Will a bad GPA ruin my chances here?

mom2012and14
Fri, 09 Sep 2011 16:20:25 +0000

I respectfully disagree with fineartsmom.

The OP said Tepper—and the admissions instructions read Math plus a science preferred. The OP will be competing with others submitting these scores demonstrating and ability to handle the rigorous and quantitatively/analytically driven curricula at Tepper. Handing in language SAT in lieu of the science is not all that impressive - especially if it’s simply an Asian Applicant taking Chinese or Korean just to have an 800 - -that doesn’t show academic preparation, that just shows you speak two languages.

If you want a spot at Tepper-- do well on your Math SAT II to balance out the 3 on the AP Calc. If you dropped the class midyear, then the class isn’t even on your transcript-- so it will look like you “self studied” for the exam. You should jot a note somewhere in your common ap or have your GC state that the school required you to take the exam. And for goodness sakes, please don’t tell any Adcom in writing, on an application or an interview that your “parents made you blah blah blah” - doesn’t look good for lots of reasons which we will not dwell on. If you need to explain why you dropped the course-- just say you had to drop the class and you are retaking it this year (and hopefully your mid-year calc grade will be an A-- which will vindicate the junior year math stuff). Sorry- Tepper is quantitative and you need to have the stuff on paper to show you can hack it.