How are withdrawals looked at for graduate school/employment?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the implications of course withdrawals for graduate school admissions and employment prospects. Participants explore the perceptions and potential consequences of withdrawing from courses, including the impact on transcripts and GPA, as well as personal experiences related to course qualifications.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that withdrawals generally should not affect graduate school admissions, citing legitimate reasons for withdrawal such as health issues.
  • Others express concern that accumulating withdrawals might reflect poorly on a student's record, particularly if a withdrawal counts as an attempt in their institution.
  • A participant shares a personal dilemma about whether to withdraw from a course due to uncertainty about their qualifications, weighing the options of dropping the course immediately or waiting to see if they can manage it.
  • There is a suggestion to consider taking the course pass/fail as a potential strategy to mitigate the impact of a withdrawal.
  • Some participants note that employers typically focus on final GPAs and may not scrutinize transcripts for withdrawals.
  • Concerns are raised about institutional policies regarding course repeats and how they might affect degree progress.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a mix of views, with some agreeing that withdrawals should not significantly impact graduate school admissions or employment, while others caution against accumulating them. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the best approach to handling course withdrawals.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include varying institutional policies on withdrawals and repeats, as well as differing perceptions of how these factors influence graduate school admissions and employment opportunities.

0rthodontist
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How are withdrawals looked at for graduate school/employment? They do not affect GPA at all but is there a downside besides not having finished the course?
 
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There are many legitimate reasons for withdrawing from a course which have nothing to do with student performance: health problems, etc. Withdrawals should have no bearings on your admission to graduate school, but you might want to check and see if they even end up on your transcript. If you take a course again later, many schools will completely obliterate any previous grade or withdrawal flag.

I can say with almost 100% certainty that employers won't care; they rarely look at anything beyond your final GPA. Few actually request transcripts.

- Warren
 
Just don't accumulate them, that does not look good. Here a withdrawl counts as an attempt. Don't pass by the 3rd attempt and your kicked out.
 
I'm taking a course-seminar taught by some grad students working with a town wireless network. The course got organized very late. However despite getting the approval of the grad students I'm not sure I'm qualified to do this. My options are:
--Drop in the next half hour with no record (the course was only officially created on the registration system within the past hour)
--Wait a few weeks and find out for sure, and if I'm not qualified then withdraw. If I keep on with the course then I'd guess there's around a 50% chance I'd withdraw.
This course is probably a 1 time deal, no option to repeat. It's not necessary to my major but if it turns out I can do it then it is experience I'd like to have.
 
Take it pass/fail.
 
Why do you think your not qualified? what knowledge do you think you lack?

Some colleges have limits on how many repeats you can have for your degree, the strictest I heard of was 4. However, if this class is a one time only shot that would probably be counted as an elective or something, it might not matter as you wouldn't be repeating it anyway.
 

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