Not allowed to retake C, but B+ is required for program...

[dndandrea]

Hi i'm in a horrible situation right now and would like some advice before I go forward.

 

I have 3 C's in general biology 1, general biology 2, and chemistry 1. I took these 3 courses during my first few semesters when I was taking general science courses and had no planned major to motivate me. I obviously was not prepared for these classes and did poorly in them. Eventually I figured out what my major was (physician assistant) and started doing MUCH better in school. The past 2 years i've had straight A's in hard classes such as anatomy and physiology, microbiology, genetics, medical terminology, biochemistry 1&2, and more... and I currently have an A in general chemistry 2.

 

All the PA programs in my state (except for an expensive private school) require all my prerequisites to be a B or higher. The school I was planning to go to used to require 3.0 OVERALL in science but they recently changed it to B or higher in every prerequisite. So these 3 classes have come back to haunt me!

 

I talked to the admissions office as well as an advisor (who also talked to the person in charge of transcripts). All of them told me I cannot retake any courses that I got a C in. I'm pretty sure the other school I was planning to enroll to for my bachelors also told me they do not allow students to retake C courses when I spoke to a counselor last year.

 

So what can I do? Is this reality? If you got a C in one course your first semester you're automatically banned from becoming a physician assistant or going onto any other graduate program that requires a B or higher? I'm lost...

 

edit: Yes i understand these 3 courses are major courses. I am a lot smarter now after taking several other courses though. If i were to retake those I guarantee I could get an A in all of them.

[dndandrea]

Hi i'm in a horrible situation right now and would like some advice before I go forward.

 

I have 3 C's in general biology 1, general biology 2, and chemistry 1. I took these 3 courses during my first few semesters when I was taking general science courses and had no planned major to motivate me. I obviously was not prepared for these classes and did poorly in them. Eventually I figured out what my major was (physician assistant) and started doing MUCH better in school. The past 2 years i've had straight A's in hard classes such as anatomy and physiology, microbiology, genetics, medical terminology, biochemistry 1&2, and more... and I currently have an A in general chemistry 2.

 

All the PA programs in my state (except for an expensive private school) require all my prerequisites to be a B or higher. The school I was planning to go to used to require 3.0 OVERALL in science but they recently changed it to B or higher in every prerequisite. So these 3 classes have come back to haunt me!

 

I talked to the admissions office as well as an advisor (who also talked to the person in charge of transcripts). All of them told me I cannot retake any courses that I got a C in. I'm pretty sure the other school I was planning to enroll to for my bachelors also told me they do not allow students to retake C courses when I spoke to a counselor last year.

 

So what can I do? Is this reality? If you got a C in one course your first semester you're automatically banned from becoming a physician assistant or going onto any other graduate program that requires a B or higher? I'm lost...

 

edit: Yes i understand these 3 courses are major courses. I am a lot smarter now after taking several other courses though. If i were to retake those I guarantee I could get an A in all of them.

[frenchy]

Retake the courses at a different college. Have you considered online course?

[frenchy]

Retake the courses at a different college. Have you considered online course?

[marktheshark89]

Just retake the courses somewhere else.

[marktheshark89]

Just retake the courses somewhere else.

[Timon]

You should retake those courses and continue getting A's. Then apply to those schools and expand your application to other schools maybe out of state. You'll write in your personal statement what went wrong the first time you took those courses, what you did to correct it (retook them) and what the results are (you got straight As which you're going to do). If they can't see past that then it's probably not the best program for you. I'd rather go to a school that looked at me as a person rather than just stats and numbers but that's just me. Best of luck. I know you can get through this!

[Timon]

You should retake those courses and continue getting A's. Then apply to those schools and expand your application to other schools maybe out of state. You'll write in your personal statement what went wrong the first time you took those courses, what you did to correct it (retook them) and what the results are (you got straight As which you're going to do). If they can't see past that then it's probably not the best program for you. I'd rather go to a school that looked at me as a person rather than just stats and numbers but that's just me. Best of luck. I know you can get through this!

[dndandrea]

Thanks for the replies. I wasn't aware that I could retake the courses at another school. Unfortunately all the other schools aren't local and cost a lot more. I guess i'll just take them at the university that I planned to go to finish my undergraduate and PA program.

[dndandrea]

Thanks for the replies. I wasn't aware that I could retake the courses at another school. Unfortunately all the other schools aren't local and cost a lot more. I guess i'll just take them at the university that I planned to go to finish my undergraduate and PA program.

[GatorRRT]

Find a local community college and take the courses as a non-degree seeking student.

[GatorRRT]

Find a local community college and take the courses as a non-degree seeking student.

[LT_Oneal_PAC]

you can retake anything, you just can't replace the grade, which is probably what your school meant when it said no. Getting a B on the second try will allow you to meet the prereq and apply, but the old grade will still be averaged into your GPA.

 

My old university would only let you replace the grade if you failed, which i think is BS for people who actually tried and got a C.

