4.4 gpa but bad test taker

College Search & Lists
1

Ok, so here’s my deal. I go to a school that is very supportive for me academically because they approach learning in a different way. I’m very smart and it doesn’t make it hard for me to grasp or learn a new concept. My issue is standardized tests. I got a 24 on my ACT and a 2 on my most recent AP test, but i got a 98% in that class.

I really love the University of Pennsylvania and UCs in my area, but I don’t know how I can appeal to them. I have a passion for learning but my scores dont reflect it. I participate in plenty of extracurriculars in school. My question is: how do I get schools to understand im not a good test taker? And am I still eligible to get into harder UC’s although I am a poor test taker?

2

im rly surprised u got a 98% in the class but got a 2 on the AP test. Something is wrong with that class. You need to get a higher ACT score to become a competitive applicant at some of the harder UC’s

3

How did you get a 4.4 without getting good grades on tests? Does your school not have tests?

The problem is that your college will have tests and in college, most of the grades come from tests. They don’t give the same type of credit for homework and class participation that you may have experienced in high school. I think it would be better to focus on schools that your ACT matches.

4

Bottom line, you will need to have higher scores to get into the more selective schools. First, think why you consistently underperform on exams, and work on solutions. (Perhaps a learning disability is to blame? Do you need more time?) Study for the tests. Get a book to help you boost ACT/SAT. Take online tests for practice. If you can afford it, take a class or hire a tutor. Another option, as a California resident, is to do your first two years at a community college and transfer to a UC - that route avoids the SATs/ACTs altogether. Just know that you will have to take exams in college; and at the elite schools these exams will be tough.

5

Do you have accommodations for school? Are those same accommodations in place for your standardized testing?

6

Did other students who did well in the class get better AP test scores? If not, perhaps the class did not teach the material well enough.

In any case, UCs tend to emphasize courses/grades/GPA more than SAT/ACT scores in admissions. A 24 ACT is right in the range of ACT range of UCR and UCSC, and at the higher end at UCM. But improved test taking skills will be helpful in general later:

  • Many college courses base a much larger portion of grading on tests.
  • Graduate and professional school applications involve testing (GRE, MCAT, LSAT, GMAT, etc.).
  • Some professional licensing requires testing (FE/PE, NCLEX, Bar, etc.).
7

The UCs and CSUs heavily use GPA, so that is in your favor. However, be sure to apply to a bunch of them…not just a few…and include some “safeties”.

Forget UPenn unless you can get your scores up. You can try some test optional schools.

A concern, tho, is that your school has grade inflation and/or doesn’t teach difficult concepts.

8

Keep taking the ACT as your scores are likely to go up as you become more comfortable with the test.

Also, look into Hampshire College, which doesn’t even accept standardized tests when making admissions decisions. Lastly, look into test optional schools such as Bowdoin College, Bryn Mawr College, and Bates College.

9

If you don’t get your test scores up you will not be a viable candidate for schools like Penn. It is hard to tell if it is a matter of grade inflation at your HS or poor taking on non-classroom tests. If it is the latter, you should try to figure out why you can do well on an in-class exam and not on an AP test (anxiety, preparation etc.).

Also if you can’t improve on your standardized tests, you should look into some of the many wonderful test optional schools. http://www.fairtest.org/university/optional/state

10

Excellent in-class grades and bad standardized test scores are pretty common for students with learning differences such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, slow-processing, etc. Not at all unusual. What matters for the OP is finding a good place to study that will offer appropriate accommodations for the learning differences.

11

Two things struck me, and of course they lead to two different issues and maybe approaches to college.

This, more than low test scores, stood out to me. If you attend a school that approaches learning differently, then schools like Penn may not been appropriate for you. The low test scores (aka, the traditional approach) seem to bolster that suspicion.

While I know students who have transitioned very well going from an unconventional high school environment to Penn, they also scored well with traditional testing (SAT, SAT subject tests). That doesn’t seem to be the case here.

Instead of asking “How do I make myself into a successful traditional student?” so you can go to named schools like Penn or UCLA, maybe you can ask “Where can I study that supports me and extends the same approach to learning to the college levelg” There are schools that may work better for you. Hampshire, to pick a college out of thin air, is test-blind. It won’t look at any standardized tests. Plus, Hampshire has a different approach to college education than other colleges.

This also caught my eye. Students often fall into the trap thinking it’s enough to understand the words of a new concept. It’s not. Practice is necessary to fully learn and internalize what the new concept means and does. This is especially the case in math, science but it also holds for English grammar and writing.

In order to do well on standardized tests, such as the ACT, practice is often necessary. If you spent your entire education in a traditional education setting with lots of standardized tests, you’re probably fairly well prepared. If, however, your school eschews standardized testing, you actually have to learn and practice how to take these exams.

So, depending on your particular situation, you can practice taking the ACT or look for alternative colleges or do both. If it were my child, I’d strongly recommend doing both.

12

my school has tests but they are pass/fail only and we dont have finals

13

Thank you for not calling me dumb like most of the other replies lol. I’m thinking that a small factor of my inability to do well on tests is my schools lack of installing them into our curriculum like a normal public school.

Also thank you for pointing out that I probably wouldn’t like Penn anyways. I’ll be looking for schools that fit into my style of learning better.

14

UC probably is not good for you either, because they are so big and for a smart person with low test score taker, he will get lost in that. Try to look into CTCL schools

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colleges_That_Change_Lives

15

Why don’t you try enrolling a prep class

16

Or you could apply to some colleges that are test optional. A lot of very prestigious schools are test optional.

17

Something does not add up here. Speak to your counsellor roger advice on how to proceed.

18

“To get”