I am an upcoming sophomore in architecture school. I really struggled with my freshman year not only socially but academically. While I received A’s and B’s in my architecture classes I didn’t do well in other classes, ending my freshman year with a 2.9 GPA. I am devastated, I don’t know how this happened! I didn’t party or go out, I always stayed in and studied. this is extremely low and doesn’t know what I should do. Should I stay in school or drop out? Is it worth it to keep going or stop before I lose 50k for next year? I really want to pursue architecture, as it is one of the things i am actually good at and love, but dont know what to do with it being so competitive to get hired or go to grad school.
I would say you do have to look logically at the cost and the potential competition after school. But if it’s something you truly love, you will know in your heart what is the best decision. It is either you go into debt for a degree you love or go into debt for a degree you hate (or possibly not be in debt from another degree but have a job you hate). Do you possibly have any other passions that you could transfer to a degree if you are thoroughly concerned about the cost? You could also receive your degree and possibly teach. I am sorry my answer seems long but that is only a question you can answer. If it is something you love then the money will be worth it. Try and talk to a counselor for more information and do some research on the future of jobs in architecture. From there, decide if YOU think it is worth it. You have one life ma dude. Live it doing something you love. Sorry my advice isn’t the best, just wanted to try and help 
Congratulations - you’re getting good grades in a competitive major. Keep it up. As to the other classes: what happened? Did you not understand the material? Did you try to get tutoring, see the instructors outside of class? Your grade slip may be to simply higher expectations in college. It happens to freshmen.
Make a plan for next year:sign up for tutoring right away, find study groups to join, talk to your instructors starting on day one. Consider taking some of your gen ed requirements at a community college this summer, lessening your load next year. You could also consider taking just the minimum amount of units necessary to remain a full time student – a lighter load will give you more time to study.
In other words, I think it’s too early to think about dropping out. Take it one semester at a time, focus on addressing your academic weaknesses and continuing to do well in your major. Before you know it, you’ll be ONLY taking architecture classes and looking forward to graduation. I think you can do it.
College isn’t high school. You need to be more proactive about your understanding of class material, study habits, and ways to keep pace with the class. When you only have a couple of grades in a class, you can’t afford to let yourself fall behind in understanding the material. Go to the tutroing center. Go to professor office hours. Join or form a study group. Do all the steps listed in the post above.
You shouldn’t be devastated by your grades. You should learn from your mistakes and move forward. Many a straight A high school student has been rudely awakened by college. I think you will be ok if you understand that in college, you don’t have many chances to improve a low grade. And you dont just get to study architecture, so this coming year, make a real effort to stay on top right from the outset.
You don’t drop out of college because you had a rough first year. You pull yourself together and work harder. Many a student has been put in academic probation for far lower GPAs and managed to climb out of that hole. You are at least not in that position.
That’s not a bad GPA, especially for a freshman year. Like a lot of students, you’re struggling with required intro classes outside your major, while at the same time getting used to college. Plow through those classes, and things will be much easier when you can take classes concentrating on your major. Good luck!
Sometimes we just don’t put as much effort into classes we don’t care about, from a subject matter perspective. This may have been the case since you did well in the classes for your major (which, yay, that means you still like your major). Freshman year is a time to really learn how to “college”, and if you approach your sophomore year knowing what you did and didn’t do right this time, your gpa should improve. Note: doing it just like you did this year will probably NOT get you the results you want. Take the advise of those above and do not take your current gpa as an indication that you aren’t cut out for this. All it may take it just tweaking what you are doing now.
Do quit because you have a B average. The goal is earning a degree. If you don’t want a B average, use resources available at your school to try to improve. Besides, what do you call an architect with a B average? An architect.
If you can afford it, maybe consider taking a gen ed type class over the summer or winter breaks. My son is not strong in math and I was concerned that he would be wasting too much valuable study time during the school year struggling to pass a gen ed math class. I suggested he take it at our local CC over the summer and transfer it back to his home school. He is doing that now - 3 hours a day, 4 days a week for 4 weeks. With only the math to focus on, he is doing great, running an A and actually enjoying learning math for the first time. He will get the credits. The main thing is that, to get the credits, he only needed a C to get the credits and the grade doesn’t go into his GPA. He also took a writing intensive history class over the winter break.
This is a great way to get credits and reduce your course load during the school year. My son is dyslexic and dyscalculic so I worry about him getting overloaded. However, he is at a state school where the tuition is low enough that I can afford to pay for extra classes. Honestly, that was one of the reasons why our family decided on an in state school for him.
With that said, architecture is a very hard major. You must be a bright person to be earning A’s and B’s (which are good grades in college) in a difficult major. Don’t give your major up if you love it. Talk to your parents and see if there’s any money for a summer or winter break class. If you take it at a local CC, it may be cheaper. Just check that they transfer and fill out the appropriate paperwork.
Another option, if your school allows it, is to consider taking some CLEP tests to fulfill gen ed requirements. Also, if your school allows you to take classes pass/fail, that could be an option. My D took her second math class (first was math for future teachers) pass-fail. The decreased pressure allowed her to earn a B+. Had she been graded, she’d have been lucky to get a C.
Good luck.