<p>Is all chance basically gone if an Asian applies with 2 'B's in AP Euro and a 'B' and a 'C' in AP Chemistry during sophomore year?</p>
<p>Or can he/she be saved by having a strong class rank?</p>
<p>No, they still have a shot.</p>
<p>Realistically… Sorta.</p>
<p>Well it won’t kill you but it doesn’t help. Now if your school curriculum is ridiculously hard and everyone got Bs or whatever, then it won’t have as much of an impact.</p>
<p>Um…Asians usually get all A’s or a few A-'s, so you’d have to use other aspects of your application to make it up, since your transcript and grades is the first judging factor admissions looks at.</p>
<p>Depends on what they got for their year grade. If they got the B, that’s probably not a killer. If they got a C, it probably is. (Unless, of course, the class average in that class is a C or D.)</p>
<p>^ Completely wrong.</p>
<p>We’re talking about Harvard, right? That person would have a very slim chance unless they fall into one of the following hallowed categories: URM, MAJOR legacy, family has donated millions or the science building or something, key recruited athlete, parent’s name is Barrack Obama, etc…</p>
<p>Or as noted before, if your school has a particularly hard grading scale, or if you have straight a’s on the rest of your transcript as well as sky-high SAT scores as well as a killer essay.</p>
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<p>(1) Evidence. I wants it. I’m open to changing my opinion. Your argument has, however, not been particularly convincing thus far.
(2) We’re talking about a normal applicant. While if an applicant is RIDICULOUSLY AMAZING and rainbows follow them everywhere, of course it won’t kill their chances. One would only have to look at the rainbows following them, and one would know. For Joe Average Applicant? See (1).</p>
<p><a href=“Unless,%20of%20course,%20the%20class%20average%20in%20that%20class%20is%20a%20C%20or%20D.”>quote</a>
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<p>This would be irrelevant unless the guidance counselor were to note it.</p>
<p>What if, with those grades, your GPA is still a 3.9+?</p>
<p>^Taking 46+ classes in 4 years is quite a bit considering many hs classes are 1 year (not 1 semester) long. (So obviously it depends on whether these grades are for the year or semester.)</p>
<p>Even for it’s for the semester, he’d/she’d need to get an A in 42 other semester courses (or 21 year long courses). That’s definitely possible–but above a 3.9 is unrealistic.</p>
<p>^^
It’s likely only going to be around a 3.85 UW counting those grades. Rank should be top 1%.</p>
<p>My peers (The 9 sophomores who took AP Chem) all got similar grades. It wasn’t an easy class. I’m sure my counselor can mention something about it.</p>
<p>UHG. I feel so stupid. Why did I have to be so greedy and take AP Chem instead of Honors? If I had gotten 'A’s in the much easier Honors Chem, I would be perfectly fine right now! UHG. I DUG MY OWN GRAVE.</p>
<p>^How could your GPA be a 3.85 right now? You say you’ve only completed 4 semesters.</p>
<p>Hm. On a different note. If the applicant is pulling C('s) and B’s regularly would they even thrive/stay afloat at Harvard?</p>
<p>Also, class rank and GPAs are very relative. I’ve seen Valedictorians with an 1800 combined. (I believe test scores say quite a bit). So while a person who was able to score an 1800 on the SAT may be the top student at their school, at my school that person would be in the bottom 50%. I know we’re not talking scores here but I’m just giving an example of how “top 1%” is relative when you’re getting a C and B’s and still in that top percentile.</p>
<p>^^
Right now, it’s like a 3.7 something. I’m assuming I get all 'A’s next year or maybe one ‘B’, since my courseload next year is significantly easier. AP Chemistry is what killed me this year . I was an idiot for taking it. I’ll ace AP Biology and AP Environmental Science.</p>
<p>^
If I can keep my high class rank and then ace the SATs, am I fine?</p>
<p>AP Chemistry sucks, my friend. It nearly did that to me…saved by .05 of a point!</p>
<p>
I mean, it’s gonna ding you, but your transcript is good otherwise. It might pull you from accept to waitlist, or waitlist to reject, but if you’re a solid accept, waitlist, or reject, you’ll be fine. Other factors (essays, whatever) might equally well tip you back over the line, if you’re near it. It sounded like this was a pattern, earlier. If it’s an isolated incident, you probably still have a small chance.</p>
<p>Data point: Asian boy in my class, with a similar situation: one C in the sophomore year, but on what I think was otherwise a flawless record (he graduated sal). Strong scores, major national-level award in EC of choice, loved by teachers, great (if slightly pretentious) essay. Waitlisted.</p>
<p>In light of what I know about Harvard admissions for my school, I think it had to have been the C, in conjunction with the fact that his niche is a particularly overrepresented one at elite schools.</p>
<p>^Maybe they just thought his essay was boring/pretentious or that others with very similar stats had a better essay. The admissions process can be that “random”, seriously. A friend of mine told me that they might reject you because of the way you look in your picture. This is obviously not true and an exaggeration/joke on my friend’s part, but I’m just emphasizing how one tiny subjective detail on the ad. officer’s part can get you from accepted to waitlisted.
To the OP: your rank is excellent, and probably more important than your GPA and B’s and C’s. You’ve still got a decent shot if the rest of your application is good, so apply. They only way you’ll have a 0% chance is if you don’t, anyway, so what’ve you got to lose?</p>
<p>His essay wasn’t boring by any stretch of the imagination. Quite the opposite. It reached out and grabbed you by the throat.</p>
<p>Yes, admissions has an element of (apparent) randomness to it. No, I’m not a fly on the adcoms’ wall. But he wasn’t an applicant who Just Didn’t Stand Out–he was very academically impressive even within the pool of “kids who are competitive for Harvard”–and I’m not buying that it was a taste/“I’m just not FEELING it” issue. Especially in light of who the Yearly Harvard Admit actually was. There had to be something more significant there, and I can’t think of what else it could possibly be. </p>
<p>But yes, one data point, admissions is weird, if you don’t apply you’ll never know, yadda yadda yadda.</p>