should i withdraw from real analysis?

[dqz1213dqz]

I am a junior double majoring in math and psych, thinking to apply for masters in stat or Ph.D. in quantitative psych. I am currently struggling in real analysis - I handwritten the class notes two times, and still cannot do a single homework problem. I just cannot do proofs no matter how hard I try. I spent days trying to understand the definitions, but I just cannot use them. To the point where I know what the problem is asking and I can write down the relevant definitions word by word, but I just cannot formulate rigorous proofs. I don't know what else I could do except withdrawing from the class.

But I had one withdraw from freshmen year (an econ class), and another from last semester (a philosophy class) - I wonder how bad does it look if I have another W on my transcript. By memorizing the HW solutions, I could probably get a C in this analysis class. I am currently having a 3.61 GPA. All my other classes are fine. Should I withdraw from the course?

[Stat Assistant Professor]

A "W" will look better than a C for either of those grad programs. As long as you are not planning to get a PhD in Statistics, it should be fine to withdraw from this class and not take Real Analysis period (for most Statistics Masters programs, you only need to have completed Calculus I-III and non-proof based linear algebra).

[dqz1213dqz]

3 hours ago, Stat PhD Now Postdoc said:

A "W" will look better than a C for either of those grad programs. As long as you are not planning to get a PhD in Statistics, it should be fine to withdraw from this class and not take Real Analysis period (for most Statistics Masters programs, you only need to have completed Calculus I-III and non-proof based linear algebra).

Another concern is that if I withdraw from the this analysis class, then I might have too many Ws on my transcript because then I will have 3 Ws and 2 of which happens in my junior year. If this is the case, is it still best to withdraw from real analysis? 

[Stat Assistant Professor]

1 hour ago, dqz1213dqz said:

Another concern is that if I withdraw from the this analysis class, then I might have too many Ws on my transcript because then I will have 3 Ws and 2 of which happens in my junior year. If this is the case, is it still best to withdraw from real analysis? 

I don't think the W's will be a big deal, as long as your other grades in lower-division math courses were acceptable. You should still be able to get into a Statistics MS/MA program. I could be wrong, but I also don't think you need real analysis for quantitative psychology. You certainly need familiarity with things like SEM, factor analysis, multivariate analysis, etc., but it seems like overkill for psychology students to study the mathematical theory and foundations behind them. 

[dqz1213dqz]

2 hours ago, Stat PhD Now Postdoc said:

I don't think the W's will be a big deal, as long as your other grades in lower-division math courses were acceptable. You should still be able to get into a Statistics MS/MA program. I could be wrong, but I also don't think you need real analysis for quantitative psychology. You certainly need familiarity with things like SEM, factor analysis, multivariate analysis, etc., but it seems like overkill for psychology students to study the mathematical theory and foundations behind them. 

Thank you so very much! I have just talked to my advisor and have decided to withdraw from the course. 

[dmacfour]

On 3/12/2019 at 10:22 AM, dqz1213dqz said:

Another concern is that if I withdraw from the this analysis class, then I might have too many Ws on my transcript because then I will have 3 Ws and 2 of which happens in my junior year. If this is the case, is it still best to withdraw from real analysis? 

For what it's worth, I have at least 7 W's on my transcript and I didn't stop me from being admitted to grad school for psychology or for statistics. In my opinion, there's a lot more room for justifying a W than there is for a grade less than a C.