How I Went From Failing to Barely Passing with a 'C' at UCLA

In the spirit of a new school year, I wanted to share my story of nearly failing a class in my sophomore year. In this video, I discuss the pressures of academics, extracurriculars, recruitment, work, and personal challenges. This story revolves around (1) getting the lowest exam score in my life and (2) barely scraping by with my first ever “C” in a course. Dropping from valedictorian in high school to the second-lowest in my college course was a huge shock. This 1 “C” tanked my GPA by 0.09, and it took me 6 As to break even and recover the loss. Toward the end, I cover some tips for negotiating grades, and I'm hoping that this can help anyone who might be in a similar situation.

0:00 - Introduction
0:42 - Overview of External Factors
2:28 - Situation During Midterms Season
7:56 - Negotiating to Get Back Points on My Final
8:27 - Success
8:50 - Summary of Steps and Advice
11:42 - Closing

[mahiamaryamupoma]

OMG!!! You have gone through a lot that quarter. I have seen your other video where you took 8 courses and got A in all of them. Could never imagine you also got C due to a different circumstance. I feel so assured now that life happens and that’s absolutely okay. I was feeling depressed after doing a lot just to maintain 4.0 at ucla. But your video makes me feel good about myself and the way you turned it around, is so unbelievably brave of you. I would literally gave up if it were me.