I just recently failed a class in college can I continue my current curriculum and retake the class at another time even though said classes say you have to have taken that certain class instead of saying you must have completed that certain class? Also what I should I do to make sure this never happens again.
You should ask your advisor. It depends on whether it is in-major or not, whether it is a prerequisite for something else, and the school’s policy.
More information required in order to provide a useful answer.
Is the failed class a prerequisite to taking a different class?
Is this required for your major?
Why do you think you failed the class?
In terms of what to do in order to make sure you don’t fail it again:
- did you skip a lot of class sessions? If so, don’t.
- did you go to office hours to ask questions for stuff you were confused on?
- how did you study for quizzes & tests?
- consider joining or starting a study group for the class
- go to the tutoring center on campus and ask for help
- ask questions in class when you’re confused about something
- do the homework
- consider taking the class w/a different professor next time
It’s a prerequisite.
I agree with other answers that more information may be needed to give much good advice.
I am trying to think of reasons that I have seen for a student failing a class.
One reason I have seen a few times was someone taking a class way outside of their major, such as an Art major taking a difficult Math class, and in a separate case a Math major taking a difficult Art History class. In both cases the student discovered that they were really bad at this particular very different subject matter. In these two cases the student agreed never to take another class in this particular “way outside of major” subject, and in return had their grade upgraded to a D.
Another reason is getting very sick. In some cases you might be able to have a class dropped from your record in this case (sometimes a note from a doctor might be needed).
Another reason is a student who just did not do the work. The fix here is to accept your F and next time do the work.
Another possible cause is a student who did not understand the prerequisites well enough. This can be tougher since there is work to be caught up on before retaking the class.
I had one class as an undergraduate student where it was a very difficult class with a very bad professor. I fortunately dropped the class before the drop date. It was hopeless at the time. Later as a graduate student I took a tough class where the difficult part of the math was very similar, but the combination of being older and more mature plus having a very good professor meant that I was able to handle it well (with quite a bit of work over a couple of weekends).
If the class is required for your major or is a prerequisite for other classes that you need to take, then you will need to find a way to do better next time.
Often renewable merit scholarships require maintaining a specific GPA. If you need this merit scholarship to make the school affordable then this could be an issue, depending upon how you did in your other classes.
One important thing is to understand why you failed the class, and what you can do differently next time (even if like the math student mentioned above, this just means never taking another art history class). This probably means attending every class and paying attention. This probably means keeping ahead of the homework. This might mean paying more attention to the prerequisites, and might mean seeking out help early when needed.
Another important thing is to remember that no one is perfect. These things happen. To a large extent how we bounce back from these disappointments will impact how we do in life.
I know quite a few people who have been very successful in life. Certainly many of them, probably most of them, did not take the quickest and shortest path to get there. We all deal with some issues along the way.
Just before hitting “reply” I noticed:
This implies that you are going to need to understand what happened, figure out whether you are weak on earlier prerequisites, and find a way to learn the material better. You probably need to talk to your academic advisor and the professor for the class to figure out the right path forward.
If it’s not too late to just change your screen name for this website, you should do so, to anonymize it. If it is too late, then contact a site administrator to get it changed.
If the class is a pre-req in your intended major, you cannot take the next class in the sequence right now, nor should you. You would have to achieve a certain grade in this class to proceed. Understand that this can happen to anyone, and they can be successful in the future, possibly even in that intended field. If you examine why you failed, and think that you can fix those issues that caused the failure, and are absolutely convinced that this field is what you want, then consider re-taking the class, with the best prof available, while getting daily help at the tutoring center on campus. You should plan a light academic load so that you can put a lot of time into this class.
Sometimes, especially with test-optional, preferential admissions, someone is admitted to a specific school but finds their chosen field at that school to be just too challenging for them. It may be that they had inadequate preparation in math required for college-level science and engineering. Usually, those students need to take the remedial sequence of pre-college math that is offered at some colleges. With a record of success in that pre-college math sequence, they may then be able to succeed in the math necessary for science and engineering majors. Or it may be that they did not get the foundation in higher level reading comprehension and academic writing that is necessary for success in the humanities. Some colleges have a basic sequence of pre-college English classes to prepare one for college level humanities classes.
Go see an advisor at your school. Talk with them honestly about what happened. If you need remedial help in math or English, get it. If the issue was that something interfered with your doing the hard work and putting in the many required hours for success, fix whatever interfered. Find out where the tutoring center is, and plan on making that your home away from home, meaning go every day for help.
You are not alone. This happens, and people who had this happen can still be very successful. Don’t be discouraged. Examine what happened, figure out why it happened, and get the help you need so that it doesn’t happen again.
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Go to the tutors. You need to understand the material and why you failed. Once you start with the tutors you should show some significant changes.
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