<p>I am worried that my stepdaughter will be placed on academic probation unless her grades improve on her final exams. Her midterm report shows 3 D's and an F - I do not know the other 2 grades. Before the midterm's she had an overall GPA of 2.3 (23 earned credit hours) and 54 points. I know there is a way to figure out what grades she will need to pull out of this slump. She is a sophmore and has not declared a major yet, which could also be a problem as I think she needs a 2.5 in those courses. So far it looks like she will have to repeat at least 2 if not 3 of those. She needs an overall 2.0 GPA to not go on probation. The reason codes on these grades are poor test scores, failure to attend class, and not turning in required assignments. I am afraid she is in over her head.</p>
<p>if she takes the same number of credits for the second semester she would need a 2.7 to average out to a 2.5, have you asked her why her grades are slipping? if its just because shes not focused or partying too much a call from home could help her realize she needs to wake up and start going to class and doing the work</p>
<p>It sounds that your stepdaughter has far more serious problems than facing probation, and these need to be addressed. Failure to attend classes and to turn in required assignments are a signs of serious trouble. Maybe she is partying too much; maybe she is going through some emotional problems that make it impossible for her to drag herself out of bed and attend classes or do the work. Whatever the case, it might be worth looking into her taking a leave, attending to her problems and return to college once these problems have been addressed and she is ready and able to commit to her studies.</p>
<p>Grandmas - It certainly sounds that your concerns are very wll grounded by the reports you have received. Has she any history of academic problems in the past?? </p>
<p>My concerns would be - what is she actually doing at college - she is obviously not attending classes - which means not handing in work - which means she is not taking tests or doing very poorly on them if she even attempts to take them. (At least you have been made aware of something going on that is effecting her school/grades.)</p>
<p>My first reaction would be to have a sit-down with her - ASAP - like TODAY!!! Find out what is going on - and be blunt and don't take a blow off by her - is she drinking - partying - drugs - depressed - too much social life in general??? Ask why she is NOT going to class and handing in work assignments. There are answers there somewhere. Then work out a plan - and be really firm of what you expect from her. I think if you are contributing to her education in any way - you have every right to have expectations of her. Also - you say she is your step-daughter - include dad in this also - but you need to do something NOW.</p>
<p>As far as academic probation - some schools will give them a semester chance to improve - and some schools will not invite them back for the next semester at all. Re-taking courses for grade replacement is one way - but the final grade stands even if it is worse than the original - and credit is only given once for that course.</p>
<p>Academic probation is pretty tough place to be - but it can be overcome. It takes the student applying themselves and setting limits and goals on their college life to achieve it. Something is amis with this girl - and you need to find out what it is in order to get her back on the right trac. Good Luck</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. To get a 2.7 wouldn't that have to be C+ and or B's in each of those courses?? Is that even possible at this point? When she was home on spring break she blamed the instructors for not being clear in what they wanted and in one case because her e mail was not working and that is how one instructor gave assignments. Go figure. I personally think she has other interest, maybe a boyfriend. I feel bad that she is slipping so fast.</p>
<p>A 2.7 would be a B minus.</p>
<p>Having been on academic probation my own freshman year and having taught college , my guess is that your stepdaughter is partying too much.</p>
<p>That's typically the reason for grades to take that kind of dive. What needs to be done is for your stepdaughter to take action -- to go to class, use any tutoring services that are available, to talk to her professors, and to do her work. </p>
<p>You can ask her bluntly what has caused her grade problems. Do not accept things like, "The professors are crazy," "Their grading makes no sense," "I don't know what is wrong." She does know what's wrong, but may try to cover it up.</p>
<p>I also advise you and her father to make it very clear that her grades and her continued presence in college are her responsibility. If she flunks classes, she, not you will pay for her making them up. If she flunks out, she, not you will either find and pay for a different college for her to go to or if she chooses to live at home, she'll be working fulltime, paying rent and following your house rules.</p>
<p>The only other thing that possibly could be going on is depression. If so, then she would need psychological and possibly medical treatment, both of which she probably can get on campus. I had a student who had a major problem with depression, used medication and the counseling services, and managed to pass most of her classes. A couple of other students, though, had obvious major problems with depression, but refused to use the counseling center, and instead somehow expected that I'd excuse their bad grades because they were depressed.</p>
<p>That didn't happen. In one of those student's cases, I noticed, too, that despite his depression, he seemed to have no difficulty making it to major social events on campuses that were hours away.</p>
<p>As is the case with everyone, depression also can be fueled by drug or alcohol use.</p>
<p>Incidentally, your stepdaughter's grades are so bad that some colleges would kick her out for at least a semester. Academic probation may be the least of her worries. She, though, needs to check into the college's policies and what her options are, including options available to raise her grades.</p>
<p>Gosh I am sure learning a lot here. The thing is, she lives in another state with her mother, who picked this all girl private Catholic school for her to go to, which is in another state than her home. </p>
<p>She always had trouble with grades in high school, she barely got into this college. She really is a good girl so I don't know about the parties, although she has started smoking, and I know her mother called us upset because she found condoms in her purse. I guess she may not be the girl we knew from high school.</p>
<p>We do pay a lot of money for her to go to this school, our half is $15,000 a semester. </p>
<p>Do you think it will even matter then what we say to her? Her and I have always had a good relationship though. I am over 60 now and it has been a long long time since I raised my 3 girls. Two of them graduated from college but they were honor students so I never had to deal with poor grades.</p>
<p>Oops!!! I meant $15,000 per year. It cost over $30,000 a year to go there.</p>
<p>An intervention might well be in order. You might want to research what the consequence of those grades are at her school by looking up "academic probation" and "expulsion" on the website. I recall one very upset mother on a thread who was asked to clean out her son's room right after break because he had fallen below the school's threshhold for staying. I remember thinking how I did not know what my kids' school rules were for that'--how low can you go?-- and we're not talking limbo here.</p>
<p>My son flunked a 5 credit course one term and got a D and C on a 4 and 3 credit course correspondingly. Had he not been taking a two credit seminar he aced, he would have had some consequences as he was exactly at 12 credits which is the threshhold for being a full time student. He had a B in another 3 credit course. He would have lost his athletic priviliges and there could have been insurance issues. His merit award was also at risk. He also fell behind schedule for graduating. He ended up retaking the computer course over the summer,over two terms (6 credits) and taking 6 other credits as well during that summer of hell for him. </p>
<p>But as NSM says, there could be many reasons for the girl's problems. Look and see what the school rules are. There are some colleges that will keep'em as long as you want to pay for them. Some will boot you at certain threshholds with no early warning letters. The reason could be depression, substance abuse, distraction, or unpreparedness. A friend of mine who has a very bright son found her son nearly failing out because he just could not get his act together with so much going on. ADD--in a structured Catholic highschool with Mama micromanaging, he was ok. At college when the organization was up to him, he just could not do it. He spent the summer at a psychologist and working out a medication regiment along with making up some courses at cc. The other possibility is that college just is not on her agenda right now, and may be a waste of money. Some sort of family conference is definitely in order. Good luck to you. Unfortunately your D is not alone in this situation. It takes a while for some of these kids to grow up.</p>
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The thing is, she lives in another state with her mother, who picked this all girl private Catholic school for her to go to, which is in another state than her home.
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<p>Is this the college? If so, I think its strange that the mother picked the school and not the daughter. That could be the problem itself--maybe she did not want to go to college. Does her mother know about her grade problems?</p>
<p>I looked for all that information on the school's website and it appears they will let her continue on probation with anything under the 2.0 GPA and she has two semesters to get the grades up, however she will have to repeat at least 2 if not 3 courses as they are required for her major. She will loose the chance for any financial aid for next year. </p>
<p>I honestly do not know if her mother knows about the grades but she should, as the school sends a letter to the parents regarding any grades below a C status. </p>
<p>I guess we will have to wait and see what she does on her Final Exams, she will not return her phone calls.</p>
<p>This was not her school of choice, but she was pretty much forced to go, she wanted to go to a University close to home but she couldn't get in because of her low grades from high school. This school has (selective admission.) Whatever that means.</p>
<p>And hey, thanks for all the responses, you guys are great!!</p>
<p>Your stepdaughter is fortunate to have you involved in and concerned with her college life. Is your relationship with her close enough that she would value your caring and support? If so, a non-accusatory "I'm really worried about you" talk could be helpful. Remember that probation is usually a warning, not a death sentence.
In addition to considering all the good advice already posted it might be helpful for you to explore for yourself (via the web) the college's policies re: probation and dismissal and also the resources for assistance. Having a number and a name to give your daughter of someone at the counseling center, advisement, or perhaps office of academic support may help her take action. Encouraging her to make that first call for help may be the most you can do. Good luck.</p>