Dropping Courses

[delirium]

So I dropped a course I was taking because I got a 70 on the first test and don't think I'll be able to do well on the remainder of the assignments and tests. I suppose that's reasonable. Only now I'm worried that my transcript looks suspicious. I'm taking one less course than I am next semester. I'm wondering if dropping courses is a common thing, and also wondering whether you think graduate school admissions will look negatively on my uneven course load.

(Also, I've been steadily in school since last summer -- taking a full course load, or at least some courses each term... I think that too may be catching up on me and I'm just getting tired -- or maybe I'm just rationalizing my choice to drop the course... I don't know.)

Any feedback welcome!

[tvgirl48]

According to my freshman Academic Advisor, it's very common to drop a course. I dropped my Finite Math class freshman year because I couldn't handle and all I got was W for withdraw on my transcript. I figure as long as you don't have a lot of dropped courses, it shouldn't affect you too negatively. But then again I've never applied to grad schools, so I really hope it's not that bad.

[debby]

Grad schools only look at your GPA, references and required courses. The number of courses you take in a term and how many times you drop a course are irrelevant. It's better to drop a course than risk getting a low grade in university. When you graduate and they print off your transcript - all of your dropped courses dissappear but low final grades will hold you back. 70% doesn't seem like too low a grade. I once got 53% on a midterm and it was curved up to be a B+ in the end.

[rctriplefresh5]

Originally Posted by delirium

So I

(Also, I've been steadily in school since last summer -- taking a full course load, or at least some courses each term... I think that too may be catching up on me and I'm just getting tired -- or maybe I'm just rationalizing my choice to drop the course... I don't know.)

Any feedback welcome!

i know EXACTLY how you feel. ive been in school for a year, taking a good amount of classes, and over the summer i took 11 credits of math science and english 2. i had forced myself for the whole year i was in school to get no les than an A for every class because i want to go to med school. all of that stress has caught up with me this semester, and this semester i have taken an i dont give a feck approach. i am not doing my homework, not studying for tests, and not opening the book. surprisingly im getting a b in math, a in chemistry, and b or a in biology, and all these classes are much harder...im sure ill do worse unless i get my act together, but youre right sometimes you just reach that breaking point where you dont care anymore i guess.

[pita]

Most of the people I've talked to at my school have dropped classes to save their GPAs. Actually, most of the people I've talked to have decided to do their four-year degrees in five years.

I don't think grad schools care if you take an extra semester to finish--it's more about the GPA. Schools might be concerned if you took ten years to graduate or something, but it sounds like you're doing fine on that front.

[delirium]

Thanks everyone for your responses!

Originally Posted by rctriplefresh5

i know EXACTLY how you feel. ive been in school for a year, taking a good amount of classes, and over the summer i took 11 credits of math science and english 2. i had forced myself for the whole year i was in school to get no les than an A for every class because i want to go to med school. all of that stress has caught up with me this semester, and this semester i have taken an i dont give a feck approach. i am not doing my homework, not studying for tests, and not opening the book. surprisingly im getting a b in math, a in chemistry, and b or a in biology, and all these classes are much harder...im sure ill do worse unless i get my act together, but youre right sometimes you just reach that breaking point where you dont care anymore i guess.

It's funny. Sounds like you've been busting your butt off trying to get top grades to get into med school. And once you get in, it's going to be more work. I've been doing the same (as I mentioned). It's funny that I've spent so much time living like a monk, obsessively focused on my homework, neglecting almost everything else. I feel like I'm missing out on so much else in life, while I study away and work towards some imagined future where I guess I'll be happier. In other words, I've spent so much time living in my imagined future that I've, for a while now, ceased to really live in the present.

I guess that's where the cliched (and rightly so, since most people deal with this) strategy of "finding your balance" in life asserts itself. I guess I've gone too far to one extreme, and sacrificed so much else.

Anyone ever see the movie "Click", with Adam Sandler? The remote control device projects his character into a future that is the logical conclusion of his workaholic habits. He's become a powerful CEO, but has spent so much time working that he's missed out on enjoying his family's company. Now he's alone, his life is almost over, he has "success", but hasn't really lived.