Dropping Grades in 2nd year?

[Guest 0T6]

Hey guys..

A lot of people do poorly in 1st year, with GPAs in the low 3s, but do a lot better in 2nd year, with a high 3 GPA.

My question is.. how hard is it to keep up a good GPA. If you had a 4.0 GPA in 1st year.. does that mean you should get a GPA in 2nd year?

Or is the pattern you do well in 1st year, you do bad in 2nd year, and vice verca.

Thanks

[Guest aneliz]

There is no defined pattern like that. Your GPA is entirely in your control...it is a function of the courses you chose and how much effort you put into them..if you have a 4.0 in first year, you are capable of getting a 4.0 in second year too. I'm sure that you were told that your marks would drop at least 10% from high school to university...did they for everybody? No. Why not? Because some people worked harder than others...if you did well in high school and worked hard in first year, your GPA didn't go through the floor. The same principle applies in second year. Of course there are common scenarios in which a person's GPA is radically different between first and second year....some people get smoked in first year, learn from their mistakes and really bring up their GPA in second year...other people work like crazy in first year (because they have been warned that university is really hard or whatever), get a really high GPA and then start slacking in second year...hence their second year GPA is lower. Your GPA can go either way...and it is entirely in your control. I will say that I personally found second year much more academically demanding than first year. In first year, the content is very much a review of OAC and you are constantly being reminded that it is a 'transition year'...believe it or not there is tons of extra 'help' around in first year classes and profs do go easy on you...In second year, the content volume increases, review time is over and you are supposed to have made the transition....so bye-bye to the 'extras' provided in first year. Sometimes these things together will knock your GPA down a bit in second year. However, if you aced the pre-reqs and you work hard, you can do very well in second year too.

 

Good luck!

[Guest UOMeds05]

I agree. There are no set patterns. As Aneliz said, everything is relevant, 2nd year is harder than first, as third year will be harder still. But you adapt. Med-school is the same: 2nd year has proven to be markedly more difficult than first and 3rd is supposed to be the killer. That said, if you work, put in the time and enjoy what you are doing, it is just part of advancing.

 

You may find your second year of undergrad more difficult but just keep at it. I found that even though it was more demanding it was more interesting because you are getting more specific in the area that you have chosen to study. I ended up doing even better with not too much more work just because of interest. It is important that if you are considering medicine that you don't let your second year marks fall too low, because they will follow you and haunt you longer than your first year marks... especially if you plan to apply in 3rd year. At Ottawa for example, in the calculation of your GPA, your second year marks are worth twice as much as your first and so on... You are in a position to make it count, so put your best foot forward. It will all pay off in the end.

 

Good luck.

[Guest 0T6]

Thanks guys.

 

I'm going into a program that I'm really interested right now, but I think it's going to be really demanding. I'm applying for a specialist degree in human bio and a minor in physics.

I guess the main thing is making sure I continue to do what I've been doing so far and not getting over confident.