Withdrawing from a Class

[Shahin Sh]

Hi,

I am a junior and am applying to med school this summer. Spring semester will be the last semester on my transcript. So far I have maintained a 4.0 at a school known for its tough premed student body (Hopkins). There is an advanced graduate level course I am enrolled in, Bacteriology. First exam went so badly (83%=40% of the final grade). It does not count towards anything. I thought it would prepare me for the USMLE. I have two options: Get a 97+ on the final to get an A or withdraw from it with a W. What do you guys think?

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[COMED2468]

I highly doubt the .0x drop on your GPA will have any significant impact on your application strength.

EDIT: And don't stress too much about USMLE quite yet. I think there's a little bit of time reserved for that in medical school...

 

[Toutie]

One B will NOT hurt you. In fact it may help you in the long run to not look like some perfect 4.o robot. But...if you don't really need it, then it's your call to drop it or not.

 

[kraskadva]

Option 3: finish the class, take whatever grade you get and stop holding on the that 4.0 like smeagol and his ring. Nobody likes an obsessive, robotic perfectionist and *news flash* you might actually look like a more interesting (more human) applicant if you have a 3.99x than if you have a 4.0

 

[HybridEarth]

Don't you dare drop that class because it's not an A. It's actually a good experience to undergo prior to med school imo. If you think 83% is bad, wait until you get to med school and the exam averages are in the high 80s.

Also: a W looks worse than a B for admissions purposes

 

[blackroses]

Don't you dare drop that class because it's not an A. It's actually a good experience to undergo prior to med school imo. If you think 83% is bad, wait until you get to med school and the exam averages are in the high 80s.

Also: a W looks worse than a B for admissions purposes

I'm going to assume that's a typo, because I suspect that averages in the high 80's would be beyond thrilling to most med students

 

[Shahin Sh]

Thanks everyone. It seems that I should not drop the class. I will try my best to improve my final grade.

 

[HybridEarth]

I'm going to assume that's a typo, because I suspect that averages in the high 80's would be beyond thrilling to most med students

Wasn't a typo. Class rank is important for things like AOA, and it's a tough ladder to climb when average is that high. The margin for error is quite small.

 

[blackroses]

Wasn't a typo. Class rank is important for things like AOA, and it's a tough ladder to climb when average is that high. The margin for error is quite small.

Interesting. I'm usually quite thrilled when the class average on tests is that high.

 

[HybridEarth]

Interesting. I'm usually quite thrilled when the class average on tests is that high.

It is a good thing! The point I'm trying to make to the OP is that an 83% is nowhere near the end of the world. It is a number that he/she may (or may not) have to get used to during school, along with plenty of other students. Just trying to put things in perspective. No one will reject OP for getting a B in a class or something with an already stellar GPA at an extremely competitive school.