When to explain Bad Grades in application essay?

[j-med]

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Hi all, I'm new to this board, nice to meet you all =)

So, I'd like to begin by asking a question about writing the essay...

Organic chemistry is thought to be pretty hard compare to schools in my area, i unfortunately got a B in Orgo1, still acceptable, but for Orgo2, I got a C+ in it. (Though for the lab grades, which count as another half- course--total 1.5, I got As in them.)

Also, for Chemistry1/2 got B and A-, Bio1/2 B & B, Physics B+/A, (p.s. for all my Major's courses (astrophysics) I got As.)
So I'm just wondering... should I explain my bad grades in those pre-med courses in my essay?

I think mostly cos it's from my freshman and sophomore years and I wasn't really sure if I want to be a doctor yet, and werent preparing well enough for those courses. How bad do you think are those grades? should I explain in my essay?

i'm currently enrolled in biochem, hoping to get an A to prove I can study medicine... but i wont really know its outcome till end of this semester.. but I will truely work really hard for it..
any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jiujitsuchick]

If I was writing this essay I don't think I would address the grades at all. I would focus on why I am applying and who I think I can be. You can't change your past but you can always show improvement for the future. I believe that this kind of thing would be addressed during an interview and in that case you can explain yourself *honestly* while still showing that you are better than what your grades may suggest. Good luck with everything.

 

[McMD]

I had an F in one of my classes freshman year because I dropped the course, but some computer error said that I didn't withdraw...I didn't (and was told not to) talk about it in my essay and I've been accepted to numerous schools. I went to talk about it in an interview and the guy cut me off and said "everyone messes up their freshman year." All other grades besides freshman were A's....so I think as long as you showed you've matured since then, they absolutely understand. Talk about positives in your essay...ie experiences that showed you wanted to be a doc or something of the like.

 

[j-med]

I had an F in one of my classes freshman year because I dropped the course, but some computer error said that I didn't withdraw...I didn't (and was told not to) talk about it in my essay and I've been accepted to numerous schools. I went to talk about it in an interview and the guy cut me off and said "everyone messes up their freshman year." All other grades besides freshman were A's....so I think as long as you showed you've matured since then, they absolutely understand. Talk about positives in your essay...ie experiences that showed you wanted to be a doc or something of the like.

Thanks McMD.

But then for the C+ for my OrgoII, I got it in the summer of sophomore year. And for the first round I took it, I even got a W for OrgoI Fall term sophomore year...

It's like, I still have an overall increasing GPA since Sophomore Fall semester, and especially my Majors' GPA have been kept at As, for my pre-req courses, my GPA is significantly lower.
Since my major is physics and engineering, that means my science GPA is still high, but then my pre-req classes had been not that stellar...

I believe it's cos when I had that W I just had a big move to live on my own, and when I took Orgo II I was involved in too many activities...
and generally for the low pre-req grades was because I wasn't sure that I want to apply to med schools so I didn't work hard enough..

In face of all these, do you think I should still not write about it in the essay?

Also, application essay aside, any comments on my situation(Competiveness for med schools)? ...or how bad is it?....
BIG question--- do I still have chance in Medschools?


(p.s. I have also many extra curricular activities, leadership, and will try to get good grades in a higher level bio class this spring and hopefully also get good MCAT scores...)

 

[drmota]

NO NO NO NO NO
you've got it all wrong. your personal statement is a chance for you to talk about your motivation for medicine and about YOU. don't go filling it up with bullsh*t about getting a C in orgo. i got a C in orgo my sophomore year too! i never addressed it and only got asked about it at ONE of my interviews (and that guy was a huge prick to begin with). if you talk about your grades in your essay you will come off as very one-dimensional. NEVER address your weaknesses, only your strengths. only discuss your C+ if you are asked about it specifically at an interview. nowhere else. believe me, i am a seasoned vet.
-dr. mota

 

[Ombatay]

I completely agree with Mota. They already see the grade, no sense in bringing it to their attention... What would be your justification for the grade anyway? If it was a substantially good reason, I'd say maybe it'd warrant mention, but likely still not. Excuses don't always come off so well...

You probably don't need to talk about a positive trend in your grades either but more likely talk about what really motivates you and why you want to be a doctor, probably moreso coming from a major like engineering which is slightly non-traditional. The admissions committee will see a positive trend if there is one. Don't fret about it, don't talk about it. You'll be fine if you can convince them you have the drive for the right reasons.

 

[Rafa]

Everyone's pretty much hit the nail on the head. When to explain bad grades in an application essay? NEVER. If you're applying with a 2.1 GPA because (insert meaningful reason here), that's different. But if you've just got a bunch of Bs or Cs and your GPA is still above 3.0, then use the application to focus on the things you did *right* - things which might not have had anything to do with the inside of a bio/phys/orgo classroom. But definitely don't spend the personal essay space (which goes out to ALL schools you apply to) defending the honor of your GPA.

Show them you're more than numbers.

 

[Chouster]

Just to hit the point even further, DO NOT talk about your grades in your PS unless you had extenuating circumstances that led to a God-awful GPA. I mentioned it in my very first draft, and I had my mentor read it over (who coincidentally was a former med school admissions committee member) and she tore it a new arse. To sum up what she said, the PS is your time to shine... on paper. Write something of a story, use colorful (but not over-pretentious) language, and put together a statement that really sticks in the reader's mind, because come decision day, that's going to help distinguish you better in the mind's of the adcom members. I cannot over-emphasize the opportunity for you to show yourself as a person who has emotions, the right motivations for going into medicine, and who is a well-rounded (hopefully) person. Talking about grades in a PS is a waste of precious character space. But be prepared to address your grades in your interviews, as I had some not-so-great grades in a few upper division biology courses and was asked about it. I told him that coming to college was a vastly different experience than what I had at home and I didn't know how to handle it. Also, that my overall GPA in college had a very nice upward trend. The interview is the place to address your grades, not the personal statement. Aite?? Cool!

