Is retaking college classes a waste of time and effort? If you have been out of school for a while or have never been in a college class before, this article will show why retaking college classes makes sense.
The first step to retaking college classes is reviewing the courses you failed. That will give you a better understanding of why your grades were as low as they are.
It can also motivate you to study harder for the next course. If you need help with this, use the following tips and resources.
Reasons for Retaking a Class in College
1. Failure
Sometimes, students may retake a class if they feel it is worth their time and energy.
If you fail a course, you have to pay tuition again, and you also have to pay for books and other supplies, as well as take another examination.
Notably, this can be incredibly disappointing for students who felt confident about their ability to pass the course when they first took it.
2. Skipped
If you skipped a class to help out in an emergency, or because of a death in the family or some other circumstances, and need to retake that class, it’s okay. You have to make sure your reasons are good enough.
If you think about it, there is nothing wrong with skipping classes or taking a break from your studies if you are in an emergency.
You should not feel guilty because everyone needs time to cope with their problems and emerge victorious.
3. Missed Class
Another reason for retaking a class is if a student has been dealing with personal issues that prevented him from doing well in school.
For example, if a student had an accident at work that caused him to miss several days of work and to go on sick leave for several weeks, then this could have caused him to fail many classes because he could not attend them regularly.
4. You want to improve your grade
For some students, re-taking a class is the best way to improve their grades. If they cannot understand the material in their original class but can grasp it after reading it again, then they will be able to do well academically.
This is especially true if the professor needs help explaining his or her ideas clearly and concisely.
In addition, some professors will assign homework or project work that is too difficult for students who don’t know how to solve them properly.
In this case, students can improve their academic performance by going through the material again. In fact, retaking a class is not bad if you are serious to improve.
5. You want better grades
Some students also fail a class simply because they do not know what is being taught during lectures or tutorials.
For instance, if you had trouble with Calculus II during your freshman year of college because you did not understand what was being taught by your professor, then re-taking Calculus II might help you pass this course successfully next time around.
How to succeed in a Retaken Class
1. Avoid the previous mistake
It’s easy to make a mistake in a retake. For example, if you studied for the first time but had a bad day and couldn’t remember things, you will be tempted to repeat what you did before.
The following steps will help you avoid the previous mistake:
- Take notes. Write down what you are learning so that you can review it later. This is especially important for math and science classes. You will need to understand what you have learned and apply it in the future.
- Practice problems. It’s better to skip a few problems than to miss one out entirely, so practice solving as many problems as possible before taking your test.
2. Study more
If you are retaking a class, you have to study more than before. The first thing to do is to study the material well and understand it.
The second thing is to practice your learned skills by reviewing your notes and taking practice tests.
Study with someone else. If you don’t know anyone taking the course, ask your friends or family members if they know anyone who could help you study for your exam. Or, if no one is available, ask the professor for extra help.
Lastly, read the textbook thoroughly and answer all questions as they come up.
3. Consult teachers
Ask questions! If you have any doubts about the material covered in class or during an assignment, ensure that your professors or TAs know them so they can answer them during office hours or after class if necessary.
How to avoid previous mistakes when Retaking a Course
1. Accept the failure
If you fail an exam or a class for whatever reason, accept your failure and move on with your life. Take something positive out of it and work towards overcoming it by studying even harder next time.
You might think you’ll fail again, but this time, take it as a challenge instead of letting it get you down.
2. Take responsibility
Taking responsibility means owning up to your mistakes and moving forward from there.
It’s not just about accepting blame or admitting wrongdoing — it’s about learning from your mistakes and trying not to repeat them in the future.
Taking responsibility for your actions is important because it will help you to find ways to improve yourself. You should always try to do things that help you improve and ensure that what you do is right.
If possible, write down everything that happened in that class so that you can see all the things that went wrong and how they affected your performance in the class.
3. Reflect on your actions
When retaking a course, ensure you know why you’re taking it again. If you failed the first time, ask yourself what went wrong. Was it the content? Or was it something else?
If you have trouble with the content, ensure you understand the material better and take more practice tests before retaking the course.
If you struggled with other aspects of the class, find out what can be done differently to make this class easier for you.
Even if it seems like your problems were with something outside of your control (such as not having enough time), try to figure out what you could have done differently to help improve your success rate or keep from failing altogether.
4. Consult
You might have forgotten to do something, or you might have made a wrong choice.
In either case, the best thing to do is to consult with your professor about your choice and then make a decision.
If you are sure that you can pass the course, then go ahead. If not, talk to your professor about the mistakes you made on the first attempt and see what he/she suggests for your next attempt.
5. Write changes
If you are retaking a course and you got a low grade but feel that the grade was too harsh, try to change it. The best way to do this is to write changes in your exam folder so that your instructor will see them.
If you were not as prepared for the class as you thought, your instructor could help you with the material if needed.
6. Implement changes
One of the most important things you can do before deciding if it’s time to re-take a course is to identify what went wrong on the first try. Did you miss an important deadline? Did your professor give you a poor grade?
Did something come up in your personal life that made it difficult for you to complete some assignments or attend class?
If so, identify what led up to these problems and try again after making any necessary adjustments for a better chance of the outcome.
