<p>I am a first year mcb major and messed up terribly my first semester. I got an F in chem 1a, an A- in 1aL,a D in Math 53, and a B+ in classics. There are many reasons why, I switched into chem 1a after the first midterm had already passed, I never really learned how to study for stem subjects in high school, and i got more anxiety attacks due to my rough transition to college life. But primarily, I blame myself for not taking action after failing my first midterm by talking to my professors. I didnt even know chem 1a had pre class assignments and online study guides until a few weeks before the final.. I did go to study groups for chem 1a though and while they were helpful in me understanding the material, i still had a hard time actually solving problems when worksheets were given out. I crammed like crazy before every exam. As for math, it has always been my weakest subject and i didnt put nearly as much work into that class as i should have, so i think i deserved not to pass. But I am really upset over chem because it felt like i was putting in alot of mental energy into trying to understand the subject only for my results to be so bad I might as well have slept through the class.<br>
I cannot begin to describe how ashamed and defeated i feel. I do plan to overhaul my study habits next semester, I am taking bio 1b and a bunch of easier breadths. And i plan to retake math and chem over summer.
I just want to know how screwed i am in terms of finding a research position in a lab and getting into grad school (or med school?). I have considered changing my major, and will do so depending on how i do next semester. I just dont wanna give up just yet. any advice otherwise?</p>
<p>Placement into Math 53 as an entering frosh implies that you got a 5 on the AP calculus BC test, or completed the second semester of frosh calculus at a college while in high school, which is hardly “weak” at math.</p>
<p>Switching into a class after a test that you presumably missed is a bad idea, and not checking how assignments are structured after switching into a class is also a bad idea.</p>
<p>Next semester, go to every class, pay attention to class requirements, and study ahead of time. Also, your GPA is probably 1.25 or something like that, which would put you on academic probation. You must raise it to 2.00 by the end of next semester or be subject to dismissal (see <a href=“http://ls-probation.berkeley.edu/definition.html”>http://ls-probation.berkeley.edu/definition.html</a> ). You may want to retake Chemistry 1A and Math 53 so that you can replace the F and D grades for Berkeley GPA purposes to get out of academic probation (however, the grades will not be replaced for medical school admission purposes, where all grades are counted). Otherwise, it may be more difficult to bring your GPA up to 2.00. </p>
<p>You’re fine bro, Chem 1A and Math 53 are pretty challenging classes, just learn from your mistakes, prepare well, and retake them. </p>
<p>Seriously consider changing majors. You said you never learned how to study for STEM subjects in high school. Your choice of major and career should evolve from something that comes naturally to you, not something you have to struggle to figure out. For example, your anxiety attacks obviously did not hinder your success in the classes you got an A and B+ in. Those classes clearly use skills that come naturally to you. My daughter (a senior in high school) plans to major in science because it comes naturally to her – she has never had to study for a STEM subject before (except a little for AP Physics C) and she’s had seven AP courses in STEM subjects. She expects college will be a little more of a challenge, but she knows she will be in an area of strength, not weakness. You should likewise consider a major that flows from something that you can do easily and naturally. It’s your gift. Not everyone got an A or B+ in the classes you excelled at, because it wasn’t so manageable for everyone – but it was for you, despite your difficulties adjusting to college. </p>
<p>Sometimes it isn’t just a lack of talent or skill that can indicate there is a better major for you, but rather that the work involved is intolerable compared to the work involved for another major. If science and medicine were really your passion, wouldn’t you have mastered studying for them by now, and be interested enough to have figured out what the course requirements were for chemistry? Are you trying to live someone else’s dream? Think about the things you really enjoy and excel at without prodding or excessive effort, even during stressful times like this past semester, and see if there is a suitable major.</p>
<p>Are you currently seeing a therapist for the anxiety? Do you know what specifically seems to trigger your anxiety attacks? Sorry if this seems like a bunch of personal questions… just trying to understand your situation better. </p>
<p>I am also a first year, and also had a rough time this semester. I’ve also gone through anxiety. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk about that… </p>
<p>May I also ask why you are interested in MCB and/or medical school? When I was applying to Berkeley, I actually was fully intending on going the path to medical school, or “as a backup” (I know, naive thinking), grad school. However, I slowly begun to realize that bio-related majors were not interesting to me, because the only reason I got a good grade in high school in AP Bio was because of how well I memorized bits and pieces, and on the AP test, I did not score very high because it was testing concepts. It wasn’t until the end of this semester that I realized that I’m truly not interested in bio at all anymore, and cannot even remember why I was interested in medical school. I was also in Chem 1A this fall, and I ended up P/NPing it. So I guess what I’m trying to get at here is… do you think you are compatible with MCB? </p>
<p>i plan to retake both over summer. will my grades still be replaced?</p>
<p>They should get replaced. I’m not sure about Math 53, because I’ve heard that if it’s not a pre-req, a D counts as passing… </p>
