"C" in AP science class for both semesters..how will this affect college admissions?

Parents Forum
1

The class is AP Physics. D has struggled in it all year. They already took the final, and final semester grades were posted. As stated in the title of this post, she’s received a C for both semesters. (She did not bother taking the AP exam.)

I know most colleges want students to have three years of science, two with lab. AP Physics was her third year. Previously, she’s had Honors Biology (A both semesters) and Honors Chemistry (A first semester and B second…) She just never got the Physics…

Since she has a C, will this stand as her third year of required science?

Will many colleges want her to take another year, in light of the C?

She is signed up for ONE science elective next (senior) year, Environmental Science. She needs to take Health first semester, so doesn’t have room for a full fourth year… (she’s also taking Band and AP Spanish. She’s drum major in Band next year, so needs to take Band.)
She told me she’s “done with science”, and doesn’t want to take a full fourth year, but I’m wondering if she needs to see about signing up for Health in the summer, and taking another science elective first semester next year.

Here are the schools she is interested in applying to next fall:
UW-La Crosse and/or Eau Claire
U MN - Duluth
Ohio U.
Bowling Green State, OH
U of Kansas
IL Wesleyan
Ohio Wesleyan
Susquehanna U. (PA)

maybe a few other small LACs…

She wants to possibly major in History, Anthropology (or minor), or English and study another language. Not interested in hard sciences or Engineering or Nursing, etc.

Her current GPA is 3.5 and 31 ACT. She plans to re-take the ACT to try for a 32, and she brough her grades up this semester in everything but the Physics. All other grades are As and Bs, including in AP Calculus and AP Language (A- or B+ in both).

Please advise me in how to advise her, :). Her GC is over-extended and very difficult to contact. I do plan on making an appt. with her college counselor soon.

My main concern is that the C in her third year of science will keep her from being admitted to the schools on her list. Yes? No?

What can she do at this point to improve the situation, if that’s possible?

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for any insights and advice.

2

I just called the high school and spoke with the secretary at the college counselor’s office (He wasn’t in - of course.) She reassured me that it’s all going to be okay, given her overall GPA and other grades. She did suggest we talk to D’s GC, though. She transferred my call but I was on hold for a bit. I know GC is super-busy right now and she’s there during the summer. I’ll call her back and set up an appt. so we know how to proceed from here.

I also looked up some old threads on here about this matter. It seems that D may be okay as long as she doesn’t expect to be admitted into very selective colleges, esp. as grades in other classes are good.

So, this, on top of a couple Cs from last semester, will probably hurt her chances at IL Wesleyan and OWU. But I already knew that.

She is interested in small LACs and we probably need to find her some that are safeties.

Sigh.

3

Personally, I don’t think a single C for one particular class will affect your child’s admissions. You’re overthinking tthis. D15 had more than one C and she was admitted to all her schools

If your daughter is not interested in Environmental Science, let her drop it and replace it with a a class she finds interesting. She is much more likely to do her best taking an elective in a subject she likes. You don’t want another C, and college admissions officers will wonder why she’s torturing herself.

4

A “C” in AP Physics is highly unlikely to keep your D out of the colleges on her list. Colleges usually only look at final grades, not quarter or semester grades. Does your local high school post semester grades on the official transcript? I’ve never seen any of our area high schools do that but I can imagine a given school/school district doing just about anything.

5

Thank you, @SlackerMomMD . Yes, I suspect I’m over thinking and over-reacting, after all…

I had actually suggested, earlier this semester, that she take another elective like an art or photography class (which she is good at and enjoys, but has never had time to pursue in high school). She wanted to take the Environmental Science, though, just in case.

And then, I saw the second semester C in Physics and freaked out myself. Inwardly! I haven’t said anything to her, yet, without talking to the GC…
She actually has a few Cs, but all in Physics and Calculus and Pre-Calc. Thank you for letting me know about your D. That is very reassuring.

She had originally signed up for Astronomy, actually, and I asked her if she was nuts. She had this idea that Intro Astronomy would be a piece of cake. Um, probably not. And it involves physics! So she changed it to Environmental…
When we talk with the GC, I’ll ask if she can be truly done with high school science for now, if she wants, and take something else.

Fwiw, she’s also taking 4 AP classes senior year, so it’s not like she’s slacking off.

6

C grades are passing, so colleges that require or recommend three years of science will be fine with her meeting that baseline requirement or recommendation, unless they specifically require B or higher grades (unlikely, but you can check their web sites if you are that worried). Whether the C grades adversely impact her chance of admission depend on how competitive admission to the colleges (or the specific divisions or majors that she applies to) are.

7

She has several C’s already in addition to the C in Physics? And her GPA is still 3.5?

I’d be more concerned about having several C grades if her list didn’t seem like a good, balanced one.

Are you instate for Ohio? She has at least one safe bet on that list with her current ACT score and grades.

8

Yes, semester grades are posted on the transcript, I believe, but without the - or +, if given, and quarter grades are not posted.

9

Thank you, everyone, for calming me down about this, :).

10

I don’t think the C will make a huge difference. It’s too bad she didn’t take the AP exam though. If she scored well enough it would have been 1 less science class she would have to take in college.

