<p>I am a Junior in high school, and I'm curious about what my chances are of getting into a UC. I have a 4.0 (weighted) GPA; I was part of my school's Academic Decathlon team, we placed tenth in state; and I am the founder/president of the "Comedy Skit Club." The problem is, however, that I was expelled for a semester, a suspended expulsion, for possession of marijuana. How badly am I screwed? </p>
<p>Also, I do not know if it is of any importance, I want to major in mathematics.</p>
<p>wow, thats a tough question, i cant really say… from what ive heard, the liberal arts colleges are more cihll about that kind of stuff… but maybe UCs too… i mean, youd have to explain the situation well in your application… but yea, otherwise i guess it depends on the admissions committee, maybe theyre people who dont really care about that… maybe they hate that kind of stuff…
personally, i wouldnt care even a little… i mean come on, feels like 90% of american HS/college students smoke weed so its no biggie…
honestly, i would just call them now and ask over the phone, how they handle that kind of situation…
good luck!</p>
<p>It might making an interesting essay topic. Maybe you could use it to show how you grew as a person through the experience - if you did ofc.</p>
<p>hehe speaking of stupid things to get expelled for 
i just found out a friend of mine was really bored and so he got caught stealing a 1 dollar candy bar from a grocery store and hes in jail hahahah sooooo ridiculous has to pay bail but seriously… omg</p>
<p>Thanks. </p>
<p>I’m also in the top 10% if that counts for anything. Does anyone have any suggestions of how I can improve my chances even more?</p>
<p>I would definitely write an essay about it, call and ask, and just generally show that you realize you “messed up” and that you have a high level of interest in attending whatever school it is you want to attend. A little expressed interest goes a long way, from what I hear!</p>
<p>@ns89: how the hell is having marijuana and getting caught a stupid thing to be expelled for?
He broke the law. I mean your friend stole. That is breaking a law too. Stealing a 1 dollar candy bar is the same thing as stealing a iPod from the store.</p>
<p>If we had more people like you this country would end up becoming another 3rd world country.</p>
<p>@MagicMonkey: I think this shouldn’t really lower your chances. Someone from my school got into Berkeley after a suspension from school (he and his girlfriend were caught smoking and well… doing “it” in school -___- and the school’s pretty strict about such stuff). He just wrote a very good essay about it- about how he learnt so much that one day and how he went on to be a member of the Students’ Council and be exemplary in his conduct after that happened. I’d make sure that you don’t come across as someone who sounds like someone who might do it again- like even the teeniest of probabilities. Good luck! :)</p>
<p>@James: I’m appalled by what you just said! Third World Countries, are- without a doubt, poorer in economic terms, literacy rates and other things- but this does not mean that they do not have any values in them. I’m someone who moved from India (developing) to Singapore (developed) and have been to the United States on exchange programs. I can tell you this much- INDIANS HAVE NO LESS ETHICS AND HONESTY THAN SINGAPOREANS AND AMERICANS, IF NOT MORE. If you didn’t mean what you wrote- perhaps you should think before you type and understand that these forums are read by people from all over the world. People- who respect YOUR country and want to study there. Don’t make a spectacle out of yourself. And here’s what I say- if the United States had more ignorant people like you, definitely- that’s what I’d call a “Third World Country”. Good luck! I’m sorry if I come across as too harsh- but I was very very disgusted by what you wrote.</p>
<p>@ 100% tuna - i agree with you… a lot of people in 3rd world countries are a lot more moral than most people in the us… and really what i said has nothing to do with being/becoming a 3rd world country… obviously james must not have thought that post through… i hope…</p>
<p>@ james - well… first of all, arent i allowed to have an opinion? yea so its illegal, but that doesnt stop 90% of people from doing it… hell even barack obama admitted he used to do it… youre being ridiculous… what so no one under 18 drinks alcohol? if EVERYONE who had marijuana or alcohol were to be suspended/expelled, then thered be like 10 kids left…
