GPA Medical Addendum Question Forum

[InTheWater]

Hey everyone quick question-

During my fall semester of freshman year I became very ill and was hospitalized for almost half of the semester due to a brain cancer scare. I was able to complete the semester however my GPA was a 2.0, without failing any classes.
I finished the year and transferred to a school back home and since I was released from the hospital I have a cumulative GPA of 3.6.
Obviously I plan on submitting a GPA addendum but I guess my question is how much do the adcoms take these into consideration? Will they look past my unfortunate semester and give me the benefit of the doubt by considering my 3.6?
If anyone has had a similar experience could you please share your outcomes and what not.

Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks!

[Ti Malice]

They generally don't make much of an impact, but, as you plan to do, it's still good to explain. If you're conspicuously silent about it, some adcomms will probably come up with an idea that casts you in a less favorable light. You can probably view including this addendum as the equivalent of a weak positive soft. All else being equal, you would look a little better than an applicant that didn't say anything. I'm sure some cynical adcomms suspect they're being fed bullshit with a fair number of addenda (particularly bad idea for something so easily falsifiable), so you can enhance your credibility by concluding with an offer to provide a record of your stay upon request (they won't ask).

Good luck!

[ManOfTheMinute]

had a 1.9 my first semester for medical issues, then 3.97 and I don't think my outcomes were all that bad... lemme know if you'd like me to PM you my addendum

[bp shinners]

Hey everyone quick question-

During my fall semester of freshman year I became very ill and was hospitalized for almost half of the semester due to a brain cancer scare. I was able to complete the semester however my GPA was a 2.0, without failing any classes.
I finished the year and transferred to a school back home and since I was released from the hospital I have a cumulative GPA of 3.6.
Obviously I plan on submitting a GPA addendum but I guess my question is how much do the adcoms take these into consideration? Will they look past my unfortunate semester and give me the benefit of the doubt by considering my 3.6?
If anyone has had a similar experience could you please share your outcomes and what not.

Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks!

If they really want you otherwise, but your GPA is lower than they'd like, the addendum might be enough to push you over the edge. For a legitimate medical problem, the addendum certainly won't hurt (assuming it's written decently), so you might as well write it.

You might also want to contact your old school to see if you can get a retroactive medical withdrawal. Chances aren't great, but it'll only take a few hours to try and the upshot is huge.

[Ruluo]

had a 1.9 my first semester for medical issues, then 3.97 and I don't think my outcomes were all that bad... lemme know if you'd like me to PM you my addendum

ManOfTheMinute--

Please don't be misleading. Your outcomes had nothing to do with your addendum and everything to do with your TLS profile picture of Ron Swanson...