<p>child received a D in a class not in major (all other grades are A's by the way). First semester freshman. What recourse does child have? Appeal or repeat the class and when? Feel he was treated unfairly and sarcastically. Had a C going into the final and felt good about the final - could have accepted a C, but not a D.</p>
<p>that rrrreally sucks. I’m not totally convinced a retake is worth it. It’s a class where the material is useless for continuing his studies in engineering, it’s a class that won’t help him intellectually if he repeats, and it’s a class that no engineering co-op/grad school is going to care about him bombing. A retake replaces the grade in GPA calculations… but I think the grade stays on the transcripts (know med schools see all grades, even if they’ve been retaken… not sure if that’s true otherwise). So, the only reason I’d see for a retake would be GPA purposes, but otherwise I think a D in a non-engineering course will be a non-issue for employers and grad schools… I know in grad science admissions, no one cares about elective grades–they only look at major courses and place more emphasis on upper-levels.</p>
<p>I have no experience in appeals, but I know it’s possible. Talking to the prof is probably the first step, but if this prof has been unhelpful in the past, maybe not going to be effective. From there maybe email the adviser, and maybe the department to try to get moving with an appeal. I don’t think an appeal will necessarily work, but it’s maybe worth a shot–and a lot better than having to retake an elective course.</p>