Do I stay in the class or withdraw?

[LoadingMe]

Whats up everyone,
First I thought I would explain a little about myself and what my short term as well as my long term goals are. My short term goal is to get into Nursing school and eventually get my nursing degree. I would like to move back up North and get the heck out of this horrible state Georgia. My long term goal is honestly to become a Nurse Practitioner and I understand that some people like to debate MD's, NP's & PA's but this is not what I am looking to do.

The reason I am posting this question is cause I have had a pretty bad start to my freshman year and I am terrified about my GPA. During this summer semester I decided to take Anatomy and Physiology part one along with Medical Terminology. The medical terminology was a piece of cake due to me being an EMT previously. Ended up with a 97% in that class and now I am just waiting for the teacher to finalize everything so he can send it to the school and I receive that A. The anatomy and physiology class is what I am having issues in not cause its a hard class but due to my circumstances outside of school. When the semester first started I was working full-time as a firefighter and even though I was studying I had to focus on finding swaps as well just to make sure I had the day off to go to the class. I can't begin to tell you how many times someone at worked screwed me last minute. Long story short I had a high B in the class and then the night before my third exam I got called into work and I had to make the choice to either stay into the class or resign from my job. The reason for this is cause it would of been my second absence and it would of put my on academic probation. So at the time being that I am 23 years old I figured I needed this job so I sent the email to the school to withdraw from the class cause I had till 12 that night to do so. Next day at work after withdrawing from the class, my job terminated me at 1 pm. So I drove all the way back to the school to try and get back into the class which he did let me back in my I am starting to think it was a bad choice. That exam I missed I had to take that day late at night but at the same time I had to take lecture 4 exam day later. I only got low 70's on those tests cause I did not have any time to study. This lowered my grade to a low C now and i'm really upset cause my grade does not resemble how much I know in the class which pisses me off. Not only did I lose my job and this got in the way of my studying but my Grandpa came down with Alzheimer's, my uncle died, I have to help around the house constantly all day everyday and on top of that I came down with a heart problem for a couple weeks that did not exactly prevent me from studying but kept me from studying the amount I wanted. When my Uncle died I ended up in New York for two weeks and I am usually in the hospital with my Grandpa about twice a week cause he falls a lot and faints.

The issue I am having is I only have four days left to study for my final exam in lecture and lab. In lab I need to know all the muscles of the body, the skeleton and skull bones, the parts of a sheep brain, Cow eye and parts of the ear. This is only for the lab and then on top of all that I need to know the lecture material as well. Its not hard but only four days to study is what makes it hard. I am not sure if it would just be smart to withdraw from this class and do it over cause I am thinking I would receive a Withdraw Passing. I am just so worried about my GPA and this class is three credits. On top of that this class is one of the main classes the nursing school looks at and if they see a C that will not be good. The only way for me to get a low B in the lecture is to basically ace the exam which is hard cause I don't have that amount of time to study right now.

What would you guys do? Stay in the class and see what happens and then retake the class or just withdraw and receive a WP? I'm trying to protect my GPA as much as possible.

I hope this did not sound like I was just trying to make excuses for myself cause thats not the case. I understand its all on me to know this material and master it. I just wish certain life circumstances did not happen as they did at this time.

Thanks

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[pamac]

If you can withdraw, do it. It's a no brainer. Most programs that will evaluate you don't have a formula for what to do with a W, so they let it slide, and compute your gpa based on what they see. I can't remember if dental schools have some score they average W's into, but that's not you, so don't worry about it. But A and P is a course you want a decent showing in. You are having what sounds like a legitimate crappy semester, so treat it like one and bow out, and do your best not to get a complex anount your academics. Summer classes are fast paced and can be tough anyways, then add in all the things you mentioned, and that's what Ws are for. From here on out, do your best to avoid racking them up.

The NP path is achievable with poor marks, but the RN school part is easier to get into it you have good grades. Every nursing school evaluates applicants a certain way, but I've noticed in all my time in academia, that better grades opened more doors than poor grades. Who would choose to be less handsome? Nobody. Same thing with grades. Deal with the hand you are dealt, but don't let it discourage you.

