So I put on my application that I was going to be taking Calculus 1 at a community college for my second semester of my senior year to make me seem more competitive in college admissions. I’m already taking a full load at school that includes AP Micro/Macro Econ as my math credit and 3 other AP’s and 2 honors courses, plus I took a DE class the first semester of this year. This Calc class was taken just because I like learning and to let colleges know I’m dedicated.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a Calculus class that would fit in my schedule since it would have to be after 3 pm every day after school, so I took it online. This is the first online class I’ve ever taken, and it’s going really bad. With working 20 hours a week at a job (this part wasn’t an issue during my first semester) plus school plus all my other activities, I can’t really dedicate the time that I need for my online class. And I really am just having an impossible time learning without a teacher to help guide me and take notes from.
If I kept with the class, I could realistically see myself failing or getting a D in the class (which would be reallly bad because I haven’t gotten a B in any class since I was a sophomore). Or I could drop the class now and try to get some of my money back. This class was just an extra and will have no effect on my graduation or my school grades, but (if I notify all the colleges I applied to) if I did drop the class, could this have a really bad negative impact on my admissions chances?
I applied to schools like Tulane (accepted), GWU, Macalester, American, Brandeis, Grinnell, American, Richmond, Colby and a few more…
Any feedback about what I should do would be helpful. My mom wants me to drop, but I don’t want to jeopardize my college chances. Thanks
It may or may not have an affect. The only way to find out is to contact the schools you have applied to and have been admitted to and ask (and yes, you need to let them know). No one on the internet can give you a meaningful answer.
I don’t know if this makes a difference, but I didn’t apply anywhere as a math major either. Math is one of my least favorite and toughest subjects, and one of the reasons I took the calculus class was to try to make sure colleges thought I was strong in math as well as English (which is where my real strength lies, with a 36 on both english and reading). That was a bust, though.
D2 had a similar situation senior year of high school: wanted to take a local CC course, couldn’t find something that would work with her schedule, enrolled in an online course, and found herself overwhelmed. She’d already been admitted to her ED school. It appeared that the best decision in her case would be to drop the dual enrollment course and switch over to a high school only version, but we didn’t know how the ED school would react.
So, after a great deal of hesitation, she called her admissions counselor at the ED school and laid out the situation. The counselor assured her that she would not be rescinded.
Schools may differ, so if you really want to know, call the admissions departments. You’ll be anonymous, just another applicant. Ask if this would have any impact on your admissions chances, or if it would be an issue if your final transcript did not include this class.
Yes, I have to agree that this is probably going to be school-specific and you should call. Wishing you luck - sounds like this is causing stress in your life!