where to address bad grades in your app?

[unlit]

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Hi all,

Where in the application will I have a chance to explain low grades I received during college? Is this normally done during the primary or secondary application?

Thanks

 

[Pons Asinorum]

Hi all,

Where in the application will I have a chance to explain low grades I received during college? Is this normally done during the primary or secondary application?

Thanks

Don't mention them at all. Your AMCAS reported grade report and transcripts already tell that story. You need to not explain them, unless directly asked at an interview or if it is inextricably linked to your personal statement somehow (life altering circumstance that somehow both led you to medicine and made you simultaneously get bad grades.)

 

[Lil Mick]

I disagree with this advice. If there are mitigating circumstances (deaths of loved ones, roommate situation, divorce, drug addiction) that resulted in a bad semester/year/dropped out/change from pre-med to other career, you can mention it briefly in your AMCAS personal statement (set-back, overcame...) or on a secondary question about adversity/what you learned. If it's a bad grade in one class, I'd leave it alone.

 

[cowme]

I disagree with this advice. If there are mitigating circumstances (deaths of loved ones, roommate situation, divorce, drug addiction) that resulted in a bad semester/year/dropped out/change from pre-med to other career, you can mention it briefly in your AMCAS personal statement (set-back, overcame...) or on a secondary question about adversity/what you learned. If it's a bad grade in one class, I'd leave it alone.

Ummm....probably wise to leave to leave this one out of there.

"Don't worry about my D's in sophomore year. I was super addicted to crack back then"

Unless you were overcoming someones death, or a serious illness, I cannot see many compelling arguments that can help your case. Plus, bringing it up in your PS is only going to emphasize a weakness in two (rather than just one) areas of your application.

 

[slatermd]

There's a lot of advice in both directions on this issue.

If you have several bad grades within the same time period, and there is a compelling explanation for it, you could included this in your primary personal statement.

The only possible way this could help is if your explanation is legitimate. If your explanation is flimsy (or otherwise impossible to believe), or your bad grades are not isolated incidents, you will shoot yourself in the foot by trying to excuse them.

Some schools include in their secondary a prompt to explain any bad/inconsistent grades, which would lead me to believe that this should not be a main focus of your primary application.

 

[Lil Mick]

Cowme, I was thinking of a semester of 'F's' coupled with a criminal record (it happens occasionally) followed by 'A's' upon returning (don't know the OP's situation). Obviously, discretion is the way to go in that case, but an explanation would be expected in some part of the application. Same with a semester of failing grades or leave of absence following tragedy/divorce/pregnancy--you'll be asked in an interview to explain if it isn't stated somewhere.

 

[cowme]

Cowme, I was thinking of a semester of 'F's' coupled with a criminal record (it happens occasionally) followed by 'A's' upon returning (don't know the OP's situation). Obviously, discretion is the way to go in that case, but an explanation would be expected in some part of the application. Same with a semester of failing grades or leave of absence following tragedy/divorce/pregnancy--you'll be asked in an interview to explain if it isn't stated somewhere.

I can't see any situation where pointing out a criminal record or being addicted to drugs could benefit you.

Bringing up one red flag to cover another only makes matters worse.

example:
Girl who you want to sleep with: "I hear you have chlamydia"
Response: "That's only because I have unprotected sex with tons of girls"

...some things are better left unsaid

 

[rhcarolina]

I did not address my poor grades in my primary or secondary applications. All of my numerous C's are from my freshman year. A couple of schools sent me emails asking me to explain my freshman year grades before granting me interviews. For the most part, I think it's important to focus and emphasize the more positive aspects of your application, rather than drawing attention to the bumps in the road.

 

[unlit]

Senior year, I got a C/C- in one class every quarter. It really brought down my GPA. But I do have a legit explanation (which I won't mention here). I'm doing a post-bacc right now and so far I've gotten all A's.

 

[RookTookIt]

Do NOT address bad grades in your primary app no matter what the reason. At a few schools, interviewers will have access to your essay/activities/etc without ever seeing your transcript, so why alert them to something if you don't need to? Many secondaries will give you space to explain bad grades (and some even require you to write an essay on it if you have any Cs). I would wait until then to even mention it.

 

[Notsobs]

I think most schools expect applicants to have at least one or two bad grades (below a B). If you have a consistent record of bad grades and there is a legitimate explanation for it, then mention it in your application. But if you only have one or two bad grades dispersed randomly throughout your academic record, then it's not worth taking up space in your personal statement or other essays to talk about that.

 

[blehm98]

to sum it up:
you pretty much never mention anything negative in your application. Your goal is to paint as rosy and positive an image of yourself as possible. Anything negative that they want to discuss will be brought up in the interview. Unless you have extenuating circumstances (parents died, had to support family and college at the same time) followed by improval in grades you should just leave it out of your app. notice how in this case it not actually a negative to have gotten the bad grades, because the situation makes you look better

 

[apumic]

Same place you'd smear your pooh on it. I mean, it's basically doing the same thing. In other words.... DON'T! No need to bring attn to it unnecessarily. Unless there's a GREAT reason you got a couple of Cs one semester (and by great, I mean you almost died of a cardiac arrest the week before the final, ended up in the hospital for 7 days and were released at 8am before your 9:30am and 11:30am finals, both of which you did not get to study for because you were unconscious most of the last week and for whatever reason your profs were a-holes and refused to let you take the final late despite the medical problem).

 

[zonapellucida]

is it okay to have 1 C on your transcript??

 

[Signifier]

I have two C's on my transcript, one Sophomore year and one Junior year. All A's other than that. I am not going to mention these, but will they matter? (Srs) There is no "strong upward trend"; just a lake of diamonds with a couple decapitated heads floating around.