.

 

[LizzyM]

That's for people who had an entire semester of Ws. There might be a story worth telling there but there is no story worth telling about a single W.