So the 2016 AP scores came in today. I got 2’'s on both Lang and APUSH. I transferred schools after the first semester. The teachers at my new school weren’t as “strict” with their course work as my previous AP teachers. I felt like I wasn’t prepared. Which is my own fault of course. I’m just making excuses…
20 on the ACT. Terrible, IK
3.5 overall GPA
As you can see my stats are rubbish. I don’t even qualify for the LIFE scholarship in SC! I feel a bit discouraged to take AP classes this year. I wanted to take at least 3 so I could raise my GPA. At the same time. Taking rigorous courses can have a negative affect on my GPA too(if i don’t do well that is).
I just need help on deciding what I should do my senior year.
-Should I retake the ACT?
-Should I also take the SAT?
-Should I bother taking AP classes? If not, will getting straight A’s in regular(CP) courses raise my average GPA? I’m aiming for 3.7-.8
I just wanna get up into college without wounding up in 60k debt
I don’t know how many times you have taken the ACT, but I would definitely recommend trying it one more time. With a little extra practice you probably have a good chance at raising your score at least a few points. I don’t think taking the SAT is really necessary since they’re both somewhat similar standardized tests. Lastly, I wouldn’t force yourself to take any APs next year unless you WANT to be in those courses. If you are interested in the subjects you’re being taught, you hopefully will have more motivation to study for those courses and they therefore won’t be detrimental to your GPA.
Take the SAT and ACT as soon as possible. Make sure that you have enough time to prepare for them. Take a combination of CP and honor/AP classes - make sure that you can get A’s and B’s while still managing a rigorous course that you can handle.
Most colleges offer financial aid so the average price is usually not the price you pay - make you contact the financial aid departments at the schools you are looking at and ask about what they can provide.
If I was in your place, I would take AP classes only in the area I was interested in going into just to get used to the type of work you would be doing at a university. Also, is there a certain college you want to get into? If not, I would not bother to retake any tests unless I knew I could study and get a better score, and apply to mostly in-state colleges with my backup plan being the local community college if the cost is too high.
I would pick the AP classes that relate to what you want to major in…so if it is STEM, maybe you don’t take AP Lit…or if you want to major in History dont’ take AP Physics.
Def take ACT/SAT again…at least study as much as you can over the summer
Don’t fall back to CP…at least take Honors if you can.
I also live in SC. You should definitely take the ACT again after taking several practice tests , including timed tests. I would also recommend taking the SAT, some students perform better on that test. It sounds like you have assessed the reasons why you may have not performed well on the AP exams. If it is something that you truly feel like you can handle , I would try to take at least one AP class. Your GC will be sending a report to colleges that you will apply to describing the rigor of the classes that you took. If you take all CP classes, the GC will have to check the lower rigor status . Another thing to consider is SC grading scale is shifting to a 10 point scale from a 7 point scale next fall which should also help your GPA. Focus on getting that ACT or SAT score up. You only need a 24 on the ACT or 1100 on the SAT and rank in the top 30% of the class. You can certainly achieve that with practice for your tests. In terms of financial aid, unless you qualify for need based aid, many colleges only offer aid based on merit , so I would not expect schools to adjust their cost as it was suggested earlier up thread . Good luck.