Need advice re another year or not

[Belle_MD]

Hi everyone,

 

Im applying to Ottawa U this coming September - for family-related reasons I'm only focused on that school at the moment (Im an Ottawa resident). I am mature applicant and I came back to U of O to do two full time years as my nursing degree is not accepted.

My GPA break down is:

1: (from 2006-2007): 3.7

2: 3.95

3. 3.95 (that's the way it's looking at the moment)

 

WGPA I believe 3.91

 

I have strong ECs (clinical nursing, nursing instructor, clinical research at OHRI, publications/presentations, much volunteering, founder/president of health related campus group, merit and community based scholarships, pet therapy) but my concern is really that my WGPA is not quite competitive enough for UO and Im wondering if I should do another year to put me closer to a 3.95 WGPA...

 

I really really need advice!!!!! Much appreciated!

[simpy]

I would think not for a couple reasons:

 

1) wGPA doesn't really matter too much for Ottawa once you're past the cutoff. If I'm not mistaken, it's a cutoff to get the interview then offers of admission are sent out first by interview score and then by GPA. So a higher GPA in your case would really only matter if you were close to the end of the list of people who get post-interview offers. Please someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

2) The potential for things to go wrong - you've done quite well. But if something goes wrong next year (i.e. death in the family etc) it could screw up everything you have worked so hard for. I don't think it's worth the risk especially given #1.

 

3) The cost of another year. Tuition plus lost income will cost you somewhere in the range of 75-100k. Not to mention the extra time you could be spending on extracurriculars. I'm not sure it's worth it.

 

It's obviously a balance - is it worth a slight increase in your chances to take extra risk of losing it all and in losing at least $50k after tax? If it were me, I don't think it'd be worth it. Maybe it's different for you.

 

I would also say that if doing an extra year adds some credential, or lets you get a job you're interested in, or is something you would find very useful, that would speak more towards doing the extra year. If that extra year is just for GPA, I think you really should question if you'd actually get much out of it.

[Belle_MD]

Thanks Simpy that makes a lot of sense and is very helpful. The ottawa resident cutoff is 3.75 usually but let's be honest no one is getting an interview with less than 3.89 usually! You are right though, it doesn't seem smart to go back another year and I do have a number of science prereqs to complete so I should focus on that.

 

Thanks so much

[loodogg]

Hi everyone,

 

Im applying to Ottawa U this coming September - for family-related reasons I'm only focused on that school at the moment (Im an Ottawa resident). I am mature applicant and I came back to U of O to do two full time years as my nursing degree is not accepted.

My GPA break down is:

1: (from 2006-2007): 3.7

2: 3.95

3. 3.95 (that's the way it's looking at the moment)

 

WGPA I believe 3.91

 

I have strong ECs (clinical nursing, nursing instructor, clinical research at OHRI, publications/presentations, much volunteering, founder/president of health related campus group, merit and community based scholarships, pet therapy) but my concern is really that my WGPA is not quite competitive enough for UO and Im wondering if I should do another year to put me closer to a 3.95 WGPA...

 

I really really need advice!!!!! Much appreciated!

 

There is a risk that you may not reach your intended GPA and could actually bring down your wgpa, you never know. The way I see it, your GPA is not low by any means, maybe lower than the average we see posting here but I don't think it's holding you back in any way. The stress of an extra year, $, and risk of lowering gpa, all for a 0.0something bump, I donno...