Im in my second semester of junior year with a 3.86 uw gpa cumulative and a 4.66 weighted. I’m hoping to get As in all my other classes (5 AP’s + soccer) and will possibly be getting a semester c in Honors Precalc, how does this affect my chances of getting into schools like Northwestern
for context last semester I got As in everything but Precalc, I got a b
My bigger concern is NOT university admissions at this point. My main concern is that calculus is very heavily dependent upon its prerequisites. In my experience if you are very strong at high school algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and precalculus, then calculus is very straightforward. However, I have consistently heard that students who struggle in ANY of these prerequisites frequently find calculus to be very difficult.
Calculus is also very useful in a variety of courses that you are likely to take in university. This is not just limited to math classes. Physics of course depends a lot on calculus. However, there are also some places where engineering, chemistry, economics and even social sciences make use of calculus, as do some applications of computer science.
Math is an area where whatever you are studying now depends a lot of what you took in the past, and what you are likely to be studying next year is likely to depend a lot on what you are studying now. This goes on for years and year and a long line of classes.
I do think that this makes acceptance to Northwestern significantly less likely. However, there are a lot of very good universities, and I think that this is a far lower concern compared to the issue of being ready for other math classes in the future.
Can you explain why you are finding precalculus to be difficult? How have you done in math classes in the past? Have you tried getting a tutor?
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Straight A kids get turned down to Northwestern. There’s a lot more involved in GPA.
Math builds. You need to stop and learn because what about next year and college math.
Get tutoring. Get help. Make sure you don’t over stretch next year. Maybe they have regular math.
Northwestern is not the concern. You are unlikely b4 this but yes it doesn’t help. Great if you can get a B but more importantly you need to understand the material.
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First I’d stop with the idea of Northwestern or any other one place as your dream type school. Northwestern has below a 10% acceptance rate and even students with perfect stats are not assured of admission.
Secondly, agree with comments above – math is cumulative. Job 1 should be solidifying your understanding of pre-calc. See your teacher for extra help, consider a tutor, use online resources such as Khan Academy, etc. You want to be ready for calculus.
I’ve gotten As in Geometry and Honors Algebra 2, the afterschool support thing at my school didn’t seem helpful, but I admit I should have involved out of school tutors beforehand, I get the concepts but on quizzes I often don’t have time to check for stupid mistakes
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Well forget the college name - attention to detail or time management are things to get a hold of. Good life skills.
My guess is a C is deeper rooted though.
What is your math plan next year ?
Ap stat
alright I already knew Nw was a reach, what about schools like Boston College, I might ED
BC is another highly competitive admit. You can always do a chance me thread using the CC format.
Note that AP Stat will not be considered a rigorous math class at competitive colleges. Most applicants will have some calculus.
Check with your teacher - but AP Stat isn’t rigorous. But they may say you’re not ready and maybe there’s a regular 12th grade math. But AP Stats or what you are receommended to is fine for you - but NU with Pre Calc and AP Stat probably wasn’t happening anyway - but GPA is important - but one pert of your record which includes rigor, test scores, ECs, LORs, essays and more.
Plus we don’t know your budget, etc - so a chance me or match me - you can list your entire profile and we can tell you if you’re on pace or give you suggestions.
Of course, college planning starts with a budget - that’s A, B and C - so you need to talk to mom and dad about what they can pay first. NU is $90K+ today and only has need aid. Are they able/willing to spend that or do you qualify for need aid?
i dont think we need aid
Then the question is - are your parents willing to pay $90K+ a year for a college when you can go for as low as $25K or so - and to other privates for $40-50K.
Before you build a college list, these are important questions to have answered - because just because you want a college doesn’t mean your family will pay.
But when you are ready, you can do a Chance Me or Match me. I’m that dad - my kid had $50K a year so couldn’t apply to Northwestern because had they gotten in, I wouldn’t have sent her.
Boston College is likely “easier” than Northwestern (does not get much more selective than Northwestern) but it is also likely a “reach” school for you. Boston College has about a 12.6% acceptance rate with 95% of admitted students being in the top 10% of their high school class. In addition, the average SAT is 1500, while the average ACT is 34.
You certainly want to have some highly selective/competitive schools - reach schools - on your list (why not - you never know). More important, you need to know which schools fall in that bucket for you, you need to have accurate perspective. In this case, I would say both Northwestern and Boston College fall in the reach school bucket.
Bc is another $90k plus - $93k in fact so OP needs to chat mom and dad first. BC is Catholic. Do they want that? An SLU, Dayton or Creighton might be much less if the school is too much. And a Drake or Butler or U Denver might be more budget friendly NUs. Or the ultimate NU clone that’s been doling out the merit - the ‘Cuse.
But OP needs to start listening building without naming schools and understanding the financial landscape.
OP - here is the Northwestern Net Price Calculator. Have mom/dad fill out. It will give a cost. They can decide if they’re willing and able to pay. No loans. If not, what will they pay ? Then you build a list from there.
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He asked about BC - why I responded about BC. Not suggesting BC - simply responding to his inquire regarding BC.
I understand. My comment was related to him and price. He opened a chance me and said money is not a factor, which likely means he’s not talked to mom and dad about it yet. Sometimes I hit reply even when talking to OP. I know that confuses. Sorry.
While I agree it is critical that the OP have the money conversation with their parents, for some families finances are NOT a factor. I’d suggest tabling that conversation until the OP comes back with their status.
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Please note that the OP has started a chance me thread to discuss the other issues. As such I’m going to close this thread to avoid cross posts as I don’t think there is anything else to say about the potential C in pre calc.