C in calc3 - CS major

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

Hi guys,

I need your advice/opinion. I submitted my application a few weeks ago. At the time I had most of my major prep (Computer Science) completed, except for Calc 3 that I am taking now and Linear algebra that I will take in spring. And then all hell broke loose, and I somehow got D- on one test and D on the other. Now all I have left is a final, and if I manage to score 75-80% on it, there’s still a chance I might get a B.
Do not get me wrong - I am not struggling to understand the material. I am mostly failing due to unpredictability of my instructor, who lectures on one thing and tests on the other - probably good 70% of the class are in the same boat…
Right now my GPA is 3.808 (major GPA 3.77), I completed Calc 1 with a B and Calc 2 with A. Worst case scenario, I get a C in Calc 3. How bad would that look on my application? Am I doomed? I do not have any other Cs. Should I just ask for a D and retake it?

2

Others may have a different view but I would go for the grade and then note in the additional comments in the TAU the issues with the course (nicely, of course). The reason I am against retaking it is because they will have no retake grade to assess. They could admit with the provisional requesting the certain grade in the duplicate calc 3, or they could just decide to call it a day.

If you get a C, they may note a certain grade for linear.

Talk to the prof and see if there is any recourse.

3

@lindyk8 Thank you for your advice! I went for it, studied my butt off before the calc final and got a B in class. B-)
I am a happy camper now. Will concentrate on my linear algebra next semester and hopefully that will be enough to get into UCI or UCSD :slight_smile: