Should I drop a college honors course? Would it look bad?

So I’m an honors student in college, freshman, and I am taking 16 credit hours, 1 3-hour class being an honors course. The honors coursework is heavy, which i absolutely expected, but it’s getting to the point where I’m not performing well in all my other classes, since it’s taking up so much of my time. I didn’t expect a few of my other classes to be almost as much work as my honors class. I’m almost positive that the deadline to drop a course without a W appearing on my transcript is long gone, so if i were to drop the course and get a W on the transcript, would it look bad to future employers or colleges (if i decide on transferring in the future)? Also, i just want to throw out that my current GPA is a 3.8 and I’m on the deans list, and it’s my college goal keep that up.

Are you sure its past the deadline?
I think 1 W freshman year, is not a big deal vs tanking your GPA.

@oscar63 yea, I think it was sometime last week where you could drop a course without it appearing on your transcript. The thing is, I’m the only male in the honors class, and if I drop it, it’ll just look bad since it’ll be noticeable to classmates and my professor, since she calls be my name already. So I’m in some sort of a pickle. It’ll be such a burden taken off my shoulders if I drop it (it’s a political science course and I’m an IT major so I don’t think I need to take the course since I can take it next year anyway), but I think it’ll just look bad upfront. I have plenty of time to decide though.

Idk if you care to read on but if you want to know how much I have to do before the mid-term, keep reading: this week, I have to read 22 pages, which is not bad, and then next week it’s 58 pages, and then 52 pages, then 36, 50, 34, and then 42. And I have to write a report on each of the readings. This is just from one of the three books we need to read from, btw. I also have a weekly quizzes in history, computer science, and a discussion for another book I’m reading in my English class as well as a paper.

It sounds like I’m making this up but I’m not and I put it on my life.

50 pages of reading in a poli sci class is not unreasonable.

Before you do anything, though, speak with the professor during office hours. Her perception of your class performance may differ from yours. If she thinks you’re on track for a B or higher, I’d do nothing, particularly if you’re just planning to take the class in a later semester.

If you do decide to drop, one W will raise no red flags,and the professor will not take it personally. Good luck.

@rymose: Are you willing to share the course name or title ?

Is it unusual for a male to take this course ?

(I ask because I was in a similar situation in a high school literature class & the teacher hated that I was in this class.)

@publisher idk if it’s unusual but my school is like 2/3 female and the honors program is like 90% female so I think that it sounds about right. it’s a political science course.

Things to consider when thinking about Withdrawing from a class:

  1. **TALK TO YOUR ADVISER ** before you make any decisions

  2. ** Will taking a W move you from full time to part time? ** Full time is usually 12 credits (check your college). If you are part time you are not eligible for financial aid or living in dorms.

  3. ** Is this class needed for your major? ** If you don’t take it now, will you have to take it again? Will it cause you to fall behind in keeping up with your major classes?

  4. **Why are you not doing well? ** What happens the next time you don’t do well? W again? One W is okay, but a pattern shows that you have difficulty with college.

  5. **Will Withdrawing from a course make it difficult to graduate on time? ** Will you need to make it up in summer $$ or do you have extra credits from HS?

  6. **Can you raise your grade? ** Check this post for ideas
    http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-life/1920853-college-is-a-step-up-from-hs-16-tips-on-doing-well-in-college.html

  7. If this course is in your major, is this the right major for you? If you are pre-med but are getting a C in Biology, maybe this is not the major for you. If you are getting a C in an elective, that is another story.

  8. **Sometimes W’s are necessary. ** My daughter was in the hospital for a week early in the semester…she Withdrew from a course because she would not be able to catch up on all her courses if she kept all the classes. A W here or there is no problem, but a pattern of them looks like you have trouble with college work.

For you, it may be that the honors level course are not for you. Don’t worry about dropping down if you need to. But talk to your adviser first. And no, one W is no big deal. It is more important that you keep your GPA up. But a pattern of W’s is a problem…but you are not there.