 

[LoadingMe]

If you can withdraw, do it. It's a no brainer. Most programs that will evaluate you don't have a formula for what to do with a W, so they let it slide, and compute your gpa based on what they see. I can't remember if dental schools have some score they average W's into, but that's not you, so don't worry about it. But A and P is a course you want a decent showing in. You are having what sounds like a legitimate crappy semester, so treat it like one and bow out, and do your best not to get a complex anount your academics. Summer classes are fast paced and can be tough anyways, then add in all the things you mentioned, and that's what Ws are for. From here on out, do your best to avoid racking them up.

The NP path is achievable with poor marks, but the RN school part is easier to get into it you have good grades. Every nursing school evaluates applicants a certain way, but I've noticed in all my time in academia, that better grades opened more doors than poor grades. Who would choose to be less handsome? Nobody. Same thing with grades. Deal with the hand you are dealt, but don't let it discourage you.

Hey man thanks for replying to my post. I emailed the school right now seeing if it is possible to withdraw but I am not sure if it will be due to this being the last week of school and its finals. I need to score an 83 or higher on the final exam to receive a B for the class which won't be too hard as long as his study guide is accurate. I completely agree that A and P is a class that is almost vital and thats why I am stressing so much over this. I figure if I do end up with a C in this class then ill have to retake the class. I know my school replaces the first grade with the second grade but it unfortunately still stays on your transcript and GPA.

Hopefully the class will let me withdraw with a WP or hopefully Ill do really well on this final. Honestly man the reason why I choose nursing though was cause my passion is fitness and I love working out but there are no good careers in that so I choose nursing as my second option. I still like nursing don't get me wrong but I am having those thoughts to myself asking myself if I am cut out for all this.

 

[pamac]

Don't worry about being cut out for nursing. Thats not the case for you right now. Right now you have some extracurricular distractions, job loss as well. Most of your problem involves trying to take a summer course while in a job that isn't flexible. I would have tried to do a course that was entirely online at the very least. Showing up to class is an antiquated practice these days with all the tools we have available. But in any event, there are tons of... intellectually challenged people in nursing, so I wouldn't be worried that you aren't up to the challenge. Getting into school can be tough, and sometimes getting through the crap the program throws at students can be tough, but don't give up. Certainly not because of one class. Just forge ahead. The older I get, the more I realize that if something doesn't kill you, then its usually not important enough to lose sleep over if you recognize your mistake early and learn from it. If you are going to screw stuff up like this all the time, then that pattern is going to cause you problems. If you are going to fix your mistake and do the things required to not do it again, you will do fine, even with a C. Make that your only C. There isn't a reason you have to get any more of them. You said yourself that there were some things that got in your way. Without those things, you would have been fine. If you get A's from here on out, anyone looking at your grades won't have to even ask you what happened, they will know just by the transcript of your grades. I think thats the kind of challenge that you can use to motivate yourself from here on out.

I took a really challenging class when I was studying biology. There were either 3 or 4 tests and a monster final. I bombed the first test with like a 60. I went to the professor and talked to him about my chances and asked him if I did well on the rest of the tests if he would drop the first. He was straight with me and said that he wouldn't drop any test grades, and it was unlikely I'd do well enough on the other tests to get a decent grade even if I did. He was pretty much right about my chances because even with A's on the remaining tests, I could only get like a B- in the class. I got A's on the rest of the tests and ended up with that B minus. The professor told me he was really impressed with what I managed to do, and said he would be happy to write me a letter of recommendation for a professional school. The B minus stayed, but I got a really good reference out of it.

 

[LoadingMe]

Don't worry about being cut out for nursing. Thats not the case for you right now. Right now you have some extracurricular distractions, job loss as well. Most of your problem involves trying to take a summer course while in a job that isn't flexible. I would have tried to do a course that was entirely online at the very least. Showing up to class is an antiquated practice these days with all the tools we have available. But in any event, there are tons of... intellectually challenged people in nursing, so I wouldn't be worried that you aren't up to the challenge. Getting into school can be tough, and sometimes getting through the crap the program throws at students can be tough, but don't give up. Certainly not because of one class. Just forge ahead. The older I get, the more I realize that if something doesn't kill you, then its usually not important enough to lose sleep over if you recognize your mistake early and learn from it. If you are going to screw stuff up like this all the time, then that pattern is going to cause you problems. If you are going to fix your mistake and do the things required to not do it again, you will do fine, even with a C. Make that your only C. There isn't a reason you have to get any more of them. You said yourself that there were some things that got in your way. Without those things, you would have been fine. If you get A's from here on out, anyone looking at your grades won't have to even ask you what happened, they will know just by the transcript of your grades. I think thats the kind of challenge that you can use to motivate yourself from here on out.

