<p>So I kind of need advice to bounce back from a bad semester (first semester of my junior year). I recently got into a new major (speech pathology specifically) and didnt realize i had to apply to grad school. I currently have a 3.1 and the average gpa to get into a grad school for my major is a 3.8 (yikes....). </p>
<p>I did pretty well this semester with the exception of one class:
Intensive Arabic 1 (6 hours): A-
Latin American Sociology (3 hrs): B
Anatomy and Physiology: B
Intro to CSD (3 hours)- C+</p>
<p>I dont really know whether to repeat the class (it's the introductory class to my major and I dont want grad schools to see it and be like "C+ in junior year? Not good") or move on and do better in my upper division classes. I'm scared I wont get into graduate school with an already low gpa. I have about a year left before I send in applications. Staying an extra semester isnt really an option because I am too far ahead in hours (and I dont want to wait another year to apply for grad schools)</p>
<p>Presumably there are more competitive and less competitive grad schools. Check out the less competitive ones. Simultaneously while you’re applying for grad school, apply for jobs. There’s more to grad school admissions than just GPA and GRE but considering you just changed your major I don’t know how much you can say about research and projects you’ve done and that can be a big killer. </p>
<p>What do you mean you didn’t realize you had to apply to grad school? You thought it was automatic or you thought it wasn’t necessary for a job in your field?</p>
<p>My understanding is that speech pathology is a very competitive field, and that a master’s degree is necessary for certification in most jurisdictions. Also, it’s pretty common to take a year or two between college and graduate school and do things to show commitment to the field.</p>
<p>What’s the appeal of speech pathology and do you have any insight into the grade?</p>
<p>If you found the intro class a slog, couldn’t motivate yourself to do better, etc. is your subconscious telling you something about your interest in the field?</p>
<p>You have a red flag in your post- not realizing that you’d need to apply to grad school. So let us know how deep and knowledge based your interest in the field is.</p>
<p>I did the math recently and plan on getting A’s in the rest of my upper division courses. The most i can pull my gpa up to is about a 3.4/3.5 by the end of this whole year.</p>
<p>Also to clarify, not every school has a 3.8 average for masters acceptance. Most accept above a 3.0</p>
<p>I haven’t done any research so far but I did shadow a speech pathologist for a whole week and am doing 25 observation hours/research this semester. I have about a whole year to get research i</p>
<p>As for the C+, I wasnt very motivated to go to class and was much more busier with Arabic 1.</p>
<p>Hmmm, are you checking what you need to be a speech pathologist in places where Arabic is spoken (Arab countries, Israel, Somalia, Eritrea, Chad, Michigan)? However, Arabic has many spoken dialects.</p>
<p>I actually lived abroad in the middle east so thats a place. And for some earlier postings, I dindt realize I would need to go to graduate school and when I did, I never expected it to be quite high. Its my fault for not realizing this earlier, but I recently got into the major.</p>
<p>I’m curious as to why you’re doing speech path in the first place, if you got a C+ in the class and don’t seem particularly dedicated. My roommate is a speech path major and the classes only get harder as you go, and people get dropped every term from the major for lack of dedication and effort. They’re also encouraged to look at grad schools and get clinical hours starting their sophomore year. I would reconsider your major TBH.</p>
<p>I don’t understand how you got into this major without knowing that you need grad school! This means that you either never thought about grad school or wanted to take the easy way out but didn’t get so lucky! I think you should honestly stay another semester & get those grades up. Or graduate with a BA, get a job and go back to school for the classes you didn’t do so good in so you gain work experience and then have a better chance of getting into grad school.</p>
<p>Everything we miss in college is our fault even if its not! We have to take responsibility for it! I got a C in my first upper level accounting course and an I in the other not because I didn’t try but because I didn’t do my research thinking it was a breeze like lower level accounting courses. So, yes it is my fault but I am still proud of myself that manage to pass the upper level courses without necessary preparation over the year & majority students drop the major bc they are afraid of failure but I know that failure will make you more successful than a straight A student! So, if this is what you want now don’t quit & try to find a solution. My problem I found was not the material but the amount of material & my schedule did not work for me.</p>
<p>I can understand that Arabic could have been a big time sucker - my younger son blames it for most of his less than perfect grades. His solution has been to take even more Arabic! </p>
<p>But on to your problem. The C is a problem. It would have been a problem even if grad school weren’t in the picture. You can’t get C’s in your core courses and expect to be looked on favorably by anybody hiring you and increasingly people are asking for transcripts and GPAs for first hires. If you really can get A’s from now on, you’re probably fine, but if you can’t you may have chosen the wrong major.</p>
<p>Also, I have an A and 3 B’s in my other CSD courses (The B is upper division anatomy) I was just wondering if I should repeat the class or not. I’m kind of torn between graduating on time and if I can do it. All I need is advice on that, it is too late to realize why I didnt ponder about my future before and I need to look at the future. Thank you to everyone for your advice</p>