Rejected from NHS, help!

Applying to College
1

Hello everybody!
I am new to here, I just got into somewhat trouble and don’t know what to do. So, recently, I got rejected from NHS in my school. I have a very tense schedule, taking 5 APs this year, as far as I know just one person ever in our school before me tried to take that many and didn’t success. I have A’s on all of them, with final GPA of ~4.5. Also I was doing science fair this year(was the first person in my school to try that and went up to the state level) and had to stay late at night in the lab with my internship. This resulted in turning late assignments sometimes and sleeping for 3 hours/night with being late to school 18 times so far this year.
Why am I saying all of it. I applied to NHS, and for leadership I had started a Software Development club in my school and am a president in it, also making a series of lectures on physics for all high schoolers. For my community service I was helping with our tech group at school and am also trying to create a volunteering organization in our community to help Ukrainian people (I moved from there just 2 years ago because of the war).
There was one incident last summer, where I was not able to complete the summer assignment in time and, yeah this happened, I used ai for this assignment. I was rejected from this class, but my counselor said that this will not go anywhere and she even said that “if you drop this class now, the teacher and I, we will not let it go to NHS so you will get into it”.
And now I am getting a letter that I am rejected because of submitting late work, arriving late to school and having one plagiarism incident.

What I want to ask, is it worth to try to write an appeal?
I am going to talk with my counselor about that ai incident, but how can I make others forget, how can I mitigate the consequences? They said that they would not allow this case to proceed, because they know that I have always been honest and try to do everything to the maximum. They said that everything would remain between the three of us, the counselor, the teacher and me. Honestly, I also forgot about that incident, but it still came up. How can it affect my college application?
Will I still be eligible for NHS next year? (I am a junior)

I really don’t know what to do! Please tell me the truth, I have heard that this NHS is not worth it and is not important, but I have a feeling that they say that only to console.
Besides NHS, what can I do to that plagiarism incident? I was always an honest person and trying to deal with everything on my best on my own, and this one incident seems to ruin my whole life… Also, what about tardies? And late assignments?
My whole life MIT was my dream school… That’s why I jumped from algebra 1 and geometry courses in my freshman and sophomore years to calc BC now. That’s why I will be doing college credit courses. That’s why I am not sleeping all nights.

Please! Say what can I do!

2

It’s really not a big deal to be in NHS, all schools have such different requirements, some pretty easy. My youngest got in junior year but kicked out senior, he did all of his go,Untermeyer work but was too lazy to sit it them. Also, do not have a dream school, especially one you most likely won’t get into (no one has good odds).

5 Likes
3

Why do you care so much about NHS? Most colleges will not care. It might give you some service opportunities, but it sounds like you’ve already managed to create those for yourself on your own. This is not a big deal at all.

This is the far bigger concern. The best thing you can do at this point is do better. Do not repeat this mistake. Cut back on your commitments if you are so overwhelmed that resorted to such a thing.

MIT is great. So are a lot of other schools. MIT has an incredibly low admit rate - so low that you can do every thing right and still get rejected. Do not live your life trying to please MIT. It is not worth it.

10 Likes
4

There is a lot going on in this post, but I am going to address this one point.

I don’t think being in NHS or not matters.

  1. GPA and rigor are so so so much more important than being in NHS or not.
  2. kids in my town don’t bother joining NHS often because 1) the teacher who runs it is annoying (per kids) 2) it is a lot of work and they’d rather spend time doing other more impactful and unique things. 3) there are some weird pre-reqs for community service that are poorly conveyed and thus many people can’t actually join who are eligible by GPA
  3. Being in NHS doesn’t super differentiate you (lots of kids are in it).

For the rest, you are doing too much. You are very lucky if worst-outcome of cheating was you aren’t in NHS.

Sleeping 3 hours has serious impacts on your mental and physical health (never mind cognitive impairment and you shouldn’t be driving - if that is something you might be do).

You are likely doing way too much, so you should consider your next year schedule carefully.

8 Likes
5

NHS doesn’t matter AT ALL to colleges. They DO care about science projects, leadership, community service, etc. NHS offers a framework to help with that but if you do it on your own, it’s not different to them. So keep doing what you’ve been doing.

