LWDs are annoying as butt, aren’t they?

Hi,
I am a first year student at UofT and I am troubled by the the LWD on my transcript. I did terrible on my midterm for chemistry(failed) and I decided to use drop the course with a LWD shown on my transcript. I am planning on taking the chem course again in the second semester. What I am worried about is if the LWD will affect my chances of applying to pharmacy school because it is one of their prerequisites? I know this question has been mentioned a lot but I am on edge of breaking down. I know I am only in first year but having one LWD on my transcript can break my chance of entering a professional school, especially pharmacy. I really do feel like I have ruined myself! Please tell me what I should do!

———————————————

hey there,

ok, so i’m just gonna get the bad news right out of the way first, like ripping off a bandaid: the LWD may have some impact on your admission to pharmacy. this website is the only one i’ve found that makes any mention of them, and this is what it has to say: “Any failed/repeated subjects, grades below class averages, history of withdrawal, ‘Credit’ designation, etc., may influence the final decision on the application.”

now i know that seems bad on first glance, but let’s do some close-reading, shall we? So obviously any credit/no-credits, failed classes or bad marks will influence their decision, as they say, but one LWD doesn’t seem to be that significant. A “history of withdrawal” means that you’ve gotten multiple LWD’s, not just one. On top of that, they say “may influence the final decision,” “may” being the operative word.

all in all, it seems like a pretty lukewarm statement to me: “if you’ve racked up a whole bunch of LWD’s, then we might have to start taking that into consideration” is not the same as “one late withdrawal and you’re no longer eligible.” so i wouldn’t worry. also, an LWD is oodles better than a failing mark, so you made the right choice.

that said, the LWD won’t exactly work in your favour, so don’t just think you’re in the clear and keep going as you have before. now is the time to work twice as hard as you have been, get the best marks you can in the rest of your classes (and chem when you repeat it), and make sure not to get any more LWDs.

so yeah, it’s not great, but you can totally recover from this. i have faith in you.

good luck,

aska