Will a Single Pass/Fail Course Affect My Grad School Chances?

[Bishop556]

So, during my second year, I took a course known as Physics Problem Solving which was an elective for me. I did very well in the course initially, but my girlfriend broke up with me which led me to a downward spiral of depression. I realized that the emotional stress along with the coursework (each homework assignment was 25 pages) was too much for me and I pass/failed the course. I thought that since this class was only taught as a class at my college along that it may be interpreted by other colleges as a pass/ fail course. I did well on all my other courses that semester, I got all As. Every other semester I also did just as well. I'm at the end of my third year and I have a 3.94 major GPA and a 3.91 college (without silly high school college credit) GPA so far. I am acing upper level class coursework. I don't recall ever receiving anything less than an A- in any of my physics coursework, but I feel this will damage my transcripts beyond repair. Maybe I am overreacting, but for those who handle admissions would this damage my chances to go to a top grad school?

 

[jedishrfu]

You are overreacting. Whats done is done. You have a 3.94 GPA that's excellent and with a good GRE should get you into some top schools.

 

[QuantumCurt]

The difference between a 3.90-3.99 and a 4.00 is basically insignificant, and admissions committees understand this. If one looks at this GPA difference in terms of a single semester, it could be the difference between getting 5 A's (and a 4.0) or 4 A's and an A- or B+ (and a 3.86-3.94). This distinction could literally come down to something as simple as missing a couple more questions on a single exam than the person with the 4.0. Very few students actually finish their undergrad with a 4.0, and it's almost silly to even try. A 3.91-3.94 is a fantastic GPA.

I lost my 4.0 a couple semesters ago due to getting a B in General Chemistry II. I finished the class with an 89.3%. Had I scored two-tenths of a percent higher, it would have rounded up to a 90%, and an A. I now have a 3.93 GPA because of that one B. I don't think that it can rationally be claimed that someone who completed General Chemistry II with an 89.5% (rounding up to an A) has a better overall understanding of the course material than myself, with an 89.3%.