I took a really challenging class when I was studying biology. There were either 3 or 4 tests and a monster final. I bombed the first test with like a 60. I went to the professor and talked to him about my chances and asked him if I did well on the rest of the tests if he would drop the first. He was straight with me and said that he wouldn't drop any test grades, and it was unlikely I'd do well enough on the other tests to get a decent grade even if I did. He was pretty much right about my chances because even with A's on the remaining tests, I could only get like a B- in the class. I got A's on the rest of the tests and ended up with that B minus. The professor told me he was really impressed with what I managed to do, and said he would be happy to write me a letter of recommendation for a professional school. The B minus stayed, but I got a really good reference out of it.

Thank you sir for replying again to my post. I really do appreciate your encouraging words cause this whole semester while everyone was getting high B's and low A's I felt like an idiot. The reason why I am stressing myself out over this whole class is cause of veteran nurses telling me that if your struggling in this class then your not cut out for nursing and should just quit cause this is your foundation and its supposed to be the easy class before nursing school. If I do end up with a C then this will be my only C I can promise that. This fall semester I am taking English 1101, Psychology 1101 and Anatomy & Physiology part 2 with the same teacher. My goal is to get an A in all those classes next semester. Its going to be a lot of pressure but I believe I can do it.

Im kinda in the same boat as you when it came down to having a really tough teacher. His grading system is literally four exams and then one big final exam. The first three exams are out of 100 points and then exam 4 is out of 80 points. Our final exam is a total of 120 points. Thats why I calculated all my points and I am currently sitting at 299 points out of 500. 450-500 points is an A and 400-450 points is a B. All I need is basically 100 points on this final to reach that B cause he rounds up grades. I believe if i did the math right that its an 83 or higher I would need on this final exam. My teacher also knows what I am going through and what I been through. I believe if I were to ask him for a letter of recommendation he wouldn't even hesitate cause he has told me multiple times that I am one of his top students even though the grade doesn't reflect that. He looks at me as a kid who went through so much in such a short amount of time but still mentioned to keep a somewhat decent grade. Sir I wanted to say thank you for replying to my post and being so encouraging.

 

[NP 2 DPM]

Whats up everyone,
First I thought I would explain a little about myself and what my short term as well as my long term goals are. My short term goal is to get into Nursing school and eventually get my nursing degree. I would like to move back up North and get the heck out of this horrible state Georgia. My long term goal is honestly to become a Nurse Practitioner and I understand that some people like to debate MD's, NP's & PA's but this is not what I am looking to do.

The reason I am posting this question is cause I have had a pretty bad start to my freshman year and I am terrified about my GPA. During this summer semester I decided to take Anatomy and Physiology part one along with Medical Terminology. The medical terminology was a piece of cake due to me being an EMT previously. Ended up with a 97% in that class and now I am just waiting for the teacher to finalize everything so he can send it to the school and I receive that A. The anatomy and physiology class is what I am having issues in not cause its a hard class but due to my circumstances outside of school. When the semester first started I was working full-time as a firefighter and even though I was studying I had to focus on finding swaps as well just to make sure I had the day off to go to the class. I can't begin to tell you how many times someone at worked screwed me last minute. Long story short I had a high B in the class and then the night before my third exam I got called into work and I had to make the choice to either stay into the class or resign from my job. The reason for this is cause it would of been my second absence and it would of put my on academic probation. So at the time being that I am 23 years old I figured I needed this job so I sent the email to the school to withdraw from the class cause I had till 12 that night to do so. Next day at work after withdrawing from the class, my job terminated me at 1 pm. So I drove all the way back to the school to try and get back into the class which he did let me back in my I am starting to think it was a bad choice. That exam I missed I had to take that day late at night but at the same time I had to take lecture 4 exam day later. I only got low 70's on those tests cause I did not have any time to study. This lowered my grade to a low C now and i'm really upset cause my grade does not resemble how much I know in the class which pisses me off. Not only did I lose my job and this got in the way of my studying but my Grandpa came down with Alzheimer's, my uncle died, I have to help around the house constantly all day everyday and on top of that I came down with a heart problem for a couple weeks that did not exactly prevent me from studying but kept me from studying the amount I wanted. When my Uncle died I ended up in New York for two weeks and I am usually in the hospital with my Grandpa about twice a week cause he falls a lot and faints.

