This is going to be a long post, so just brace yourself.
Ever since elementary school, I have been college-driven. I went to an amazing school in NY and that school is the reason why I'm so eager to learn today. Teachers have always told me that I really have a bright future ahead of me and I took that, and ran with it. I moved from NY to FL for middle school because my parents wanted a better future for me and the area I lived in had a horrible school district. I am still so thankful for that decision.
Middle School was a pretty good. That is when I started playing bassoon for my band (originally playing Alto Saxophone) and this was the time when I really fell in love with music. Despite that, I got pretty average grades until 8th grade. However, I didn't really care for those grades that much. Just like elementary school, I had a plethora of teachers tell me that, "a lot of good things were within my futures", despite having below average grades. Those types of teachers really made my school experience a great one, contributing to my love of academics and learning in general. I really kept those comments close to my heart when going into high school.
High School is a pretty disappointing experience. Taking my first AP class (Human Geography) after years of anticipation was an experience that I want to forget. I failed the class and despite getting a three on the exam, I felt horrible. I thought that I disappointed all of my previous teachers, and even my AP teacher who said first quarter," You're an amazing student and know you are going to do great things in this class." My initial reaction was saying to myself,"You're not going to any top college and all your opportunities in life are eternally screwed up."
After a while, I looked at my options. The first was showing somewhat of an upward trend, displaying to colleges that I am a capable student and that I can actually learn in your institution. That plan was somewhat successful, but I still got a C+ in my AP Environmental Science classMy second option was looking towards websites like this to get some type of advice on how to deal with this obstacle. The advice that I received was pretty helpful but they consisted of the same responses: show an upward trend, show why you failed the class, strengthen your ECs, etc., but I wanted something that was subjective to me. My ECs are pretty good: Band (First Chair Bassoon, Section Leader), Debate (Congressional Debate Squad Leader, VP position senior year), and DECA (State Qualifier, leadership position senior year). I'll be joining new clubs my junior and senior year to ensure I have a competitive edge in that department. Boiling it down, Here's my question:
Should I give up on trying to get into these selective colleges and just go to a state school to should I keep trying to do my best and have some sort of shot to get into these schools, like Yale (my dream school). I feel like my freshman is too much to let me into those types of colleges and I just want to know that I have a chance.
Current GPA:
UW: 2.9667
W: 3.95
Rank: 148 out of 773
OP there are many many many great schools out there. The FIRST and MOST important thing you can do, as a beginning step, is to abolish from your vocabulary the term “dream school.” Sure, plan to apply to Yale. But that is the very least of your worries right now!
The things I am going to tell you are things you already know:
– do your best and strengthen your transcript. Transcript is #1 factor!
– keep up your ECs (after all, you enjoy them and they are important to your growth and development, not only for college apps!)
– prepare as best you can for SATs or ACTs.
Regrading the college search itself, it is great that you are coming here onto this website to educate yourself about the process.
You are clearly motivated and you will do well. Just don’t look at this as “state school versus Yale” because you would be doing yourself a disservice. For example, is Yale really the only private school you would consider attending? Think about that. Really? Or, on the other side…Well, which state school? (Depends on what you want to study, stats, etc. - and UVa for example is a fantastic public which is generous enough to consider as an out-of-state student)
There is a lot of ground to cover but for now, keep up the good work. I suggest that you plan to make a habit of coming back to update your ideas about where you are in the process, and to get feedback. There are lots of experienced posters who will be glad to help you.
Thanks for the reply! Your advice is great! And yes, I do have this certain mentality that “if I don’t get into this school, I’m not going to succeed in the future”. This type of thinking is not really good and that’s something I need to change. I just want to show all colleges in general that I do things that I loved in HS, not just for the application.
Yale doesn’t want to admit a student and set them up for failure because they might not be able to handle the intense work load at the school. And they make that judgement, for better or worse, based upon a student’s GPA and class ranking. See C10 data points in Yale’s Common Data Set: http://oir.yale.edu/sites/default/files/cds2015_2016_0.pdf
As your current unweighted GPA does NOT place you in the top 10% of your high school’s graduating class, your chances at being admitted to Yale are minimal (sorry – I know that’s not what you want to hear, but that’s the difficult reality). The same is probably true for the rest of the ivy league schools and the little ivies (Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Middlebury, Wesleyan, and Williams).
That said, I very much subscribe to Jeffrey Brenzel’s (Yale’s recently retired Dean of Admissions) way of thinking
There are hundreds of great colleges across the United States where you can do wonderful things. You just need to find a college that is appropriate for your GPA – one that will allow you to be at the top of the class!
