suziep100 Posted March 21, 2011 Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 Hi I just received my marks from midterms I wrote, and I failed the midterm, which is 33% of my final marks. Even if my 1st midterm and final exam buffers my mark, the best I can pull is C range. It is especially frustrating, because I reviewed the lecture notes diligently, thoroughly understood everyhing, and tried all practice questions the prof provided to us. But on the exam, the practice questions and the actual questions were completely different. There were few questions that were extremely vaguely worded, and I don't know how else I could have prepared for it. If I drop this course, I will still have 9 1/2 courses by the end of this year, which meets the full time student requirements indicated by the University of Alberta. Also, while retaining this course may jeopardize my GPA significantly, I will end up with this year's GPA in the 3.7~3.8 range. Is there a chance my admissions will be jeopardized due to dropping this course? Say, if I am fortunate to receive admissions offers on May 13th. However, after seeing my withdrawl of this course, could they retract their offers? Thanks, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarathonRunner Posted March 21, 2011 Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 Do you know what the distribution is like for the midterm? If everyone did poorly, you may not be as bad off as you think. I know I had one midterm during my undergrad where not a single person passed the exam. There were still people, myself included, who ended up with an A in the course, because, comparatively speaking, we did just fine, even though numerically we had failed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suziep100 Posted March 21, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 Do you know what the distribution is like for the midterm? If everyone did poorly, you may not be as bad off as you think. I know I had one midterm during my undergrad where not a single person passed the exam. There were still people, myself included, who ended up with an A in the course, because, comparatively speaking, we did just fine, even though numerically we had failed. I am not sure what the average is, but I believe it will be somewhere in the low 60's (C range), which is pretty normal for lots of science courses. I emailed the prof and requested an appointment to see if there are any extra marks I can squeeze out of her. But here, I'm considering the worst-case scenario, where everyone did relatively well but myself. So if it happens that a C is inevitable to me, would dropping this course jeopardize my chances at admissions into U of A? Thanks, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HBP Posted March 21, 2011 Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 I can't see it being an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hushwawa Posted March 21, 2011 Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 I think it depends on what course it is, if it a required course, it may be a problem, but if not, it shouldn't be a big deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tnfifn Posted March 21, 2011 Report Share Posted March 21, 2011 If it is not one of the pre-reqs you are good to go. But it if is, you will need to have C- or above. I would recommend contacting UofA and finding an absolute answer before doing anything. Hope it works out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardiomegaly Posted March 22, 2011 Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi If I drop this course, I will still have 9 1/2 courses by the end of this year, which meets the full time student requirements indicated by the University of Alberta. Also, while retaining this course may jeopardize my GPA significantly, I will end up with this year's GPA in the 3.7~3.8 range. Thanks, Do you have another year where you have 10 courses Sept-April inclusive? 9 1/2 doesn't count as your full time year... but if you have a 30 credit year previously (and it's not the one you're counting on to drop marks) then you'd be OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloh Posted March 22, 2011 Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi But on the exam, the practice questions and the actual questions were completely different. At the risk of sounding like a douchebag..."Really? No way..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suziep100 Posted March 22, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 Yeah, I basically have close to 4.0 prereq GPA and I completed all of my requirements by the end of 2nd year. I'm in 4th year of my undergraduate studies, and I have taken 10 courses every year (5 courses/semester). This is the first year where I didn't take 9 full courses. The course I bombed is actually a 4th year/graduate level bchem course that I decided to take in order to satisfy my honours bio degree requirement and to "challenge" myself. Basically, what I am thinking right now is: 1) wtf was I thinking when I decided to do an honours degree and 2) I should've just screwed my degree and taken all easy GPA boosters this year, since U of A doesn't care about graduating with a degree anyway - confirmed with U of A admissions lady. (hopefully I don't sound like a douche but I'm basically pissed at myself for taking on a self-destructive pathway) Anyways, so the point is, should I drop this course? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Gosling Posted March 22, 2011 Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 I don't think you can make a decision til you know what the class average was and talk to your prof about it. Your best bet is to ask him/her where you stand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p_s Posted March 22, 2011 Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi I just received my marks from midterms I wrote, and I failed the midterm, which is 33% of my final marks. Even if my 1st midterm and final exam buffers my mark, the best I can pull is C range. Thanks, Given the timing of this post, the weighting of the exam, and the discipline, am I correct to guess that you're in enzymology @ U of C? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BONESAWS2013 Posted March 22, 2011 Report Share Posted March 22, 2011 They claim that a W on your transcript does affect your application. I would contact the UME to confirm ((780) 492-6769). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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