The issue I am having is I only have four days left to study for my final exam in lecture and lab. In lab I need to know all the muscles of the body, the skeleton and skull bones, the parts of a sheep brain, Cow eye and parts of the ear. This is only for the lab and then on top of all that I need to know the lecture material as well. Its not hard but only four days to study is what makes it hard. I am not sure if it would just be smart to withdraw from this class and do it over cause I am thinking I would receive a Withdraw Passing. I am just so worried about my GPA and this class is three credits. On top of that this class is one of the main classes the nursing school looks at and if they see a C that will not be good. The only way for me to get a low B in the lecture is to basically ace the exam which is hard cause I don't have that amount of time to study right now.

What would you guys do? Stay in the class and see what happens and then retake the class or just withdraw and receive a WP? I'm trying to protect my GPA as much as possible.

I hope this did not sound like I was just trying to make excuses for myself cause thats not the case. I understand its all on me to know this material and master it. I just wish certain life circumstances did not happen as they did at this time.

Thanks

Hi,

I empathize with you with what you are going through and life experiences is just that -- asymmetrical. My recommendation is to withdraw from the class, and just retake it. That way it does not affect your GPA immediately.

Good luck with everything and keep us updated.

Regards.

 

[LoadingMe]

Hi,

I empathize with you with what you are going through and life experiences is just that -- asymmetrical. My recommendation is to withdraw from the class, and just retake it. That way it does not affect your GPA immediately.

Good luck with everything and keep us updated.

Regards.

Hello NP 2 DPM,

First I just wanted to say that I really do appreciate you and how you understand. Not a lot of people would of understood, they would of just blown me off as an attention seeker or someone who is not really trying. So I just wanted to start this off by saying thank you.

When I called the school to try and withdraw from the class they notified me explaining that If I were to go and withdraw now that I would receive a WF so my only option was to stay in the class. Well currently now that the semester is over and I'm waiting for all my grades, I did receive a B in the lab portion and for the lecture I got an 85 on the final exam. Really only had two days to study for the final exam so I was pleased with the results but wanted a high 90. Anyways currently I'm waiting for my final grade for the lecture portion. If I calculated my grades correctly I missed the B by one point but I'm hoping he will not give me a C over 1 point. He knows what I been through and the circumstances I was dealing with. Im hoping he will round not up to a B. Im already studying the material for the second portion of the class so I get a head start on it. We have three weeks until next semester. I finished this semester off with an A in medical terminology, B in lab and still waiting for lecture.

 

[NP 2 DPM]

Hello NP 2 DPM,

First I just wanted to say that I really do appreciate you and how you understand. Not a lot of people would of understood, they would of just blown me off as an attention seeker or someone who is not really trying. So I just wanted to start this off by saying thank you.

When I called the school to try and withdraw from the class they notified me explaining that If I were to go and withdraw now that I would receive a WF so my only option was to stay in the class. Well currently now that the semester is over and I'm waiting for all my grades, I did receive a B in the lab portion and for the lecture I got an 85 on the final exam. Really only had two days to study for the final exam so I was pleased with the results but wanted a high 90. Anyways currently I'm waiting for my final grade for the lecture portion. If I calculated my grades correctly I missed the B by one point but I'm hoping he will not give me a C over 1 point. He knows what I been through and the circumstances I was dealing with. Im hoping he will round not up to a B. Im already studying the material for the second portion of the class so I get a head start on it. We have three weeks until next semester. I finished this semester off with an A in medical terminology, B in lab and still waiting for lecture.

Hi ,

You're very welcome , we all go through instances in life and it's totally fine. Good job on getting that A in Med Term, im sure you will do fine in the lecture portion so don't worry. As for the next class -- give it all you've got. Remember the goal!

See you around.