I’m a junior taking three APs (AP Lit, AP Bio, and AP Psych) and one honors class (honors Spanish), and I’ve maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school. Yesterday, my AP Bio class took part one of two finals, and I got a D+, bringing my grade down to an 81%. While that is a B-, I’m really close to a C, and I’m extremely worried about the impact of having a C on college applications.
I get extremely nervous when taking tests, and I have really poor application skills, so while I can memorize x and y concepts, it’s difficult for me to apply them to scenario-problems, which, unfortunately, make up the bulk of my AP Bio class’s tests. At this point, I don’t know what I could possibly study, but I do know that I have to do something before part two (next week), or else I am sure to get the C. How can I remedy my situation? I’m thinking of talking to my teacher and seeing what tips she can suggest to me, but I don’t know what else to do. My school doesn’t offer extra credit, and I know better than to ask my teacher to raise my grade. I also know that after the finals, my teacher doesn’t plan on adding much to the gradebook–if at all, probably a couple of homework assignments. I’m so stressed out by the possibility of getting a C.
From the looks of it, you can’t do much. However, I would talk to your teacher to see if you can do something to at least bring your grade to a C+ in which you can bring it to a B- with those couple of homework assignments.
I would try to do as much extra credit as possible. A B looks a lot better than a C. Try practicing with questions from an AP prep book
@nyuhopeful44 My school doesn’t offer extra credit.
If that grade (a D+!) is extremely unusual for you as a student (and the teacher is pretty cool), you might be able to ask for a retake. You should at least try that!
Could you also try building your application skills? It might not be helpful to say this, but you really won’t get much out of the class if you can’t apply the material. Thinking stuff through, talking out the systems with your friends, drawing diagrams from your understanding- all of that should help. Please try and identify instances of it in the real world and think about it in context! Building your ability to apply this sort of material will doubtlessly help you out in college.
Regardless of whether you end up getting a C, a B, or even an A, you should try for this.
The recommendation for Princeton’s review book sounds like a good one, too! I’ve heard those are especially good for improvement in the short-term (although this seems to be short-short term).
Good luck!