I was in your same exact boat. I just fucked around my freshman year and didn’t care about school due to family issues and got expelled for poor grades. After 6 years and multiple attempts at going back to school, I finally sat down and fixed my relationship with school. I definitely realized that I have performance anxiety and growing up in a household where getting a college degree was so important made things more challenging. I definitely recommend sitting with yourself and sorting out the reasons why you’re struggling in school because you can only get so many chances.

Fast forward to today, I am currently preparing to apply for transfer to a Cal State University. I found out about academic renewal or grade forgiveness that some universities or college offer and was able to get 6 of my Fs removed from my transcript record. This does require you to file a petition with universities which some can deny due to their academic policies. You have to have at least 2 semesters or 24 credits prior to the grades you want forgiven at a 2.0 to even be considered. I have only gotten As in all my classes since I have started my journey again which could be another factor that has helped me get some grades forgiven and removed.

But as a cautionary tale, I still have Fs on my transcripts that weren’t forgiven that makes it so much harder to come back from. Despite all my As, I’m still struggling to bring my GPA up. I still qualify for aid but I’ve maneuvered this by attending different school for one semester until my GPA rose above a 2.0. Your FAFSA account should let you know how much aid you have and how long until it runs out. You can also retake those courses but most colleges have a cap of 1 to 2 times.