Pre-Health Professions Programs Workshop Series Presents:
“Will this affect my application?”
Solving the Mystery of Withdrawals, Credit/No Credit, and Repeat
Courses and How They Affect Applications to Medical, Dental, and
Veterinary School.
Fall 2010
Introduction
This workshop is intended to help students understand how transcripts affect
applications to medical, dental, and veterinary school.
What we will discuss:
 General information about transcripts
 Withdrawals, Credit/No Credit, Repeat Courses
 How transcripts affect each application differently
 Decision making regarding grading options
 The Importance of GPA
We will not be speaking specifically about applying, obtaining transcripts, or
specific admissions requirements. Keep your eyes peeled for those workshops in
the future!
Everything Counts!
Every course that you have taken that appears on a college transcript (and even some that don’t)
must be listed on your Health Professions application
This includes:
 Courses from other institutions, even if they are not on your Hunter Transcript
 College Courses taken through a special high school program
 AP Courses
 Every application has a different policy for courses taken overseas
 Be sure to read the guide book for the application very carefully to determine how you
should handle courses that were taken at Non-US affiliated Overseas/International
Institutions
A good general rule of thumb to follow is this:
 If it’s on a transcript it counts
 Even if it isn’t calculated into the GPA it has to be recorded on the application
Hunter Transcript
The Hunter transcript rules do not apply when you are
applying to health professions schools.

Expect the GPA on a Hunter transcript to be VERY
different then then GPA that is on your Veterinary, Dental,
or Medical School application.

Unfortunately, the grading systems that AMCAS,VMCAS,
AACOMAS, AADSAS use generally lower a GPA.
Let’s discuss why…
Hunter Transcript

Repeat Courses



Credit/No Credit

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
In many cases if you repeat a course at Hunter only the second
grade is calculated into your GPA
This rule does not apply to all applications for the Health professions
At Hunter no letter/grade equivalent is given to C/NC grades
Some applications assign grade equivalencies for C/NC
Withdrawals


Do not affect your Hunter GPA
For the most part don’t affect your GPA but if excessive can portray
a student as being unable to commit and follow through.
Let’s Get More Specific…
Veterinary School
Veterinary Medical College Application System
(VMCAS)
VMCAS has a GPA calculation system, however many veterinary schools
choose not to use it and instead calculate GPA’s using their own system.
Either way it is likely that your VMCAS GPA will be different than your
Hunter GPA.
Credit/No Credit and Withdrawals
There are no outlined equivalencies for Credit/No Credit or Withdrawals
on VMCAS
Repeat Grades
VMCAS calculates all repeat grades in GPA even if they were not used in
the GPA calculation on the original transcript
Because schools may calculate GPAs differently it is crucial to check
with each veterinary school to see how they will calculate C/NC and
withdrawals
Dental School
Associated American Dental Schools Application Service
(AADSAS)
The AADSAS GPA Calculation System:
Credit/No Credit and Withdrawals
Pass/Fail, Credit/No Credit, Withdrawals, Incompletes, CLEP, AP courses
ARE NOT COUNTED IN THE DENTAL SCHOOL GPA CALCULATIONS
Repeat Grades
All initial and repeated coursework counts- even if it is not used in the
calculation of the GPA on the original transcript
All failed courses will be counted even if they are no longer counted in the
original transcript GPA
Allopathic Medicine (MD)
American Medical College Application Service
(AMCAS)
AMCAS Calculation System
Credit/No Credit and Withdrawals
 Credit is calculated in as a C
 NC = F (0.0)
 Withdrawals do not get factored in
Repeat Grades
 All initial and repeated coursework counts- even if it is not used in
the calculation of the GPA on the original transcript
Osteopathic Medicine (DO)
American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine
Application Service (AACOMAS)
AACOMAS Calculation System
Credit/No Credit and Withdrawals
 C/NC and Withdrawals are not calculated into the AACOMAS GPA
 If you have taken C/NC or P/F coursework elsewhere this policy could
be different
Repeat Grades
 Only the last instance of a repeated course is calculated in the GPA
What Does This All Mean?
The most obvious answer is always this:
Avoid electing Credit/No Credit, Withdrawal options
and/or repeating courses
The reality is that it happens all the time so here are some
things to consider…
Withdrawing or Opting for C/NC
Consider This…
Will withdrawing from this class affect the progression of my courses?
For example: If a student is taking Biology 100 and decides to withdraw he/she will have
to wait AN ENTIRE YEAR to start the General Biology sequence again due to the
scheduling of Biology courses. Which can lead to postponing an application for an entire
year.
Will taking a Credit/No Credit affect my GPA?
While it will not affect your Hunter GPA it will affect student’s who plan on applying
to Allopathic Medical School.
Realistically, what grade will I be receiving?
If you are certain you will not be earning a grade lower than a C it may be worth it to
stick it out in order to avoid delaying your progress.
For students intending to study Allopathic Medicine, a credit will be calculated as a C
no matter what. If you know that the lowest grade you could possible earn in a course
is a C, why not stick it out and see what happens. Maybe you will get a C+ or a B-!
Please be cautious and remember it is OK to take an extra year to complete coursework.The
Pre-Health Professions Office just wants you to be aware of all your options.
Repeating Courses
Consider This…
Will this affect my application?
Most likely. For all but the Osteopathic schools every grade on the
transcript is used in GPA calculation regardless of it being a repeat
course.
What grade did I earn originally and am I certain I can do better the second
time around?
This is important. If you earned a C the first time around and you
aren’t sure how much better you can do, is it really worth risking
another C or C+ being calculated into your GPA? Also, when you
repeat the course you are taking study time away from other
courses in which you could earn an even better grade the first time
around.
The Importance of GPA
Your GPA is CRUCIAL to applications for Medical, Dental, and
Veterinary School.
It may be worth it to take an extra year with your coursework if
it means better grades.
These are the Science GPAs students need to be reaching for:
Medical
Allopathic (MD)
3.6
Osteopathic (DO)
3.4
Dental
3.0
Veterinary
3.5
These GPAs are averages, not requirements or guarantees.
QUESTIONS