dilemma: save my gpa or keep my minor?

[pg515]

Hi everyone!

I am currently a senior majoring in art history hoping to go into East Asian art, but I am facing a small dilemma at the moment. I am taking a class on writing essays in Japanese, and am really about to fail that class (as in maybe getting a B/B- kind of grade) while all my other grades are A/A- ish. I do not want to drop the class because I have to take it to keep my Japanese language minor, which I reckon would be useful when applying for PhDs in East Asian art in the future. Yet I am also not sure if it is worth it to keep the minor at the price of my gpa. When admission committees of PhD programs are looking at my application in the future, will they really look at ONE course I did really badly in my senior winter, or would they appreciate the Japanese language minor more because I will be going into East Asian art history?

Thank you all so much in advance! I would really appreciate any input and advice on this issue, as the drop deadline is this Friday (Day after tomorrow)!

[Sigaba]

Can you take the class pass/fail or pass/no pass?

[pg515]

unfortunately no if I want it to count towards my Japanese language minor...

[AriSeal]

You should keep the class/minor... languages are extremely important and one B/B- on your transcript will not catch the adcomm's eye.  Also, having an average grade is not the same thing as failing. 

[Ken5566]

I think you should drop it. Grades are pretty important for grad school applications. Indeed, proficiency in Japanese will be very important if your speciality is in East Asian Art, but there are many options where you can learn Japanese without ruining your GPA (e.g. language school, non-credit bearing courses, language exchange, etc.)

[pg515]

8 minutes ago, Ken5566 said:

I think you should drop it. Grades are pretty important for grad school applications. Indeed, proficiency in Japanese will be very important if your speciality is in East Asian Art, but there are many options where you can learn Japanese without ruining your GPA (e.g. language school, non-credit bearing courses, language exchange, etc.)

I guess I am a bit hesitant also because I am wondering how much a B at this point would really drop my overall GPA... say if the overall GPA drops from 3.93 to 3.91 would you still consider that drop significant enough for me to drop the minor? 

[pg515]

1 hour ago, AriSeal said:

You should keep the class/minor... languages are extremely important and one B/B- on your transcript will not catch the adcomm's eye.  Also, having an average grade is not the same thing as failing. 

Thank you so much for your input! And for the reminder that a B or B- is not the same thing as failing. Maybe I still have enough time left to make the grade into a B+..

[annarchy666]

I was in a similar position when I was in undergrad! I had a really difficult line up of classes one term during my freshman year and had to decide, for my own sanity, which to put a little less effort into so that all of my courses didn't suffer. I chose to put less effort into my French class (I wasn't majoring or minoring or even thinking about graduate school) and ended up with a B. Do I regret it? Maybe, but it doesn't seem to have affected my chances of getting into PhD programs for Art History. A minor is also much more than a single course; don't devalue all of the other courses you've taken because you're not happy with the outcome of this one. I don't think it's worth dropping your minor over one subpar grade .

[killerbunny]

My vote is keep it. You're risking your GPA (a little bit) but you're showing gumption by taking a tough class out of your academic comfort zone to acquire a skill necessary for your interest area. I'd imagine (and hope) some ad comms would appreciate that rather than an applicant just ticking the perfect GPA box. (I don't know if it's necessary but if the potential B is something you feel you want to address in your statement of purpose, highlight it as you taking on a challenge in order to achieve your scholarly goals in a graduate program.)

If you haven't already, be sure to use your instructor's office hours and ask how you can improve your performance while showing you're committed to putting in the work to do well in the class.  

Edited February 13, 2020 by killerbunny

[theoryschmeary]

I think you should absolutely keep the course and that you're not risking anything by doing so.  Earning a B in a class is respectable and should not cause an admissions committee alarm; they understand that grades fluctuate. I have grades across the board on my undergraduate transcript (due to some factors out of my control) and that did not keep me from being admitted to Ivy and Ivy-caliber schools for my graduate studies. Committees will want to see you took a range of coursework and that those classes inform your research interests (which it appears the course in question does). Don't be stressed over one or two grades that may not match your ideal.  

