Summer Session (2024)

FAQs

Do summer schools help you pass? ›

Taking a summer school class can help you stay on track with your degree program to meet graduation requirements. In summer school, you can: Retake a class you failed or dropped to improve your understanding of the subject and your grade.

For a student that is comfortable with a 15 credit load during the fall or winter semester, the following is a recommendation for summer loads. A student here for 12 weeks should take a maximum of 12 Credit Hours. A student here for 8 weeks should take a maximum of 8 Credit Hours.

Summer college classes aren't on the surface “harder”, but some students may find them more challenging, primarily because of the condensed timeline.

How do summer classes affect GPA? Grades from summer classes apply to your GPA the same as spring and fall courses. You can use summer classes to help improve your GPA by retaking classes you struggled with or failed.

Even just one especially low grade, such as a D or F, can really bring down your GPA and hurt your chances of getting into competitive colleges. Even if the class shows up as a retake on your transcript, if you got a good grade in it the second time around, that will look much better than having a very low grade.

Some schools are more stringent and may not promote you to the next grade or make you attend summer school if you fail. However, other schools may let you move on to the next grade even if you fail, but they may hold you back if you fail again.

You can choose to take courses to get ahead or even make up for credits you've missed. There are definite benefits worth considering that make summer classes a great option. Inherently, summer classes increase the chance for you to raise your grade point average (GPA).

When you take a course in summer school, you often have to complete a full semester of study in four to six weeks. This means your professors have to pack more into each day than they would during the spring and fall semesters. Sometimes the classes are longer, and other times the homework is more intense.

To elaborate, the national average for GPA is around a 3.0, so a 2.7 puts you below average nationally. Keep in mind the 3.0 national average represents all students, not just students applying to college, so the average GPA of students admitted to colleges is higher than the national average.

Is a GPA of 3.5 good in college? ›

Most commonly, students graduate cum laude (Latin for "with praise") when they earn a 3.5-3.7 GPA, magna cum laude ("with great praise") when they earn a 3.7-3.9 GPA, and summa cum laude ("with highest praise") when they earn a 3.9 GPA or higher.

Summer classes can save you money, set you up to graduate early, and help you knock out general education requirements in an accelerated format. But signing up for summer courses can also mean missing out on opportunities like traveling, part-time jobs, and internships.

Not only will you not be stuck in that class for the full semester, but it can also open up your schedule to take classes that you are interested in during the school year. And on top of that, you might even graduate earlier!

Summer learning can help kids who struggle with transitions to develop healthy and effective study skills, improve their organizational skills, or just help them feel prepared for the next step in their educational journey.

The Cons Of Taking Summer Classes

You'll be taking tests and quizzes more frequently. Class options are limited due to the number of students requesting them. Many types of financial aid packages don't include provisions for summer classes. You won't have as much downtime due to classes, homework, and studying.