Yet another IB question

Hey guys

Have been browsing endlessly on this forum for many months now. The information here is so great I just had to make my own account.

OK so a bit of background first: Australian student attending The University Of Sydney (dunno if it's on the same level as an Ivy in the States, but it definitely is a target school where banks hold events almost weekly). I'm a mature age student, having entered university at the ripe old age of 20. This was due to a family crisis preventing me from getting in earlier (dad had a serious operation, and I had to take time off to help him with his business).

Currently double majoring in finance and econometrics, and I must say, I'm loving every minute of it. So anyways, in my first semester, I garnered a 'credit' average (not too shitty, but not so great either). Unfortunately, I failed (by ONE fucking point) my introductory accounting class. Now I could go off on a tangent and say it wasn't my fault, the teacher's a dick, exams were hard etc. But I'm gonna man up and say "yeah, I messed up. Not happening again!" Since I have zero intentions of studying accounting, I only need to take that one class. I did really well in my other more quantitative subjects.

So basically my question is: are my circumstances (failing an introductory unit, being 2 years older than everybody) gonna affect my chances for IB? I do have some ECs that I personally consider quite good (I own an online business, making around 70k a year in revenue, was an amateur boxing champion, regularly trade/invest in commodities and stocks, member of a few societies on and off campus). Would these sort of 'balance out' any shortcomings I have?

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Means the world to me :)

 
Best Response

Out of your last paragraph, I'd say the business and the societies might be helpful, but the rest is - no offense - "meh."

I know at some universities that if you retake a class and get a higher grade, that higher grade will replace the prior, which would affect your GPA. Is that possible for you? In all reality, accounting my not be your favorite, but you need to know that first-year shit. The big banks may not look favorably at that, as it probably affects your overall GPA. I think smaller banks may still be receptive, especially if you continue to stay active in ECs and get better grades.

 

Appreciate the fast reply CMoore0520.

Will take those ECs into consideration then. Thanks for the clarification.

Yeah, not too keen on accounting as you probably could tell (I knew all of it but bombed on the final exam). My uni doesn't replace the old grade when I retake the class. It just adds it on to my transcript. So that class is gonna stick out like a sore thumb I'm afraid.

I will however aim for much better grades (as I am anticipating) and will continue my strong work ethic. So theoretically if I can dish out some top-notch grades through the remainder of my degree, will recruiters still see a first semester subject as such a big deal? Especially if I retake it and do much better?

 

Thank you so much for your reply Oz.

My WAM is 71 (could have been 75 if it wasn't for that pathetic fail). I'm only in my second semester and finally studying what I love in relevance to my majors, so I'm quietly confident I can boost it even higher.

Would you consider my ECs "amazing"? I know about that double degree disadvantage, but I had silently hoped I could pull through with a solid WAM of say 75 and my ECs. Do you think my fail will hurt my chances too much?

Thanks once again champ

 

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