@goldencub W’s should be completely avoided altogether, except in extraordinary circumstances; even C’s should be taken over them. 1 or 2 W’s can be explained, however, more than will be a red flag to many graduate programs. Even some undergraduate programs like USC (they discourage even 1 W on a transcript) will discourage them.
I think the OP is in a different situation, though. His W’s are not appearing every now and then as the semesters go by (this is a bad situation), instead, his W’s are together, in one semester.
In general, yes, W’s do not matter if one does not plan on going past undergraduate studies.
@RAHforHEE I disagree. W’s can be attributed to any number of things. It’s definitely better to take a B over a W, but W’s should definitely be taken over C’s. But you’re correct, 1 or 2 W’s isn’t much of a problem.
@goldencub Taking a C over a W shows that despite how hard the course was or despite how much easier it would have been to ‘throw it all away’ and start fresh with a W, that student was able to stick through it and complete the course. In theory, avoid all W’s.
I took a W in a class that I had an A in, for example, because I was starting a course at UCB during the summer and wanted to dedicate all of my time to it. It wasn’t really a difficult course, but I would have risked getting a subpar GPA in the UCB course if I took both at the same time (would have been ~6 hrs of lecture per day). It’s safe to say that that was the best decision - definitely better than getting a C in either. It’s not something I’d like to make a habit of, but it was definitely the best decision.
“Taking a C over a W shows that despite how hard the course was or despite how much easier it would have been to ‘throw it all away’ and start fresh with a W, that student was able to stick through it and complete the course. In theory, avoid all W’s.”
I think this is a myopic view of a W. There are just too many scenarios to reduce it to someone looking better for “sticking it through.”
An example that comes to mind (from one recently mentioned on here) is a young student becoming homeless while in school. Having a stable and safe situation in life is far more important than trying to stick through some class than taking a W. This can also easily explain a W.
In most instances, Ws are irrelevant for UC, which the OP asked about. USC sounds different though, and it’s something that should be considered if one wishes to go to grad school.
Most Ws can be explained and if it’s just a few, they mean nothing. Haas’ dean of admissions said they don’t even care. Obviously, though, if someone has 10 or something crazy it’s a big red flag.
Thanks guys. It is very good to know that Ws doesn’t matter to UC, that way I can focus on my study more and just keep my GPA high. Getting master is somewhere down the road but it is something later. Mmm, I think my Ws are expandable too since they are in 1 semester. Thanks guys
I agree with cub. Ws don’t matter – usually. Some highly selective majors might have issues, though, if the W is in a major required course. If so, it will be noted on assist or their web page. But almost always it’s OK. I would take a W over a C unless it was my last term, I was already accepted, and I couldn’t drop it or risk being under the minumm units.
A few Ws in CCC should not matter in terms of grad applications.
I got accepted to SJSU, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly SLO, UCSD, UCSB, UCD, UCLA, and I am waiting from UC Berkeley. Basically I got all I applied for so far. I think I may go to UCLA. I live in the bay for 4 years so I want something new from SoCal
@Lupinlupito Right on…just to add to this in case other students with a lot of W’s check out this thread in the future. I probably have gotten 9-10 W’s with 6 coming from CCC’s. All of mine are greater than 5 years old. I have gotten into UCLA,UCSB,UCSC,UCR,UCSD waitlested at UCI & waiting until tomorrow for Cal. W’s are not the end of the world
I have sooo many Ws and so many horrible grades. But I still got into UCLA, if you mess up for a year or two like I did but you come back strong and you explain your situation well enough through your personal statements it won’t matter much.
