<p>My son is attending a school that has a reputation for its tough grading. It's a top 15 school. Whether the reputation is correct or not, I don't know. In any case, after two quarters, his GPA is 2.99 which includes 1 C in 8 courses. How concerned should I be at this point.</p>
<p>8 courses?
no matter how light they are- that seems like a lot of classes to keep focused in- in one semester.</p>
<p>The school is on a quarter system so it's four courses each quarter.</p>
<p>OP said two quarters, not one semester. Four courses per quarter is not heavy.</p>
<p>A 2.99 is not great but it could be a lot worse. I'd encourage him to keep his GPA above 3.0 if at all possible, since that is a minimum requirement for many grad school programs.</p>
<p>Oh-oh, patsfan, I will probably be making that same post 12 months from now, cause my daughter may be going to that same school.</p>
<p>Are these all core classes he has taken this far? And perhaps there are courses then that are not exactly his forte?</p>
<p>We met some bigwigs from NYC who said that they actively recruit from this school, because of how brilliant and analytical the students are, and that they are quite aware that the school is notorious for its tough grading....</p>
<p>I would say to encourage him and ask him if he has any difficulties without sounding too judgemental. If he got into a top 15 school, I'm assuming that he did very well academically in HS. The grade may be just as shocking to him as it is to you.</p>
<p>I attend Cornell University where the average GPA is 3.0 (2.99 would then be considered average, not low). The average person going to Cornell probably had a 3.8-3.9 GPA in HS and will experience a 0.8-0.9 GPA drop. It's tough on both the student and the parent but it's important to realize that he is now competing against students just as smart and hardworking as he is. Success will be much tougher to achieve.</p>
<p>I have a 3.76 GPA currently. Recently my parents have started to question my study methods or how hard I'm working due to my whopping 0.20 GPA drop. It's frustrating the hell out of me (pardon my language). For 12 years, I had basically got through school on my own (my parents never showed too much interest about how I did in school as long as I got straight A's). I achieved a 3.98 GPA at a top public high school, 1550, 800, 800, 780 SAT I and II scores on my own. And NOW is when they start to question my work ethics? It's come to a point where I can't even talk to them about my schoolwork or grades. I hope that doesn't happen with your son.</p>
<p>According to my son, a lot of first year students take three rather than four courses a quarter. </p>
<p>Except for Macroeconomics, they were all core courses and with Humanities and Social Sciences taken together - intense reading and essays. The Professors actually think B's are good.</p>
<p>To norcalguy:</p>
<p>You're right, my son had a weighted 4.05 in HS. If my son had a 3.76, I would be "dancing in the streets".</p>
<p>His only difficulty is that he has to work harder and is getting frustrated with lower grades.</p>
<p>I understand that Cornell has a similar reputation in regard to grades as U of Chicago has.</p>
<p>Ok- I am familar with two quarters for a semester- and year long courses so I was thinking that he had 8 courses in a semester length period
I agree 4 classes for a semester is average- although perhaps a tad heavy if they are all full time courses inc labs. The quarter system however allows you less time to get off track but also less time to make up if you miss class.
How many credits does he need to graduate- is there a reason why is he is taking a slightly increased load? Not generally recommended freshman year. No matter how prepared you are- college is usually much more challenging than high school.</p>
<p>You have to take 42 courses to graduate which translates into four courses per quarter for six quarters and three courses per quarter for six quarters. </p>
<p>Also, the problem with quarters is that a full semester's work is required in 10 weeks rather than 15.</p>
<p>Patsfan: Unfortunately, that is a side effect of going to a competitive school. I went to a top public high school in Northern California and always thought I had to work hard then. Going to Cornell and doing 3-4 times as much work has made me realize how easy I had in HS. It is incredibly frustrating to do more work and get lower grades. In fact, I'm disappointed by my scores on midterms around 60-70% of the time (I always think I did better than I really did). Remind your son that his experience is not unique and that his peers are probably going through the same things that he is. </p>
<p>And make sure he knows it is okay to seek help. One of my problems was my stubbornness. I had been an independent studier all my life. I would rather spend an hour trying to figure out a problem myself than go to a TA or a professor. Now, I'm not afraid to email the professor or to attend office hours or to study in groups. It's simply more efficient. It's something I never had to do in HS but something that is absolutely necessary in college.</p>
<p>Pats
My friend's son who goes to Dartmouth, had a very rough first year, because he was ill-advised, and unfortunately selected courses that ALL required intense independent reading and serious essay writing. She said that he was never ever caught up with his work, or sleep. Now, he has learned to ask around more, check with other students on courses/profs/etc., and has been able to create a more balancedand manageable load.</p>
<p>Can your son alternate between 3 and 4 courses every other quarter ?</p>
<p>Common mistake is overloading. In HS you're taught to take the "most difficult courses possible" DON'T DO THAT IN COLLEGE</p>
<p>It's one thing to challenge yourself. It's another to go insane and get no sleep. My only B freshman year was taking the toughest chemistry course offered to freshman at Cornell simply because I could (since I got a 5 on the AP test). Bad idea. It was designed for chemistry majors/freaks and I was premed. I could've taken the normal premed chem course and gotten an easy A. Now I carefully research what I'm required to take and balance that with what I can take.</p>
<p>Norcalguy: Thanks for the advice. I'll definitely pass it along to my son.</p>
<p>Chocoholic: Fortunately, because he had two courses waived, he will only have to take one more four-course quarter after this year. </p>
<p>However, I'm not sure if there is a relationship between course load and grades. </p>
<p>Is Dartmouth on the quarter system?</p>
<p>A common mistake freshmen make is to try to get all their required courses out of the way. "How hard can introductory courses be?" Well, they can. Often,f these courses are in fields that are not their strengths. It is better to have a mix of introductory courses in fields that a student is not going to major in and requires different skills than the ones which the student has mastered and some more advanced courses in fields in which the student has some background and interest.</p>