Ask your GC if the summer hw cheating appears in your file and if they’ll mention it in your recommendation. If not, you’re in the clear (as long as it doesn’t occur again, in which case it’d be seen as a pattern and would likely block you from many colleges.)

What math classes are you going to take Junior&Senior year?
What’s your schedule this year and next?
Have you been enrolled in ESL (if so, or if you have been in the US for as few as 2 years, note that you’re entitled to a Ukrainian/English dictionary during the SAT AFAIK).

It’s easy to have dream schools (basically one everybody’s heard of). It’s much harder to find universities you like, can afford, and are pretty sure you can get into.
You can read MIT’s APPLYING SIDEWAYS from the MIT admission teams.
Most importantly, figure out where else you will apply. You should have at least 2 colleges that you can see yourself at, that are affordable without parental loans, and that you’re basically sure you’ll get into.

3 Likes
6

Thank you for your reply! I see, it looks like NHS is really not a very big deal.
About dream school. Maybe you’re right, I should not have a dream school. Or have a couple with different odds of getting in. I am just starting my college journey, so I am currently looking at different colleges.
Thank you for bringing that up!

1 Like
7

Why do you care so much about NHS?

I have heard that NHS gives you opportunities for scholarships, that’s why I was concerned.

This is the far bigger concern. The best thing you can do at this point is do better. Do not repeat this mistake. Cut back on your commitments if you are so overwhelmed that resorted to such a thing.

I understand. I never did that before and, definitely after this, will not do it in future. I deleted all my accs from all ai services, so I am not using it anymore. I meant is there anything I could do with what already happened. When the teacher asked me why it seems like I used ai generator, I honestly answered yes and they liked that I didn’t try to hide or reject it.

8

NHS is BS at many schools. At my school, over half the kids get in. I didn’t even apply as a top 10% student in my grade, still got into some selective colleges. No need to fret about it.

Having a dream school is bad for several reasons- having a first choice or a preference is completely normal and okay but please don’t set your sights on a specific school so early and especially one with such a low admit rate.

1 Like
9

Thank you! This makes me feel a little bit better.

10

Honesty is best. It is good that you took responsibility for your mistake. Again, the most important thing is to never do it again. I think you have learned a lesson. If it is not in your file, then you should be OK.

11

YW! Not being in NHS didn’t affect me at all. I had community service anyway and one of the highest GPAs. It was just a name for something I already had. Spent my time better doing other things for school than filling out an application.

1 Like
12

If not, you’re in the clear (as long as it doesn’t occur again, in which case it’d be seen as a pattern and would likely block you from many colleges.)

I have never done it before and will never do that again, definitely after this.

What math classes are you going to take Junior&Senior year?

This year (junior) I am doing AP calc BC on my own and then will do the exam. But because I have to do some math class to graduate, I took AP precalc, you know, the new one. At that point it seemed reasonable but really it is not worth it. I understand this now and I regret that I got involved in all this; it would have been better to take some more worthwhile course. Next year I plan on taking AP Stats, since it is the only class available in our school that is higher than calc BC.

Have you been enrolled in ESL (if so, or if you have been in the US for as few as 2 years, note that you’re entitled to a Ukrainian/English dictionary during the SAT AFAIK).

I am a permanent resident so I don’t know if I am still entitled for using dictionary. Do you know a little bit about that? I will try to research this.

Most importantly, figure out where else you will apply. You should have at least 2 colleges that you can see yourself at, that are affordable without parental loans, and that you’re basically sure you’ll get into.

I understand that. I have a list of colleges, but that is just a thing that I loved MIT when visited its campus and talked to students and professors there.

13

Why are you not taking Calc BC at school if it is offered?

1 Like
14

Well, we do not have a calc BC offered in person at our school. I was too late with the decision to take it as an online class, so I could only register for an exam.

Well, I feel a little bit that a lot things have gone not as intended this year… and not the best way they could go…

15

I am sorry to hear that, and I am sure you are adjusting to a lot - that is not easy, of course.

