So he’s currently a junior , but had no interest in going to college or in studying till this year.
But met me, who’s quiet concerned with education, and changed his mind and he is now motivated enough to go to a decent university.
So. He just wants to go to a school level of about Boston University for Math major, and I was just wondering if he could make it.
He had 2.5 avg gpa till sophomore year, but this year he earned 3.8 gpa. He’s planing on taking among hardest AP classes that his school offers next year.
However, there still is a problem: SAT.
He’s not telling me what his scores are(he’s taken it once) for some reason, but I’m guessing it’s around 1500. or less. I hope he can raise it up to a 1800 till this summer… but unsure.
Since he wants to major in Math, he’s considering taking advanced calculus in community college during this summer.
His highschool principal, math teacher, and his counselors are writing recommendation letter for him (idk how he got so close with them but), and he’s writing his essay this summer.
Is there any chance that he can get into a decent college, say, Boston University(or higher ranking schools)? If yes, like what college could he get into?
Also, should he take the math course in community college?
Are there any other advice?
Thank you so much for your time to read this and anything helps!!!
I postulate that if he is really interested he would post here himself.
It is very hard to say where someone can get in when they have a very mixed record. Schools do put less emphasis on freshman year but solid 2 years with low grades isn’t something that will be entirely overlooked. Sometimes they will do better to plan a gap year so that all the Sr year grades are in to confirm the turnaround has legs. And he should be doing well in all college prep areas. But if he takes a gap year he cannot take any CC classes during that year or he may be a transfer.
He could take a summer dual enrollment if he feels he has exhausted the math offerings at his school and he wants to show he can do college work, but it would be critical that he does well. I don’t know what advanced calc is, usually classes are labeled calc1, 2, 3. Or they say ‘multivariate calc’. Has he taken any AMC or anything to show ability in math?
Hopefully his GC is experienced with this sort of student and can help him make his list. Of course SAT/ACT scores are very important so guessing at them is not that helpful. And he can always prove himself wherever he is able to get an acceptance and transfer, assuming aid is not an issue.
For BU it will be a reach. He will have much lower gpa than most entering students and class rank and gpa, which I assume is low is marked ‘important’ in the CDS and more than half admitted freshman are in the top 10 pct of their class. But rigor of coursework is marked ‘very important’.
To get an idea of colleges to suggest, calculate actual gpa, provide actual SAT. And state of residence, budget. And any restrictions or preferences, geographical or otherwise.
Take a good SAT or ACT prep course, get the scores up, this can be learned. If he cannot afford that then he can buy some books and study or take an online course. If he can break 2000 or 30 he has a shot.
I have a 34 ACT and am in the top 10% of my class and am still waiting to hear from them.
If he is a minority or was homeless or the first person to go to college, or otherwise has an interesting story maybe. If he was just a regular suburban blow off, less good
It shows a real sense of entitlement to be so focused on the ranking of the college after blowing off freshman & sophomore year. If boyfriend is not already hitting it out of the park on the SAT math section, then majoring in math seems highly improbable. Math is not one of those majors you can bull$hit yourself through by writing creative essays.
@BrownParent
Thank you so much for your advice! I will make sure tell him all the advice you gave me. Unfortunately he doesn’t know about this site… but maybe I should tell him about it and make him provide accurate information himself to get help.
Well, he’s an international student, moved here in his freshmen year, without knowing any English. That might possibly explain the low grade, and also his score flags in reading and writing section. But he always scores hundred percent in math. Also he got 800 on SAT2 Math 2 c. Would this be enough to prove his talent in math?
Also he says he’s planning on taking multivariable calc in cc this summer, and take AP calc ab next year in school (because that’s the highest math it offers). The difficulty is out of order, but he already knows stuff from the subject so he’ll be able to do well in those classes. do you have any advice what to do with his math classes?
He shouldn’t take it that out of sequence. There is no point to taking Calc AB after MV. And if he is really prepared for Calc he can take Calc BC and skip AB entirely because Calc AB is covered in the first part of Calc BC. If BC isn’t offered then take Calc 1 and 2 in the summer, and focus on other classes in the school year unless he can do Dual Enrollment during the year, take MV then.
It is great that he scored well on the SAT II.Hopefully that, with his new English skills will garner him some interest. He heed to work really hard on his English skills and make sure they are college level.
