<p>Hey everybody. I'm currently a junior in hs. I'm taking the Act in two months. After high schools over I will end up with a 4.1 or 4.2 gpa out a 5.0</p>
<p>Freshman and sophomore year I've had a bad showing in education and I will continue to progress. I'm not in high class im in low-normal level classes. Hopefully that wouldn't take into effect.</p>
<p>Northern Illinois University</p>
<p>Sent from my PC36100 using CC</p>
<p>You have any background info on NIU?</p>
<p>There aren’t “pre-med schools”. </p>
<p>*I’m taking the Act in two months. **After high schools over **I will end up with a 4.1 or 4.2 gpa out a 5.0</p>
<p>Freshman and sophomore year I’ve had a bad showing in education and I will continue to progress. I’m not in high class im in low-normal level classes. Hopefully that wouldn’t take into effect. *</p>
<p>For what? admissions?</p>
<p>What kind of grades do you get in the hard sciences? </p>
<p>You apply for college BEFORE high school is over. What will your GPA be at the end of junior year?</p>
<p>What is your budget? How much will your parents pay?</p>
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<p>I believe the OP is referring to premed schools in the same sense as the sticky thread of the same name and the plethora of threads asking which UG college is best to attend for premed.</p>
<p>At the end of junior year it’ll probably be like around 3.6-3.7
I have some great extra curriculars as well.
2 years of varsity football, 3 years of track & field (im only a junior)</p>
<p>I’m getting B’s in my science classes.</p>
<p>my budget will be about $8,000 a year W/O financial aid</p>
<p>With a B average you can get into 100’s colleges around the nation. It will be up to you if you chose to use your time wisely and get your GPA in college over the 3.5 (on a 4.0) scale to give yourself a shot at getting into medical school. Keep in mind that most colleges will “unweight” your average and put it on a 4.0 scale so right now you are looking at a GPA of a 2.6-2.7 on a 4.0 scale. That will get you into some less selective state schools. Start there, see how it goes. I would suggest that you spend a lot of time prepping for the ACT to get that score as high as possible. With your GPA you will need that score in the mid-20’s at least.</p>
<p>Any UG is fine, as long as you have college GPA as close as possible to 4.0. This is your goal, which is easier to achieve at the place that matches your personality and wide range of interests. There are plenty awesome UGs in IL, you got to find your match and work very hard there. Also, keep in mind that getting college GPA=3.6+ will require much much more effort than 3.6-4.0 (on 4.0 scale) in HS. Be prepared to work hard no matter where you end up going.</p>
<p>*my budget will be about $8,000 a year W/O financial aid *</p>
<p>Well, since most schools do not give great financial aid, affordability may be an issue. </p>
<p>Take both the ACT and SAT to try to get the best score. Those with higher test scores have the best chance for best FA packages and merit scholarships.</p>
<p>However, if you’re only getting B’s in your high school science classes, I wonder if you’re strong enough in sciences to do well enough in the college pre-med pre-reqs. The req’d classes are the HARDER versions of these classes.</p>
<p>I would especially take advantage of your senior year to do some “growing” up in terms of study habits and time management. Nobody miraculously transforms from a 2.6 GPA in high school to a 3.5+ GPA in college in an instant. It takes time to develop better study skills.</p>
<p>Need I remind you that college is MUCH harder than high school, if you didn’t already know that. 
With the exact study habits you have now in high school, you won’t be anywhere near eligible to apply to any med schools.</p>
<p>What I recommend doing:</p>
<p>-Try hard in your science classes now. As someone said, prereq science classes are MUCH harder. There tends to be a lot of weeder classes too.</p>
<p>-Improve your study habits/time management. Learn to organize your time. Seek tutoring services to improve your grades. Premed is NOT a joke.</p>
<p>-Do well on your ACT by getting a GOOD NIGHT’s sleep. Generally, this test is unstudy-able. I walked into the room without knowing what was on it or what the test even looked like or tested you on and scored 99th percentile. If you can do this, your chances at getting into some colleges of your choices will increase a bit, despite your low GPA. You can try some practice questions if you like but it is crucial to be in bed early. </p>
<p>-Take harder classes. I know your GPA isn’t the best right now with lower level classes, but you need to get used to the rigor of college. If you can’t handle AP’s, at least try honors classes.</p>
<p>Good luck! =)</p>