[/sigh/twombly]

A B/B- is not a bad grade and I think other posters are right in saying that this should not keep you from getting into any program. So don't drop it if you are only afraid of the grade! That said, I don't think that minors really make or break an application either. I was ONE class away from a French minor (a language I use in my research today) and decided not to do it because I *really* didn't want to take that class (for a variety of reasons)--I'm about 3 years out of undergrad and have never regretted not minoring or even had it come up with grad profs; in the case of languages, I think being able to say that you can speak/read/do research in the language it matters more than having a minor in it (plus they can see how many classes you took in Japanese from your transcript). My advice would be to think about if you want to stay in the class--are you learning a lot in it even if you aren't going to get an A? Or are you stressed out about the class to the point where it is keeping you from your other classes? No shame in dropping a class that is stressing you out, and definitely no shame in a B... just do what makes most sense for you! I don't think either option is going to make or break anything for you in the long run!

[Mississippi Snow]

I wish I was in your position to consider a failing grade as B/B-. 
Yes, adcomms do look at GPA pretty heavily--particularly for coming directly out of undergrad--but,  as has been noted above, the B/B- will not really effect you so much.
Having the language, and particularly being able to write essays in Japanese, will be way more to your benefit. 
Stay in the class. Take the grade. Maybe try and offset it by some award or other notable achievement, and move ahead.

Also, you already said yourself that you do not want to drop the class. That should be enough reason to keep it. 

 

[Sigaba]

I am not sure why @ken5566 got dinged for voicing a dissenting opinion.

The post is not disrespectful to the OP. Moreover, given @ken5566 's background, the view expressed may be informed by experience. Is the dissatisfaction centered around the word "ruining"? If so, consider the context. The OP writes of "saving" a GPA and of receiving a "failing" grade. Why does one member get dinged for hyperbole but not another?

(The point I'm attempting to make is that graduate school is an intensely competitive environment in which dissenting views play a vital role in one's growth. Developing an argument in opposed to a stated opinion is going to require you to lean forward and make a case. And after class, you will have a coffee with the person with whom you disagreed and continue the debate.)

 

On 2/12/2020 at 7:11 PM, pg515 said:

Hi everyone!

I am currently a senior majoring in art history hoping to go into East Asian art, but I am facing a small dilemma at the moment. I am taking a class on writing essays in Japanese, and am really about to fail that class (as in maybe getting a B/B- kind of grade) while all my other grades are A/A- ish. I do not want to drop the class because I have to take it to keep my Japanese language minor, which I reckon would be useful when applying for PhDs in East Asian art in the future. Yet I am also not sure if it is worth it to keep the minor at the price of my gpa. When admission committees of PhD programs are looking at my application in the future, will they really look at ONE course I did really badly in my senior winter, or would they appreciate the Japanese language minor more because I will be going into East Asian art history?

Thank you all so much in advance! I would really appreciate any input and advice on this issue, as the drop deadline is this Friday (Day after tomorrow)!

What choice would you make if you knew that you were going to be admitted into a program? 

Which will AdComms appreciate more: an applicant's minor (and GPA therein) or her proficiency in a language?

[pg515]

Thank you all for your advice and for generously sharing your life stories with me! I admit that I posted this question with a slight disposition towards keeping the class because of all the other classes I took for the minor, but your posts really helped me to gain more perspective and jump out of the confusion/panic I was in when I made the post. I did have a pretty open conversation with the instructor today about my concerns, and have decided to keep the class after the talk. Seems like I'll be doing a lot of revisions for the rest of the quarter!

[Arthistoryiscool]

Schools will still be able to view all the classes you took and I provided a list of relevant coursework to put everything together for them and attached it as a supplemental document when available. I would say if you have a stellar gpa right now,e ven though a B- is still an ok grade, are you concerned about it being factored into your Major GPA or just in general as in you would drop the class? I did not do an official art history minor, i just took enough classes to fulfill it so i don't think they will care all that much about formailites if they see you have a certain amount of experience with that language. They also have a section on apps where you get to list all your lanugages and your current fluency levels and you then sometimes list the specific language courses under there. Hopefully this helps, sounds like you will finish with a stellar transcript either way, congrats on your hard work!