Do you have a community college nearby? Would it be possible to take higher math through dual enrollment? (If that is of interest to you, of course.)

2 Likes
16

We have a Dean college nearby, also Olin (it is not a community college, it is just very close). I am new enough to the american system since arrival, so what is dual enrollment?

17

Dual enrollment allows high school students to take classes at a local college. Sometimes you will get both high school credit and college credit for classes, but sometimes you will receive only college credit. This is a way that advanced students can take college-level math, or other classes not offered at their high school. You should speak with your guidance counselor to see if this is a possibility.

1 Like
18

I agree that NHS is not important. I think that one of my daughters was probably in NHS, but I do not think that it was important at all in terms of university admissions nor in any other way. I do not think that my other daughter ever considered NHS. She did well in university admissions (5 for 5 with merit aid), attended a very good university, did well, graduated, and as of last week has now been accepted to a very good PhD program. All of this was without ever being in NHS and without as far as I know ever even thinking of being in NHS.

To me it sounds like you are putting too much pressure on yourself, or perhaps that our education system is putting too much pressure on you.

Every student needs to find the path that is right for them. You should also keep in mind that there are a huge number of very good universities. There will be a university or college that is appropriate for you. Right now that is not what you should be worrying about.

Right now you should find a way to pace yourself. Take on classes that are appropriate for you. Do not try to push ahead too quickly. Do not take too many AP classes. Do not jump ahead in math. We each learn at our own pace.

One daughter attended a high school that was very competitive and that had quite a few students who were pushing themselves to take many AP classes. Quite a few of these students felt stressed out. She had one friend who never took a single AP class. That friend went to a good university (probably ranked in the 100 to 150 range), and had a very marketable and practical major that was in the health care field. Who got a good job right after graduating university? Well, quite a few of my daughter’s friends did, but this included the friend who had never taken a single AP class. The friend is a very responsible, kind, and easygoing person who gets along very well with a wide range of people. She currently works in healthcare dealing directly with patients, and she does it very well. AP classes are not necessary to do well in life.

Dreams can turn into nightmares very quickly.

I am an MIT graduate / alumni. I know what MIT is like. In some ways it is a very good university. However, it is definitely not a great fit for all strong students. MIT is stressful. Classes go fast. There is a lot of homework. Exams are tough. Some students love it. Some students hate it. Some students love it and hate it at different times, or even at the same time. It is stressful.

To me it sounds like you are having trouble dealing with the stress of high school. To me this makes me doubt that MIT would be a good fit for you. There are lots and lots and lots of other universities that are very good and that can offer you a very good education.

Also, as an MIT graduate I have spent nearly all of my career working for a boss who had graduated from a less famous, and less stressful university.

You are trying to do too much. Take a step back. Take classes that are a good fit for you. Do not jump ahead in math. You will get there, but you need to get there at your own pace.

You cannot keep operating with this level of stress indefinitely. You need to take on a more realistic level of work.

1 Like
19

Thank you for explanation! I will look into it!

20

The best financial aid comes from the colleges themselves.
Some colleges provide a lot, based on your parents’ ability to pay or not. Some colleges don’t care if your parents can or cannot pay and do not provide aid to help but may offer merit scholarships, ie., money in exchange for your grades&test scores (if they’re above their average.) Some colleges provide nothing, in particular, large public universities not in your state.

To see the difference, you can look up “NPC”+ the name of these colleges: MIT, RIT, UIUC (non resident), SUNY Buffalo, Olin, Brandeis, Smith, GeorgiaTech, your flagship (best public university or universities in your state).
Look for the “net price”, ie., what your family would be expected to pay. The numbers should be quite different… and also eye opening if your parents or guardians haven’t looked at college costs ever or even if they haven’t looked it up recently.

Npc means net price calculator, a tool all universities must have on their website. Students are supposed to “run the NPC” on each college website before they apply and only apply to colleges that are wirhin the budget their parents can afford.
There are about 3,700 colleges in the US. Even the top 10%, roughly 375, are very good. You can borrow a book called Princeton review’s Best Colleges and look at those mentioned here as a startig point.

2 Likes