In 10th grade I failed the first semester of Advanced Placement (AP) European History and I was upset. I had never failed a class before, so this was very nerve wracking for me because that was something that could’ve hurt my future. I knew I needed to do something to fix it because I did not want it to affect my grade point average (GPA).

I asked my AP European History teacher for help because I was struggling in her class, as history was never one of my strongest subjects. My teacher sat me next to somebody who was passing her class and also made sure to ask me questions frequently during her class to make sure I understood what we were learning. This didn’t last long though because half way through second semester, COVID-19 came around and I was stuck doing packets of notes.

Thankfully the notes were easy, but retaining that information was a different story. My history teacher told me that the only way she could change my first semester grade is if I pass the AP test. This was bad news for me because even though I was doing the notes, I could not remember anything I was writing down. Also, since the AP tests were taken at home, they were going to be harder. I did not do anything to prepare myself for this test.

In May, when the AP exam began, I sat there for a good fifteen minutes wondering what in the world I was going to write about. Eventually, I wrote something down and that was the end of it. I wasn’t shocked by my score (I got a 2), but now my chance at fixing that grade was gone. That wasn’t the only chance though.

Technically, I did not need to retake that semester because I passed Western Civilization, so for a year (11th grade) I did nothing about it. Although I didn’t necessarily need to do anything about it, it still really bothered me, so this year I begged to retake it. I almost didn’t finish the course, but I pushed through and passed with a B. It didn’t replace the F, but it did count as history credits and it boosted my GPA.

Now, I will be attending one of the best public universities in the U.S., the University of California San Diego. I am very grateful that I had the opportunity to fix my grade and take advantage of the school’s resources. Failing is not ideal; it is a setback, but with the proper support system and mentality you can always come back from it. Goodluck!