11

@thumper1, she has 4 Cs overall - all in AP classes, unfortunately; AP Pre-Calc, AP Physics 1st and 2nd semester, and AP Language last semester, because she turned in some assignments late (she brought it up to an A this semester). Apart from not being talented in Calculus and Physics, she also developed a lousy work ethic last semester. Although her grades overall this semester have improved, I am concerned about her occasional decisions to be a slacker in classes she should excel in (English). I do think part of it may have come from her being fed up with the math and science class. Or she just gets lazy sometimes.

The 3.5 (unweighted) may drop after this semester to a 3.4 or even 3.3, idk. She has been able to get As (and a few Bs) in other AP courses and Honors courses, as well as her regular classes, which probably balanced out her GPA overall.

At this point, I’m actually questioning the wisdom of her taking the ACT again in two weeks. I’d like to see her final grades first. And hoping she will improve next semester, as well… I’m thinking she can always take it again in October… We’ll see.

We are not in-state for Ohio. We are in IL. I forgot to put IL State on the list, that’s another one, but not her first choice. She wants to go to another state. I’m for it, I think the experience would be good for her, she has met few people from other areas, even in the Midwest.

I really like Ohio U for her, but it may not be a safety. I’m thinking BGSU may be, and their academic offerings are aligned with what she’s interested in studying. Their OOS tuition is pretty affordable. So is Ohio’s and the others. I do know KU will be a safety too.

At this point, I don’t see her qualifying for merit at state schools, but KU and the UW schools are part of the Midwest Exchange Program with IL for reduced tuition.

Cost is not an issue, except for the ROI factor on a kid who is very bright but not always so disciplined.

12

I don’t think the problem is the C’s. Someone more savvy about the schools on her list can weigh in on whether she needs another safety school.

I think something she needs to tackle is attitude. College classes move VERY fast compared to HS, and if her response to not understanding something in HS is to ignore the problem until the midterm or the final- that’s not going to lead in C’s in college, that leads to dropping below the minimum GPA required to be enrolled.

I wouldn’t worry about a kid with the occasional C who knows to ask the teacher for help, who goes to the tutoring center, who has formed a physics study group with one or two of the stronger kids in the class. I’d worry about a kid who thinks that because she’s not a strong natural math student, somehow she can fake her way through it. This is not going to cut it in college.

13

Definitely, blossom. Completely agree. We have talked with her many times about this. I do think it has sunk in this semester, given her improvement in all other classes besides the Physics (I really think that was just very challenging for her). It’s one reason why I’d like to see her at a smaller school.

Hopefully, she will continue to improve and not backslide. Aside from advice and making sure she just parks herself at the public library for a couple of hours most nights, the rest is up to her.

A friend suggested community college to “ease” her into the college experience, but CC would NOT be a good option for her. I think it’d be counter-productive. I honestly believe she is ready to be away from home, emotionally and intellectually. She is certainly intellectually ready for a four-year college. She needs the chance to prove she can succeed at a 4-year college and we will give her that.

But, first, we need to get her into one…

14

Just as I don’t think D’s Physics grades will impact D’s admissions, I also agree with you and see little value in retaking an ACT of 31. A 31 is in 97 percentile whereas D’s hoped for 32 is in 98 percentile. It just seems to be a waste of time, effort, money, and needless stress to retake ACT. It doesn’t really add anything to application.

15

32 versus 31 ACT (or SAT equivalent) may be a threshold for large merit scholarships at some schools, if that is a concern.

16

Yes, if she can hold onto the 3.5 and gets a minimum of 32, she is eligible for more scholarships.

17

My daughter stopped when she got 31 on the ACT. I wish she had tried one more time but given where she started (27), I understood her fatigue. If you can convince your daughter to study and take the ACT one last time, more power to you. More scholarships open to students at 3.5 GPA and 32 ACT.

FWIW, my daughter matured a lot academically get senior year. Her best grades ever actually came second semester senior year. So even though your daughter may still have some areas of improvement, she may improve there next year before she his college.

Do some early action or rolling admissions in the fall to the schools where her 31 ACT is well above the 75th percentile. (Kansas? Bowling Green? Ohio Wesleyan? the Wisconsin schools?) Some schools that say Early Action are somewhat like rolling in that they will give you a decision within a certain time after submitting an application.

18

What a C in AP Physics Junior year tells me is that she is smart but not crazy smart. She should have probably taken Honors Physics this year and then AP Science of some sort Senior year. She will get into a good college but not the Top Most (but that is the same for pretty much everyone).

19

I don’t think there is such a thing as AP PreCalc. :slight_smile:

With a 31 ACT, a reasonably challenging schedule, and a 3.3+, I don’t think you have to worry about her getting into some very solid, if not spectacular, schools.

20

I’m pretty sure it was called “Pre-Calculus”. One semester only and combined with one semester previously of AP Trigonometry. Or maybe it was Calculus AB? But, she just finished a year of Calculus AB. Whatever it was called, it was a pre-cursor and introduction to Calculus. She also took it again over the summer, and got a B.

As for the AP Physics, Honors Physics is not offered at her school for some reason. It’s either regular or AP. since she did well in her other science classes, I understand why it was thought she’d be okay in the physics…
Her GC actually suggested she sign up for Calculus BC senior year. I told her to take AP Statistics - which she’ll actually need for an Anthropology or History major, and she did. She’s actually pretty good at math, and seemed to do much better at the Calculus once she decided to really apply herself.

Thanks, everyone, again, for all of these very helpful and reassuring comments!