<p>I have not that bad overall GPA of 3.1. But i Also made very bad grades in my first two years in college. I made like 6 Fs and 5 Ds. I repeated those classes and made better grades in them, so it does not really hurt my GPA BUT in my transcript those grades still gonna show up (which is unfair i think) Thats why i dont even wanna send anybody my transcript. cause i think they gonna have one look at my Fs and Ds....and throw my application in trash. should i fear from those Fs and Ds?</p>
<p>Some schools will allow you to explain a bad semester if you have a legitimate reason for the Fs and the Ds -- like if you were going through some kind of personal crisis, family issue, medical issue, whatever. If you can make it a compelling story of how you came back from the trauma and worked hard, that might help. I think that some explanation is needed, or those grades really will hurt you. In a pool of hundreds, committees start by just looking for reasons to throw them out, so they can narrow it down to a managable group of 50 or so. And you don't want them to throw yours out for the grades. So try to explain it -- if you can. (But if you just partied a lot, I wouldn't write that...)</p>
<p>It might be especially helpful if you can get faculty to vouch for you -- if you have a professor who knows you well, and has seen you recover from those first two years, ask the professor to write about it in a positive way. That way, you're not the one apologizing and making excuses.</p>
<p>But yeah, F's and D's definitely hurt, especially after the first year. Make sure you apply to a wide range of schools in case you get rejected from your top choices.</p>
<p>thanks for advise</p>
<p>The worse think is that I made Fs is easy classes like music,History, theatre and two easiest chemistry classes. I did not keep up with those teachers. I made As and Bs in hard classes like Calculus and upper lever Chemistry classes (BTW chemistry was my major)...its just i messed up easy classes..and those teachers..i dont even know if they still teach in my school. I repeated those easy classes and made As in them. </p>
<p>Thats why i give advise to high school students that DONT MESS UP early years in college cause it all comes back later...like i have to deal with it :( I may never be able to go to grad school for my little mistakes ...ggrr</p>
<p>I received a few Ds and Fs during my first two years - and then I got serious and graduated with Honors. Now I've completed my Ph.D coursework with a 3.8 GPA and a grad. assistantship.</p>
<p>If you look at my other post (I've got a whopping total of two!) you'll read something along the same line. Never be afraid to apply - the worst thing that anyone can say is no. That goes for school admits, jobs, dates, etc. Realism is a great quality and you should be aware of what programs are "within reach", though. </p>
<p>I'll second that advice to prospective college students about not screwing around - if you're not ready to make a decent go at it, work and save your money so you can attend when you are ready.</p>
<p>RElax, you'll do fine!</p>