<p>There’s a 12-unit repetition limit from our office of the registrar page (<a href=“http://registrar.berkeley.edu/courserep.html”>http://registrar.berkeley.edu/courserep.html</a>). Just don’t fail more than one course in the future. The transcript will show that you’ve taken the course twice, but your grades will be replaced and probably no one’s gonna realize you failed it the first time unless they really examine your transcript.</p>
<p>Everybody deserves a second chance. You work through, you improve. No need to sit there and bemoan things and feel sorry for yourself. </p>
<p>What’s done is done. On to the future.</p>
<p>If you were my son/daughter, I would advise you to retake what can be retaken (to replace the grades), but to otherwise take as light a load as possible next semester to rehabilitate that gpa and ease into college. Take courses that are interesting to you and will not be stressful/overly difficult. Yes, this might mean an extra semester of college, or maybe a summer school course or two over the course of the next three years. </p>
<p>GPA is important, and so is mental health. Right now, you need to focus on getting off of academic probation, settling into school, calming down, recharging your batteries and refocusing. A semester of interesting and - yes - easy, courses can accomplish all of these things. </p>
<p>You are at an amazing university and can accomplish amazing things. What’s the rush?</p>
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<p>The first 12 units of D and F grades can be replaced by retaking.</p>
<p>However, the summer may be too late if you need to raise your GPA to 2.00 or higher by the end of spring semester, since you will presumably be on academic probation.</p>
<p>" My daughter (a senior in high school) plans to major in science because it comes naturally to her – she has never had to study for a STEM subject before (except a little for AP Physics C) and she’s had seven AP courses in STEM subjects. She expects college will be a little more of a challenge," @mommyrocks - I would not compare highschool courses to Cal classes. Expect more than a little challenge. </p>
<p>“Also, your GPA is probably 1.25 or something like that, which would put you on academic probation”
I calculated and my GPA is 1.73 as of now. </p>
<p>OP, a solid second semester can bring you to a 2.5+. Consider some hard work next semester as an investment in yourself. You can do this! Just relax and focus.</p>
<p>Just retake the classes and do better and it will be much higher than 1.73 or 2.5 or whatever since the grades get replaced.
Spending enough time to understand every single problem on the h/w is enough to get at least a B for just about any classes in Berkeley if that’s any motivation. Obviously I can’t tell you how to study since that’s different person-to-person. I did a very brute-force approach of spending 2~3 times more than other people on studying and cut a lot of other fun activities since I’m a slow learner and often unmotivated, but that’s the kind of adjustment I had to make to keep it up.
Since you’ve taken Math 53, I presume you got a 5 in BC Calc so it’s not like you completely don’t know how to study. No need to feel ashamed, just figure it out.</p>
<p>Okay, since most people have given total crap answers I decided to make an account just to respond to this.</p>
<p>Your grades are only replaced for “UC GPA.” On your transcript, they are still seen and most graduate and professional schools will calculate the failing grade into your overall GPA. Sorry. You’ll have to work hard to overcome this. It’s not as big of a deal for grad school as it is for med school (where it is pretty bad but explainable if you pull your grades together for the rest of undergrad). </p>
<p>Specific advice:
Try not to sign up for classes where you’ve missed things. Generally an awful idea. Especially if it’s a midterm. Just don’t do it.</p>
<p>People study different amounts of time for the same test. Figure out how much time YOU need. Especially for different types of classes. </p>
<p>Berkeley is rough. Don’t take it to heart. Just keep trying and keep your head up. A lot of people fail.</p>
First of all, breathe <3 . It’s the only way to relax and fresh your mind little bit. Now,think practically and go over what lead you to this circumstances. Do NOT blame yourself, life happens and circumstances can effect your educational performance. This definitely happened to me too.
I totally get you. My first semester was considerably not that great and very bad according to my own standards and left me quite depressed for a day or two,but then I thanked God that at least that I didn’t do worse than I had expected. You are thankfully not on academic probation,so you still have a chance to redeem yourself. So, don’t freak out just yet! You still have time to improve your G.P.A. ,definitely try to raise the gpa for med school as you need at least a 3.4+ gpa to apply for med school,so try to do your best and retake Chem 1A and Math 53 for sure. And remember, your new grades will replace in the gpa calculation.
You can take Chem 1A in Spring,but a few people in my discussion section told me that Saykally is not that much of a great professor and has a horrible curve. So, try to take the class over the summer for summer session or at a local community college ( I believe it will not go into he regrade calculation though). But, take it if you definitely can try to take personal circumstances out of your studies and try to separate the gap. Personally, that was extremely hard for me to do this semester,but at the end of the day try to separate your personal life from your studies.
For med school,you definitely need to buck up and try to improve your study habits and grades for sure. You definitely have genuine reason to go to med school and decided to join this path for a reason,so do not give and improve for the best 
Could I retake my classes at another uc school over summer and have my new grade there go into regrade calculation? Specifically, UCLA?
Yes, you can retake classes at another UC and have it count toward your Cal gpa.