 

[Ugly Boy]

What if your grades go down in your junior & senior years, heh

 

[Chouster]

What if your grades go down in your junior & senior years, heh

Oooohhh.. umm.... 😳

 

[Rafa]

What if your grades go down in your junior & senior years, heh

That's when you start elaborating about wanting to 'challenge yourself' and 'explore new fields', though you faced the risk of slightly lower grades. 🙂 Again though, don't use the PS for that. Use a military policy: don't ask, don't tell (unless they ask you in an interview).

Besides, they're not going to see your senior year grades. Plan this stuff out - if necessary, take only 3 classes a semester Jr year if those are the only ones you're sure you'll get As and Bs in. Once you shoot out that AMCAS application, you're a senior, and (as long as you don't flunk out) the grades you get from then on won't keep you out of school. I'm saving stuff like chem lab and bio lab for my sr. year. The next three semesters (5th-7th) for me are all about that steady upward trend, if possible.

 

[McMD]

Agreed. Talk about your motivation for pursuing medicine or the time you saved someone's life (haha), don't talk about your grades. They want to see that you are a compassionate person willing to do anything for a patient. The PS is when you get to exemplify this, the numbers will never show this...even if you have all A's for 4 years!

 

[Law2Doc]

I completely agree with Mota. They already see the grade, no sense in bringing it to their attention... What would be your justification for the grade anyway? If it was a substantially good reason, I'd say maybe it'd warrant mention, but likely still not. Excuses don't always come off so well...

I agree as well. To mention grades is to highlight them. You do not address bad ones unless you have a really strong reason for having gotten them (more than just not knowing you were interested in medicine yet) -- something like your month-long hospitalization for some severe trauma, or a sudden death in the very immediate family, or your needing to care for an invalid family member. And even then, I might not mention a single poor grade.
The only exception perhaps might be if you are a nontrad and have retaken all the prereqs decades later to rehabilitate an ancient GPA -- then I think you have to address them (but without excuses).

 

[j-med]

Thank you guys for all your inputs! 😳

I'm saving stuff like chem lab and bio lab for my sr. year. The next three semesters (5th-7th) for me are all about that steady upward trend, if possible.

You can do that? So is it as long as the pre-reqs are completed before matriculation?
Cos I'm taking Orgo lab now + mcat + 4 other courses, wondering if I should just save the lab till senior year to focus more on mcat and these classes.
(alternatively, i can finish orgo2 lab and take out one of those classes...) or just leave it be.
what's better?

 

[LucidSplash]

My grades/GPA from second semester of my freshman year were lower than ever other semester by quite a bit. There was a section on some secondaries (NOT THE AMCAS) I used to say "Hey, by the way, I had emergency surgery the first week of the second semester to have my appendix out and I missed like 3 weeks of classes because I was either in the hospital or home recuperating and spent the rest of the semester playing catch up."

I think in a case like that, make use of the place some secondaries have for "anything else you want to tell us."

 

[anon-y-mouse]

I have one really poor grade (in a humanities class!) and two mediocre grades in social sciences... all happened in one semester while I had some major family issues, and couldn't do a good job because I was away from college! I got A's in all other science classes and tried to maintain as close to a 4.0 as I could from that point onwards. It's an uphill battle, but you can do it. I feel you should only explain it if you have particular circumstances going on in your case. I spend 2-3 sentences in my AMCAS essay talking about what happened, but focused on how I became a stronger person as a result, and developed much better coping skills, etc.

The good thing for you is that astrophysics (since it's physics AND astronomy) will count towards your science GPA... for schools which screen purely based on numbers, that'll be great for you! I received several great interviews/acceptances - don't worry, just persevere.

 

[oneaat]

i had a year of less than stellar grades - i certainly brought it up in my PS. not in the sense of "i got a C because...." but in the sense of "this year of school i was involved in XYZ activity." if you read the essay while looking at my transcript it makes sense, but the essay itself doesn't explicitly bring up my 2.whatever GPA that year.

 

[McMD]

Yes, at my school I could graduate without taking any Org labs, but obviously they are required for med school, so I saved them until my year off so that I could keep up my study habits during my year off and I could also focus my attention on the classes that were required for graduation. As long as you complete everything by the time you matriculate...that's all that matters!!

 

[Rafa]

Thank you guys for all your inputs! 😳



You can do that? So is it as long as the pre-reqs are completed before matriculation?
Cos I'm taking Orgo lab now + mcat + 4 other courses, wondering if I should just save the lab till senior year to focus more on mcat and these classes.
(alternatively, i can finish orgo2 lab and take out one of those classes...) or just leave it be.
what's better?

It depends on what you think you can handle. Just know that you don't have to have every pre-req completed before applying; you just have to have them done before you enroll at your med school of choice. Good luck :^)

 

[crazy_cavalier]

Make sure you stress how incredibly poor a C+ is and how you are disappointed in yourself for getting such a low grade. Maybe a sentence or two about how you've shamed your family with that remarkably poor, inexcusable grade.