obviously, its not what he should be doing, but welcome to america dude, its nothing new… getting expelled for it is a bit too harsh IN MY OPINION, now im sure a lot of conservative people would disagree… and im not like some pothead, ive never tried it because i dont think it is for me… so im not defending myself… i just think its a bit too harsh… now as for the 2 who were smoking and having sex in school… thats a bit over the top… but yea… possession is not the same as smoking/having sex… i think that he should have gotten a talking to and maybe some detention… hes obviously a good student, i wouldnt wanna jeopardize his college chances just because he does what everyone else does… how is that going to help anyone ? its not like its preventing all weed smokers from going to college, instead someone else will take his spot, and that person most likely does it too… if i were his principal/dean/whatever, id give him a series of minor punishments that would not show up on a transcript… maybe like, 3 weeks detention… cleaning duty… making him do volunteer work, and if he didnt comply THEN id give him something sharper… hes obviously sorry he did it… dont mess up a good students chances of going to college… hes been working his a.s.s off for 3 years… and now he gets screwed out of all that in 1 day ?? yea thats fair…
if there were more people like you in this country… i dont even wanna know what would happen…</p>
<p>First off, I doubt 90% of kids smoke pot. But I like your laissez faire attitude towards laws we don’t like. I hate smoking bans, seat belt laws, speed limits, income taxes, recycling laws, most gun laws and a whole host of others. Should I be allowed to ignore those and expect not to deal with the penalty? I’m good with that.</p>
<p>ns89- if there would only be 10 kids left, you go to a rough school.</p>
<p>whoa, expelled over pot? that really sucks. i doubt it’s something to spin an essay into, though…</p>
<p>well im not saying they should be ignored, but its a bit much to expel him over it… i mean seriously, A LOT of kids smoke pot… yea so maybe not 10 kids but you know what i mean… i even said that i myself dont smoke… im merely saying that its a harsh punishment for something that so many people do… you may well try to make fun of the argument that im presenting, but you also know as well as i do, the popularity of marijuana and how widespread it is in hs and college… its not limited to a few schools or bad school per se… i know a lot of ivy league kids do it… i also know that a lot of ivy league kids snort coke… which is much worse… as for a gun law being compared to pot, thats not the same… if a kid brings a gun to school, hes endangering everyone and is seen as a threat… a gun can kill people… if a kid brings weed to school, and has it for personal use… then yes, its not the place to have it nor is it a good thing, but at least it doesnt endanger others…
im not saying that people should ignore the law… but he didnt face any real legal penalties, did he? he was expelled… thats not the law… this is obviously the school taking their own measures and therefore, i believe that the school should not cripple the college chances of a top student… i mean its ridiculous… tell him not to do it again and give him a punishment that will teach him a lesson and that will make him into a better person… not throw him out of school and then ruin chances of getting into a good school… </p>
<p>basically, if hes not endangering others, and he isnt really affecting others, then he should just get a talking to… now if he comes into school and tries to sell it to people, then THAT definitely calls for an expulsion… see thats a difference… if i was his principal, then for the first case, id talk to him… but if he tried to sell weed in my school, then hed be out, and not even allowed to come back, AT ALL…</p>
<p>Thanks for all the replies, they’re really helpful. I think one thing that I forgot to mention which is very important to the situation, is the story behind the expulsion:</p>
<p>Around the third week of my sophomore year in high school, a security guard had taken me up to the office for “tagging,” not for possession of marijuana. Now there is nothing wrong with this, my friend had “tagged” my book, and the school was simply trying to find out who was involved; however, what is messed up about the situation is that he searched me for markers, after I told him who did it. The security guard had searched me without my consent, even after I specifically stated “I do not feel comfortable with you searching me.” This is when they found the weed.</p>
<p>What makes the situation worse, however, is that later on that day, the campus cop asked the security guard if I had given him the right to search me, to which i replied, “No.” He pretended not to hear it and I was expelled for the semester, they put on “SXP,” on my transcript under school history.</p>
<p>So my new question is, do i have a case to fight this and try to get it removed, even though this has already happened? Can it be removed after the fact? I was wrong for bringing the weed to school, but I think that the school is also wrong for leaving it on my transcript after all that they have done to me, and after all that I have done to make up for it; in fact, they even commented on how cooperative i was.</p>