This.Is.Bad.

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thepits

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I just need to...talk. I'm not even using my real username because I'm embarrassed by this whole thing.

I just found out I failed advanced algebra, which I decided to take after a few years away from math so that I could take pre-calc. I got an A the first semester and, although my second semester exam grades were 84 and 88, I failed the final and so I failed the class. Now an F sits on my postbacc transcript.

I'm aware that this is bad, so please don't tell me if you can't do algebra you are done. I was just unprepared, I guess, for the final.

I quit a good job to go back to school full time. And I have somehow managed to f&#* it up.

ugggghhhhhhh
 
Why did you fail the final?

I don't think it's all gloom and doom for you btw
 
I don't know, to be honest. I guess I didn't adequately prepare for it. I figured "it's just algebra" and I had done alright on the first two tests. I just didn't prepare myself enough for it, being a cumulative exam. I emailed my professor to ask what he thought.
 
Nope...not all gloom and doom. I'll be in your shoes in a few months as I'll be quitting my job and I'm sure I'll stumble along the way. You goal right now is to re-take the class and ace it, so that it balances out to a C. The information is fresh in your mind, and you'll be able to figure out the concepts a little easier this time around, I hope. Keep your head up. We're all on your side here, and know you can do it. You've only truly failed if you don't get back up....so keep trying.
 
Anything is fixable...and anything is possible if you want it bad enough. I am recovering from a D In Calculus 1. I have NEVER received a D before in my life (undergrad transcritps span 25years). You know what that one D does to a 4.0? It murders it :-( Must keep going. Whats the alternative? There isnt one.

Retake ASAP and kill it. Stay positive.
 
I agree with folks that this isn't the end of the road for you. That F will slow you down, but it's up to you whether it stops you.

I had a problem with losing it 3/4 of the way through the semester for a long time. I still have a problem, but now I take steps when that 3/4 point arrives.

Learn how to stay focused on material that isn't interesting. Focus on the war, not the battles. Marathon, not a sprint.

Here's the typical routine once you're in med school, for reference. All of this is avoidable, if you can build the discipline. I'm not kidding - this is what all the M1's and M2's are working against all the time.
1. Beginning of semester, feel totally on top of your game, with unbeatable study strategy that looks reasonable and sustainable
2. First exam comes before you know it and you realize you didn't follow your strategy
3. Night before first exam, commence self loathing.
4. Barely pass first exam
5. Due to exhaustion from first exam, a day passes before you start looking at next exam, which is only a few days later
6. Same thing happens with second exam
7. Repeat for each exam and each semester unless you change your habits

Best of luck to you.
 
And to think I was almost in tears when I got a B in physics. I have moved on though, just pick yourself up, refocus and kick some A's. Get help if you have to man, tutoring is the best thing ever...if you find a good tutor that is. Especially in math courses. I have avoided them due to pride and I regret every single B I got in my math classes. It has f'd my BCMP up.
 
I know where you are at, and how you feel. It is at times like this when you have to take a long look in the mirror and ask yourself if you really want to be a Medical Doctor.

To be honest, I don't think any of us non-trads can make it unless we are willing to work harder than anyone else. Several years ago I basically reached the point where I realized I could not "relax" at any point in the class. Where an "A" wasn't good enough, where I had to shoot for the top mark in the class, otherwise I was just playing around with my time and money.

It is that sort of dedication that has gotten me this far, and I am realizing that even the effort I have put in so far is not enough and that I can still kick it up another notch...so I will. That is how bad I want it. I think you have that in you as well.
 
Shjanzey said:
To be honest, I don't think any of us non-trads can make it unless we are willing to work harder than anyone else. Several years ago I basically reached the point where I realized I could not "relax" at any point in the class. Where an "A" wasn't good enough, where I had to shoot for the top mark in the class, otherwise I was just playing around with my time and money.

It is that sort of dedication that has gotten me this far, and I am realizing that even the effort I have put in so far is not enough and that I can still kick it up another notch...so I will. That is how bad I want it. I think you have that in you as well.
Click to expand...

+1 👍
 
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Shjanzey said:
I know where you are at, and how you feel. It is at times like this when you have to take a long look in the mirror and ask yourself if you really want to be a Medical Doctor.

To be honest, I don't think any of us non-trads can make it unless we are willing to work harder than anyone else. Several years ago I basically reached the point where I realized I could not "relax" at any point in the class. Where an "A" wasn't good enough, where I had to shoot for the top mark in the class, otherwise I was just playing around with my time and money.

It is that sort of dedication that has gotten me this far, and I am realizing that even the effort I have put in so far is not enough and that I can still kick it up another notch...so I will. That is how bad I want it. I think you have that in you as well.
Click to expand...

Very well said.
 
thepits said:
I just need to...talk. I'm not even using my real username because I'm embarrassed by this whole thing.

I just found out I failed advanced algebra, which I decided to take after a few years away from math so that I could take pre-calc. I got an A the first semester and, although my second semester exam grades were 84 and 88, I failed the final and so I failed the class. Now an F sits on my postbacc transcript.

I'm aware that this is bad, so please don't tell me if you can't do algebra you are done. I was just unprepared, I guess, for the final.

I quit a good job to go back to school full time. And I have somehow managed to f&#* it up.

ugggghhhhhhh
Click to expand...

*hugs*
 
not over by any means. grade replacement works wonders on AACOMAS and it wont kill you on AMCAS either and besides that many schools will look at the whole picture and realize you have been away from school for awhile. I'm a current msiii with multiple bad grades (failed one class, a few 1.0/1.5s)
 
Thanks, ruiner. That's good to hear - and nice work!

And thanks everybody. I'm retaking the class this semester and will keep at it. Not ready to give up on the dream at this point.
 
Yes, indeed that is bad. I don't wish to rub it in, but it's definitely a black mark when you've left a job and still manage to fail entirely. However, people are right that you can recover from this. You need to find out why you failed at that level and address it immediately.
 
I'll also point out that as of right now, math classes don't count towards the AACOMAS science GPA, so if you're thinking about the DO route it will only touch your overall.
 
GUH said:
I'll also point out that as of right now, math classes don't count towards the AACOMAS science GPA, so if you're thinking about the DO route it will only touch your overall.
Click to expand...

To go off of this: if you retake the class & pass, then apply DO, the AACOMAS does not include the F in your GPA. You have to list the class & the F, but it does not go towards your GPA. I've failed more than one class, retaken them and achieved high grades... and I received many interviews this cycle. Failing one class is nothing. 🙂 But try not to repeatedly fail. :laugh:
Good Luck!!!!! 😀
 
TriagePreMed said:
Yes, indeed that is bad. I don't wish to rub it in, but it's definitely a black mark when you've left a job and still manage to fail entirely. However, people are right that you can recover from this. You need to find out why you failed at that level and address it immediately.
Click to expand...

I failed because I focused on my other work and assumed I didn't need to look back on the material for this course. I'm happy with the two As and two B+s I earned in the semester. Im not a *****. Just assumed I could focus my attention elsewhere. The school's policy is fail the final, fail the class. The rest of the semester in the course - grades included - would have been B+ without the final.
 
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