[LT_Oneal_PAC]

you can retake anything, you just can't replace the grade, which is probably what your school meant when it said no. Getting a B on the second try will allow you to meet the prereq and apply, but the old grade will still be averaged into your GPA.

 

My old university would only let you replace the grade if you failed, which i think is BS for people who actually tried and got a C.

[dndandrea]

Find a local community college and take the courses as a non-degree seeking student.

I'm at one of the top community colleges right now. Unfortunately there aren't any other close ones except for Tri-C by the college I was planning to go to for my bachelors. I don't think i'll want to make over an hour commute but i'll figure something out. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

you can retake anything, you just can't replace the grade, which is probably what your school meant when it said no. Getting a B on the second try will allow you to meet the prereq and apply, but the old grade will still be averaged into your GPA.

 

My old university would only let you replace the grade if you failed, which i think is BS for people who actually tried and got a C.

That's what I thought as well. I mentioned that I knew I couldn't REPLACE the grade but i'd like to take the course over again for another grade (assuming both scores get calculated in my GPA). All of them said nope, cannot retake any course with C or higher. It doesn't make any sense to me.

 

I sent an email to someone with the type of authority to allow me to retake the courses pleading my case. Hopefully I get a good response!

[dndandrea]

Find a local community college and take the courses as a non-degree seeking student.

I'm at one of the top community colleges right now. Unfortunately there aren't any other close ones except for Tri-C by the college I was planning to go to for my bachelors. I don't think i'll want to make over an hour commute but i'll figure something out. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

you can retake anything, you just can't replace the grade, which is probably what your school meant when it said no. Getting a B on the second try will allow you to meet the prereq and apply, but the old grade will still be averaged into your GPA.

 

My old university would only let you replace the grade if you failed, which i think is BS for people who actually tried and got a C.

That's what I thought as well. I mentioned that I knew I couldn't REPLACE the grade but i'd like to take the course over again for another grade (assuming both scores get calculated in my GPA). All of them said nope, cannot retake any course with C or higher. It doesn't make any sense to me.

 

I sent an email to someone with the type of authority to allow me to retake the courses pleading my case. Hopefully I get a good response!

[sartort]

First off, you aren't in a horrible situation. Take them again at the 4 year school you go to for your bachelor degree. It shouldn't be considered a retake there because you never took their course. Most schools have an online registration and you can always get a professors permission to take a course if all else fails. They will add you themselves and I think it will work out just fine for you. If not, enroll at that community college nearby to take them. If for some reason neither of those are options then you will need to find another school: online or move somewhere else. I doubt all three schools will tell you they don't want your tuition/fee money though.

 

I agree with what Oneal said too. There's probably some miscommunication about retakes that is confusing you. Have you tried just signing up for the class again? That's all I did when I retook a class. I didn't ask anybody, but I did check online for the retake policy. My undergrad school allowed one retake for grade replacement (although it wasn't replaced in CASPA obviously) but I believe you could have still signed up to take it again if you wanted, even though your grade wouldn't be replaced. They just won't count the additional credits toward anything. The only reason they would restrict this is if they have way too many students that are trying to get in (California schools may be an issue from what I've heard) in which case you can always move.

 

I also agree that you'll want to expand the number of schools you apply to for PA to out of state and why not apply to that private school, and when you do check to see if they require upper level for classes you've taken already. Some of the courses you mentioned (micro, A&P, biochem) are sometimes required to be 300/400 level. PA school is an expensive investment for most and very rarely can people "afford" it. That's why stafford and grad plus loans exist.

[sartort]

First off, you aren't in a horrible situation. Take them again at the 4 year school you go to for your bachelor degree. It shouldn't be considered a retake there because you never took their course. Most schools have an online registration and you can always get a professors permission to take a course if all else fails. They will add you themselves and I think it will work out just fine for you. If not, enroll at that community college nearby to take them. If for some reason neither of those are options then you will need to find another school: online or move somewhere else. I doubt all three schools will tell you they don't want your tuition/fee money though.

 

I agree with what Oneal said too. There's probably some miscommunication about retakes that is confusing you. Have you tried just signing up for the class again? That's all I did when I retook a class. I didn't ask anybody, but I did check online for the retake policy. My undergrad school allowed one retake for grade replacement (although it wasn't replaced in CASPA obviously) but I believe you could have still signed up to take it again if you wanted, even though your grade wouldn't be replaced. They just won't count the additional credits toward anything. The only reason they would restrict this is if they have way too many students that are trying to get in (California schools may be an issue from what I've heard) in which case you can always move.

 

I also agree that you'll want to expand the number of schools you apply to for PA to out of state and why not apply to that private school, and when you do check to see if they require upper level for classes you've taken already. Some of the courses you mentioned (micro, A&P, biochem) are sometimes required to be 300/400 level. PA school is an expensive investment for most and very rarely can people "afford" it. That's why stafford and grad plus loans exist.