So I’m a high school sophomore, and this whole epidemic has provided me with a nice opportunity to get a nice foothold on one of my lifelong interests – the field of neuroscience.
I was able to get my hands on a few introductory texts, most of which I have already finished in the last two months, and my understanding of the field has grown massively. But I’ve done all this at the expense of my studies. I must admit that I haven’t been attending my online classes as much as I should, but I wonder if maybe my lack of diligence could be morphed into something that would benefit me in the long run.
I’ve been able to get in contact with some local professors, one of which has agreed to mentor me, and I hope that with this, I’d be able to gain some experience in academia and, by the time college admissions rolls around, have something to show for it that would make up for my lower GPA.
But that’s a sizable gamble that I’d be taking, and I’m not sure if I should completely commit to it. Should I put my focus towards neuroscience, or should I try and improve my GPA while I still can? Sorry if this was posted in the wrong section.
My understanding is that neuroscience is an area where you need both a bachelor’s degree and some sort of graduate degree.
You are going to need good grades to get into university. Then you are going to need good grades in university to get into a good graduate program.
I think that it is a mistake to neglect your grades. I do think that it is okay for your “ECs” to be neuroscience related.
By the way, I also think that neuroscience is fascinating. The TV series Star Trek used to have a line “Space, the final frontier”. I have long thought that this is wrong. The final frontier is the inside of the human mind.
Not keeping up your GPA will limit your college options, and there is simply no way to get the credentials required for a career in neuroscience without academic qualifications. Plenty of students will apply to college with strong lab experience- even with co-authorship on papers- and a high GPA. I’m with @DadTwoGirls: if you can, do both- but don’t sacrifice your GPA.
The way grades are set up are a bit funny for my county: you can raise your grade up half a grade distribution (e.g. a B+ to an A-), but only if you do a good amount of work. Otherwise, my GPA stays the same.
My grades were OK before the start of the quarantine, with my GPA sitting at a 3.63 unweighted, so when school starts up again, I won’t have the opportunity to be as aggressive in my studies. I understand the importance of a student’s GPA, but I just want to know if the tradeoff is worth it. Will it look better if my GPA is .1, .2 lower than what it could have been if I have strong experience (for my lack of skill, that is), or have the higher GPA but not as much outside of school? Given the circumstances I’m in, it would be the least advantageous to try and split my efforts, not only on paper, but also personally, so I’m going to have to put my weight somewhere.
There is no substitute for strength in core academic disciplines- no Adcom is going to look at a C in chemistry and say “oh but look, he’s so interested in Neuroscience that he’s gotten a professor to work with him”. Doing well in your core subjects is what gets folks to read the rest of your application.
How do you know that you’re trading off .1 of your GPA?
Do your best to stay on top of your studies; explore other things you are interested in; you are still in HS so neuro is an interest- not a major, not a career. There is no way to contribute to the field of neuroscience without having a thorough grounding in the typical HS science subjects; you will need statistics and calc in college, so focus on mastering whatever math subjects your HS offers; etc.
High school is supposed to be the time to get a well rounded education that will provide the foundation for your higher education at college/grad school. Pursue neuroscience as an EC but not at the expense of your core classes.