Trust me. Sometimes , college cares more about your grade, your activities and your essay more than your Sat. I got very low Sat that I can’t even share to any of my friends. But turns out I got to my dream school. So my advice now to him us trying to get his best shot
??? Why can’t people have dreams to go to a certain school. I don’t see any sense of entitlement in someone suggesting they may want to go to BU. Yes he didn’t perform well freshman and sophomore year, but often people change, grow, and learn. That’s what high school is for. To assert he’s entitle for having a dream is absolutely absurd. It may be hard or a reach, but take it easy on this kid. Also why would you infer he’s entitled? We’re gathering information through the opinion of someone who cares for him. It amaze me the people who have been on CC sometimes are amazed some people haven’t been stressing out about school since 6th grade. Trust me the majority of high school kids are not on this site obsessing over little things, nor have real guidance freshman year.
I didn’t mention anything about a sense of entitlement.
All I said was that there was a tremendous amount of variety out there. You don’t have to be “on the level of BU” to find a wonderful education.
The title of the thread seems to suggest that the OP thinks it might be a reach… otherwise, why the “doom”?? She asked whether there was “any chance he could get into a decent college.”
I was trying to be encouraging-- he can get a fabulous education at a lot of places, no “doom” necessary. My point was that he will find the right school for HIM. College is NOT “one size fits all”, nor should it be.
As someone who has actually GONE to college as a math major, my point was that “decent” comes in a lot of sizes and locations and different diplomas.
If I may: perhaps you should lead him to finding these answers and pathways for himself? You mentioned that previously, he was unmotivated. Now it’s time to let him gain confidence by searching out and attacking goals that he develops himself. You don’t want him dependent on you. You can stand by the sidelines and offer advice if he asks – but his education is not your responsibility, despite your relationship. It’s his and his alone. Thus, any victories he obtains will be his. Any challenges he succumbs to or overcomes will be his. There’s tremendous benefit in his ability to fall and pick himself up.
@dancelance
OP left out a lot of very critical, pertinent information in the initial post. All that was stated in regards to performance was that boyfriend “had no interest in going to college or in studying till this year.” And OP volunteeed that boyfriend’s SAT score might be around 1500.
If OP had presented a clearer picture, I wd not have inferred that boyfriend was a slacker w a sense of entitlement.
Since he was still mastering English the first couple of years of HS, his letters of recommendation may help make up for the low initial GPA.
The math that he is ready for now depends a lot on the educational system that he was in before coming to the US. He may be ready for MV. And if he is, he should take that and then take a more advanced class at the community college or through another college/university in the fall. His guidance counselor will be able to help him make those arrangements. There is no reason to go backwards to an AP course.
He also needs to know how much money his parents can pay, and what his immigration status is. There isn’t a lot of financial aid to go around for international students. If he doesn’t have a green card, and isn’t in another special status (asylee, etc.) that would qualify him to file the FAFSA, he will be considered an international applicant for financial aid purposes. With some other visa categories, some states would consider him in-state for tuition and fees at public colleges and universities depending on how many years he has lived in that state. Again, this is something his guidance counselor can help him find out.
The best school in the world, yes world, for Math is the University of Waterloo, in Canada. I am a Canadian and they only look at our senior marks, so PLEASE tell him to look into their programs. They have the BEST co-op program in the world where he will be able to earn a boatload of money as a Math major. As for US universities, the SAT 2 will help, but does he have an 800 in SAT math(not SAT 2)? Tell him to take the ACT, I can give advice as I went from a 29 to a 33 and a 25 in science to a perfect 36. ACT is better for STEM kids. Also, tell him to partake in math related EC’s and it would help tons if they were leadership. Also, make sure he has 1 or 2(yes, only like 1 or 2) non math related EC’s such as volunteering at a soup kitchen, retirement home or hospital. In total he should have 3-4 ECs where he puts in work, no more, 1-3 Math related, then 1-2 non math related. Tell him to take math contests, it will show that he likes to challenge himself.
Please tell him to consider University of Waterloo in Canada, I know it may be tough on your relationship, but for his future, it would be the best school, who knows, maybe he can do a co op term somewhere near you as kids do co op jobs in the US despite being from Canada.
Also, make sure he does not come on this site, if he truly is interested, he would be focused on getting in, not on this stupid website, people here only care about test scores and GPA.
@bodangles This website is only good for SAT/ACT help and questions like the one OP had. However, if her BF joins, he will be tempted to do a chance thread, once that happens, confidence is destroyed. i have seen this before.
Confidence is also destroyed by not getting in anywhere, but people can guide him to more realistic choices, like you did. There is a lot of cumulative knowledge on here.
Having a dream school is fine. Absolutely. But your friend should be sure to have academic AND financial safeties/matches/reaches. And, if possible, each of these should be a school that he has visited, where he has met the professors, and where he wants to attend. Common app opens just 6 months from now, so he has to get busy.
