I'm currently a Senior in college and I'm a double major in Forensic Science and Chemistry. I would like to attend the School of Medicine at the Univ. of Pennsylvania to receive a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Science. I received a D in one of my classes. I had cancer a year and a half ago and had to go thru radiation treatments and medication. I felt really lousy that semester and did poorly in many of my classes. I have space to make up all of them for a better grade, but one of them is causing a financial hardship. I have to pay extra money for credit overages. And I will also have to register for my intership/research which could potentially cost me $2700. I don't want to take out a loan. I could drop this repeat class and register for my intership. The only drawback is that I will have to live with a D on my transcript which bothers me, especially since I would like to go on to grad school, an Ivy at that. My GPA right now stands at a 3.5.
2007-01-29 09:17:12 · 4 answers · asked by simplynxplicable@verizon.net 3 in Education & Reference ➔ Higher Education (University +)
Oh and the class was a Forensic Science class. It counts toward my major, but not completely relevant for what I'm going into.
2007-01-29 09:19:15 · update #1
Contact the admissions office at Penn and explain your situation to them and see what they suggest. Your story is very compelling and I bet you get a sympathetic hearing and some valuable advice on what will make your application the strongest.
I would also reconsider taking out the loan if necessary. If this is your life goal, a few thousand dollars will be a very worthwhile investment over time.
2007-01-31 17:14:59 · answer #1 · answered by peanut'smom 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't worry too much about it. It is something that you can address in your essay. With your GPA and a good story about why you had a bad semester, the D will be overlooked.
I had a horrible Freshman year of college (including two D+ grades in French). However, I did very well after that. When I applied to graduate programs, I pointed out that my Freshman year was atypical and that I should be judged on my performance after that. I was able to get into ranked PhD programs at Minnesota, Duke and Berkeley.
2007-01-29 09:36:04 · answer #2 · answered by Ranto 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Write them essentially what you wrote here, have a member of the administration or the faculty member attest to its veracity (one or two sentences & signature & formal title) in the presence of a notary public (many secretaries have a notary license) have it notarized, keep a copy for yourself and send the notarized copy, along with a hospital-stamped copy of your medical record, and mail it to the college.
You should have no problem getting in, in fact, should stand out among applicants for your determination to reach your goal. Best of luck in your future.
2007-01-29 09:33:55 · answer #3 · answered by Casperia 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well, just make sure you explain your situation to them
2007-01-29 09:48:55 · answer #4 · answered by soccer15rules 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