Retaking class in college (Advice from a PROF in 2024)

You probably found yourself searching this topic because you either made a failing grade in a course, or you made a lower grade than you expected and you want to improve your G.P.A. by retaking the course.

Sometimes students who make a failing grade will have to retake a class because they’ll need the credits to graduate.

Other times, students will have to repeat a college class because their program requires a C or higher to apply those credits to their degree.

And in more uncommon situations, some students just want to get a better grade in a class because they want to replace the lower grade to improve their G.P.A. and make their transcript look better.

You probably have lots of questions and I have the answers.

Can you retake a college class?

Yes, in most instances colleges will allow students to repeat a class if they take it at the same institution. Typically the highest grade the student earns will be used to calculate their G.P.A. and some colleges will remove the lowest grade from their transcript. But it isn’t always that easy.

There could be some circumstances where you cannot repeat a class.

Let’s say you transferred to a university from another school. And you wanted to retake a class at your new college and replace a grade you earned from your first school.

The university won’t likely allow you to retake the class to replace the transfer credit.

Some courses at your university may not be repeated for credit, or there might be a limit on how many credit hours you can repeat. You will need to make sure the course can be repeated to begin with.

I find that a lot of universities will limit the amount of times you can retake a course. And most of the time the limit is THREE attempts.

I also know that some colleges will not let you retake a class for credit if you made a B in the class. You would need to make a C or lower to retake it for credit.

You should also be aware of any financial aid implications. In most instances, as an undergraduate, you will need to be enrolled in 12 credit hours to get aid. If you are in the United States and want to repeat a class to make a better grade in a course that you already PASSED, you can count these enrolled hours to satisfy your full-time status. But you can only do this one time.

And listen, some colleges may completely say NO to students who want to retake courses to improve their G.P.A. and will only allow students to retake classes if they fail or don’t make a satisfactory grade for their degree program.

If students are thinking about retaking a college class, they should talk with their academic advisor and read the college’s policies and student catalog to learn more about how they handle repeat coursework at their institution.

But KEEP READING to learn more about the most common policies I found and I know about as a former professor.

Is it bad to have to retake a class in college?

Obviously it isn’t ideal to have to repeat a college class, but it is not necessarily BAD to have to retake a class in college. If you have to retake a class in college, it could work out better for you because you will likely make a higher grade and master the content instead of barely scrapping by or getting a F.

If you have to retake a college class, the fact that you repeated the course might not even show up on your transcript.

Some colleges will allow you to request that the registrar remove the previous grade earned and replace it with the new grade.

But BEWARE, while some colleges will use the better grade to calculate your G.P.A., they may still have ALL attempts on your transcript. This means that anyone who looks at your transcript, and knows how to read it, will know that you repeated the class.

If you are planning on applying to other colleges or going to graduate school, they will look at your transcripts and see that you repeated courses.

Sometimes employers will also request your transcript and know you repeated courses too.

However, you might not have an option but to repeat the course.

And it could indicate to your future schools and employers that you are determined to succeed.

Is it okay to repeat a class in college?

If you made a passing grade, it might NOT be in your best interest to repeat the class. Some universities will still show the grade from your first attempt on your transcript. And your G.P.A. may not actually improve that much. However, if you need to repeat the class because you failed, you probably have no other choice if you need the class to graduate.

Something else to consider are your plans after college.

Are you planning on going to law, medical or graduate school?

Some of these highly specialized schools and programs may calculate your G.P.A. differently and may look at course duplications (repeat course) differently, and it could hurt you more than it will help you. That is if you are going to repeat it to earn a better grade after passing.

However, if you need the class to graduate, you won’t have a choice but to repeat the class.

Check to see if your college will allow you to request that the first attempt be removed from your transcript and be replaced with the new grade.

Be very careful to read your college’s policies if you simply want to try and make a better grade to improve your G.P.A.

Some universities may use your last attempt to calculate your G.P.A. so if you do worse than your first attempt, you might hurt yourself more.

Before you repeat a class, make sure you talk to academic advising at your college and find out how it will effect you overall.

There are so many factors to consider.

What happens to the bad grade on my transcript once I repeat the class?

If you retake a college class to replace a bad grade, some colleges will replace the lower grade with the new grade, and it will no longer be on your transcript. Sometimes colleges will keep the lower grade on the transcript, but show your new grade too. And the new grade will be calculated in your G.P.A.

In some programs or colleges, the NEW grade from the retake might not replace your OLD grade. They may use both in your grade calculations. Or your new grade is used to calculate your G.P.A. but the old grade is still visible.

If you are in a typical college or university and in an undergraduate program, I find that most universities will allow you to replace the lower grade.

But you should definitely read about your college’s policies before you assume that it will help your G.P.A. Your college might make you ask specifically for a grade forgiveness to initiate this process.

Be very careful because some universities may only use your LAST attempt, regardless if you made a worse grade or not, when they calculate your G.P.A. That would be terrible to do worse than you did the first time.

I also found some universities that said that the grade from your FIRST attempt wouldn’t be calculated in your G.P.A. if you repeated the course once.

But every repeat attempt beyond that would be used towards your G.P.A. calculation.

As a former professor, our university would not automatically remove the OLD grade after the student retook the course. The student would have to request a course duplication to remove the old grade. Sometimes advising would do it on the student’s behalf but things get overlooked.

Check your transcripts to make sure the old grade gets removed if your college allows it. And fill out any paperwork, if needed, to make sure it gets removed.

Can you retake a class you made a B or C in?

Not all colleges will let you retake a class unless you made a D or failed the course. And honestly, it probably won’t benefit you enough to retake a class in this situation. There are a lot of other students who need to take the course and they really don’t want students taking up seats unless they need the course credit.

Does repeating classes look bad on your transcript?

Repeating a college class might not look bad on your transcript because some colleges will replace the bad grade with your new grade after you retake the class. While some colleges will show both grades on your transcript. As a professor, I would think that employers and others would think that the student had determination to retake a class.

Can I repeat a class TWICE?

Yes, in most instances, you will be able to retake an undergraduate class more than once. In most universities, you will be able to retake a course up to three times. Some universities may charge higher tuition on the student’s third attempt. So, you can retake a class more than once, but will be limited to three attempts at most institutions.

But if you are in a graduate program, or a selective program, you might be limited to two attempts. And some universities might require you to petition to take a course a third time.

If you absolutely needed the class, and had to take it a fourth time, you would need to get special permission, if that’s even allowed at your college. I find that fourth attempts are RARE.

When you retake a class more than once, the school might consider this attempt differently regarding your G.P.A. calculations and how it appears on your transcript.

Also, an important consideration, is that some colleges may not let you repeat classes more than once if you have a satisfactory grade. Each college will specifically outline their policy.

Some students might have to take the class at another college and transfer it to their university. But it won’t likely get rid of your other grades from past attempts taken at your university.

That will all still be included in your G.P.A. and show up on your transcript according to their policies.

BEFORE you plan to take the course at another college and transfer it for credit, check with your institution to make sure they will allow the course to be transferred.

Will I earn more credit hours if I retake a class?

No, most colleges will only allow you to retake the same class to replace the grade. If you retake a class, and pass it twice, you won’t earn additional academic credit for both courses. Instead, you are retaking it for a better grade only.

Stanford University outlines their process here and explains that you can retake a class, but you aren’t going to earn additional credits for it.

Again, check with your university because there are so many variables.

Check out my disclaimers. While I was a professor, I am not your professor. I am not an academic advisor. This is for informational purposes and should not be construed as professional or academic advice. Federal and state regulations and policies may change which could effect this information. Also, it will depend on your academic institution and which country you are located.

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