C in Calculus with appointment

H

Hunter15

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Mar 16, 2021
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I received an appointment back in January but I have been struggling in calculus since. I am taking online Ap calc right now and feel as if I just can’t grasp the subject. I don’t have a physical teacher to go to and ask questions because it’s online so my grade is sitting at a C/C+ right now. I study extremely hard for it but it seems that nothing helps. Would this put my appointment in jeopardy if I were to finish the year with a C in calculus. I have received an A in the other 4 math classes I have taken in the past including pre-clac and Ap stats and have all A’s in the rest of my classes currently. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.
 
First of all, congratulations on your appointment! I cannot speak at all to whether it would put your appointment in jeopardy, but I CAN speak about what you can do to bring your grade up.

Get a tutor. ASAP. Start at the beginning. When you are lost especially in a language or math course, it is hard to communicate what you don't know. There are online tutor services (Varsity Tutors is fantastic, Khan Academy) and also in person of course. Online will cost money. In person could but it might not. You might be surprised who is willing to tutor a stellar student and future midshipmen for free. I certainly would! (Sadly you would not want me for a math tutor or I'd offer right now.) How to find a free tutor? Post on Next Door... post on Facebook and have your family do so... ask your local public school for names... and I would see the BGO as a potential resource here too. Maybe even someone here on the forum!

It's February. You have a ways to go. Get help ASAP and you will be fine. Start yourself using free online resources and aim to find a tutor by next week. Good luck. You'll get there!
 
Jabor3 said:
First of all, congratulations on your appointment! I cannot speak at all to whether it would put your appointment in jeopardy, but I CAN speak about what you can do to bring your grade up.

Get a tutor. ASAP. Start at the beginning. When you are lost especially in a language or math course, it is hard to communicate what you don't know. There are online tutor services (Varsity Tutors is fantastic, Khan Academy) and also in person of course. Online will cost money. In person could but it might not. You might be surprised who is willing to tutor a stellar student and future midshipmen for free. I certainly would! (Sadly you would not want me for a math tutor or I'd offer right now.) How to find a free tutor? Post on Next Door... post on Facebook and have your family do so... ask your local public school for names... and I would see the BGO as a potential resource here too. Maybe even someone here on the forum!

It's February. You have a ways to go. Get help ASAP and you will be fine. Start yourself using free online resources and aim to find a tutor by next week. Good luck. You'll get there!
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Get a tutor, ask your parents to help pay. Once or twice a week would really help you.
 
I would not say so. If you have a good record already, they don't always ask for spring grades. In addition, one bad grade will not jeopardize your appointment...

If there's one thing we've learned, don't sweat the little things. You were accepted because the Academy thinks you have the potential to serve others and lead. A bad letter grade is no reflection of this.

Also, I validated AB and BC Calc and am currently questioning my life (haha). It is okay to not be super ahead in classes because these classes are hard and stack up fast.
 
A C won't affect your appointment. However, a strong foundation in Calc is critical to success at USNA. Calc is used in so many classes, regardless of major. Take it from someone who didn't have Calc in h.s. and really struggled in Calc at USNA.

If your family can't afford a tutor, don't despair. Just make sure that, when you get to USNA Ac Year, you IMMEDIATELY avail yourself of the Academic Center and all it has to offer. Don't wait until you're struggling -- do it Day 1. USNA is invested in your academic success but you have to accept the help.
 
I graduated from college with a guy who failed calculus 3 times before he passed. On that 4th try, everyone I knew including me was helping him every free minute we had. He finally passed and we were all so relieved. The very next year, the university dropped it from the curriculum for our major. He was really, really, really mad. :p

Just thought I would share.

You have nothing to worry about. Your offer of appointment (it's just an offer until you take the oath) is safe.
Do some pull ups and go for a run.
 
There was a time midway through my NAPS career that I would have been thrilled to have a C in calculus. We had to take two different Calc classes at NAPS... and I had a 65 in both at Christmas. Don't dispair, dig deep, get help and the sooner or rather the light bulb clicks on.. Been there, done that, and have a a closet full of USNA tshirts to show for it.
 
Hunter15 said:
I received an appointment back in January but I have been struggling in calculus since. I am taking online Ap calc right now and feel as if I just can’t grasp the subject. I don’t have a physical teacher to go to and ask questions because it’s online so my grade is sitting at a C/C+ right now. I study extremely hard for it but it seems that nothing helps. Would this put my appointment in jeopardy if I were to finish the year with a C in calculus. I have received an A in the other 4 math classes I have taken in the past including pre-clac and Ap stats and have all A’s in the rest of my classes currently. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.
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Your appointment is safe with a C in calculus even if it’s your final grade. I see a silver lining here since you are studying “extremely hard”. You are learning perseverance and are experiencing a fraction of the academic challenge that you will encounter at USNA. There will be subjects that you haven’t been exposed during your four years that will be hard to grasp initially. I hope that you maintain a “stick to it” attitude until you finish your course. During PS you will take a placement exam that will put you in the appropriate level of calculus. On top of that you will have a live professor teaching you in a small class room setting (sixteen students or less). They will provide you their office ours for extra instruction if you are still having problems with some concepts. Why can’t your hard-working C be a B, or better, once you get there? So, don’t take the pack off. Keep working. Good luck.
 
Neil DeGrasse Tyson! - you are in good company. (he has other videos on how to approach learning calculus).

 
The lesson here is recognizing you had a deficiency and wanted to troubleshoot that.
That is key.
ID the problem. Quantify it. Solve it. Enlist teammates. Solve the problem.


I like your odds.
 
Also I recall during senior year 2020, DS was taking an online dual enrollment calc and when the pandemic shut school down, the instructor pretty much disappeared. He found online videos of MIT classes that were freely available and he watched those and self taught himself from there. Possibly a resource for you.
 
My son has a very nice teacher - who has never taught advanced math before. I think she is trying to learn it along with the students. He got a subscription to a class on "Udemy" on sale for like $10 and has been watching the videos. He is finding it very helpful.
 
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