First of all, relax. You were taking AP classes as a Freshman and Sophomore. Most in our local school do not take them until they are a Junior so that is impressive. My daughter would have reacted to the scores the same way so I understand.
Second, don’t join clubs because you think its going to make you look better. It wont. It will only look like you joined things your Junior year to make your college application look better. Instead pick one you are in love with and then do something really big with it. And I mean big. Plan something, work with the adults, work closely with your peers to accomplish something different and learn from it. That is called passion. Find that and do that instead. Schools want you to be the best person you can be and not the busiest person on paper.
Third, I wont lie and tell you that your grades make you a good candidate for Yale. Sadly your gpa and class rank are not quite where you need them to be in order to be considered for those attributes. But consider this, not all students are considered based on grades alone. There are always things outside of grades that can make you shine above and beyond. I would really try hard and bring those grades up (your gpa will follow as a result) and then start making lists of schools that you would be happy with. My daughter chose 8 schools. 2 that she knew she would get into easily. 3 that were more difficult to get into but she thought she had a great chance and 3 that were dream schools. She picked them because either because of location, how the campus felt regarding school spirit or because they were really old buildings (not very deep, I know. She is a cheerleader that likes history) . This way she picked places she would be happy with either way. The dream schools are a total crap shoot for ANYONE and so she wasn’t set on them although it worked out for her.
For now just focus on your next year of school, start looking at several schools to find what you do or don’t like. Talk to other students there. Focus on doing your best and then see where life leads you. Your real goal should just to be happy wherever your land.
I feel there must be more to your story and I only bring this up because understanding it may be helpful for any advice – whether it leads to a strategy on how to sell yourself in your essay or targeting where you should be applying, etc. I won’t say anyone here can help you improve your grades because from everything you have described it sounds like you have a lot of support for that already (parents who moved for you, teachers who try to mentor and encourage you, etc.), so it would be unlikely any anonymous poster will be able to meaningfully do more than they have.
Why exactly have you had trouble with your grades in these classes, despite your teachers supporting and appreciating you? Are you poorly performing on the tests, not completing the homework and assignments, etc.? Do you go into the tests confident you are prepared but then get blindsided by material you didn’t expect or get test anxiety or make mistakes in hindsight you could have avoided? Have you tried to go in before tests or final projects are due and talk it out with the teachers or seek tutoring? The more you can flesh out what is behind the disconnect between your positive, goal-oriented attitude and your grades, the more helpful it could be.
As others have said, realistically unless there is a compelling story you and your GC can tell about your grades or you have another hook, your odds at the ivies and equivalents are long. I would never discourage you from applying because you just never know – absolutely you should if you feel you have the time, money and the right mental attitude to accept any outcome. But there are many, many really great schools for which your are likely to qualify where you can get an excellent education.
Here are some things I forgot to mention:
-Currently, I’m doing grade forgiveness for my AP Human Geography class. My GC said that finishing both segments of that online course will put my Weighted GPA around 4.5 and my unweighted GPA around 3.4-.5 before I hit my Junior Year. I’m also taking 4 next year (U.S. History, Lang, Comp. Gov., and Psychology)
-I took two AP classes my sophomore year (world and environmental) and I got a B average in world and got the college credit.
-My ECs for next year are the same I said previously and now I’m adding NHS and Science Honor Society. I love helping the community and science so those activities will be worth my while. Also, I’m interning for the “Democrats of FL” in the fall because I love political science and being part of that process will be very interesting.
I am fixing most of my mistakes and adding a lot of activities that I genuinely enjoy.
I’ve been a recruiter for Yale for about 20 years. When I speak at schools, I tell them that if they are among the top handful of top scholars at the school in their grade at that moment, known to the staff and principal, then maybe they could be a viable applicant.
You’re certainly prepared for college. Good for you. But I would tell the #1 and #2 students at your HS that their odds are very, very steep. Take that for what you will.
Please review some of the advice given here to spread your school search. Try the SuperMatch function on the left.
I would say after you’ve put the majority of your effort into your target range of schools, if you have the energy left, go and apply to Yale as a “reach” school if you must. It certainly should NOT be at the top of your list as far as focus, energy and emotions go.
Bluntly, you’re not, at this time, a viable candidate. Your odds are not just as steep as the val and sal – who are 146 slots above you, in your own school. Your odds are enormously steeper than their already steep odds.
@AveryReyna, your odds are more steep rather than “just as steep as valedictorians and salutorians.” If you were my child, I would advise against applying unless you had teacher and GC recommendations that really went to bat for you, the “once in a career” type. If the application fee is of no consequence to your family, submit an application if it makes you feel good, but prospects are not good (nor are they good for any applicants).
I’ve worked with many successful people, and the vast majority did not attend HYPMS.
