C in a AP Calculus AB, can I get into top colleges (Stanford, MIT, Ivies, UC Berkeley/UCLA)?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi, I am a junior in high school, and I really haven’t been able to get this off my mind.

All throughout my life I’ve been decently good at math, and by high school I had skipped two grades.
I always got As in math, until my sophomore year, where first semester I got a C in AP Calculus AB.
I actually worked really hard, studying till 4 AM for the tests and taking copious amounts of notes and doing many practice problems, but I guess my efforts weren’t enough.
My teacher was the strictest one at school, extremely egotistical, and didn’t care much about her students, and I was going through many emotional problems during that year. My self-esteem and confidence really went down and I began to become anxious while test taking, even having physical reactions that I had never experienced before while test taking - which is affecting me even this year.
Due to this emotional toll on me caused by this one class, I got a B in AP Physics 1 first semester as well.

Despite all this, I still pushed through with as much grit and determination I could pull together, and I ended up getting a B in the second semester of my AP Calc class, and As in everything else.

I also scored a 5 on the AP Calculus AB test (which was honestly, 20-30x more easier than the class at my school).

Over the summer, I retook AP Calculus AB first semester, and got a 101.5% A in the online class.

This year, I am taking Advanced Calc - which is pretty much Multivariable calculus and AP Calculus BC smushed into one class, and I got an A for first semester, and probably will get an A for second semester.

Overall my stats are as shown:
GPA - 3.92 (hopefully a 3.94 by the end of this year, if I’m lucky a 3.96)
SAT - Looking to hopefully get a 1500+, first try 1430 (December 2018 SAT, kinda got screwed by the curve RIP).
SAT2 → Math 2 - 780 (probably will retake, my test anxiety really killed my score), Physics - hopefully an 800.
AP → Calc AB(5), World History(4), Physics 1 (3), CS (4) (Sad) :(,
Calc BC(5 - predicted), Physics C Mech (self study)(4 - predicted), Physics C E&M (self study)(4 - predicted), Chemistry(5 - predicted), English Lang(4 - predicted, 5 would be nice, as I could get an A for first semester), Physics 2(3 - predicted, i’m bad at algebra based physics lol).

I really like science and math, but I’m not a great test taker. It makes it hard for me to show my knowledge where it counts the most :frowning:

Extracurriculars:
FIRST Robotics Team - 4 yrs - I am a lead programmer, and hopefully will become VP Programming next year. This year my team became a finalist at the world championships.
Python Club teacher at my local middle school - 2 yrs.
Computer Club Treasurer (junior year) and Director of Technology (Senior year) - 3 yrs - tutor AP CS students.
Taekwondo 2nd degree black belt - 4 yrs.
Maker/Personal CS projects - 4 yrs - I have developed multiple android apps that are published and I make a lot of engineering projects on my own.
Event Photography/Filming (learning/volunteering) for my Sunday school - 2 yrs.
Going to do an internship over the summer at a software company as a frontend/backend developer.
200+ hrs of community service.

I am an Asian male at a very competitive high school, most students take at least 5 APs by the end of senior year, max of like 20 - 21 APs. I will take 13 AP Classes (~17 AP tests) by the end of high school.

Thank you to anyone who is willing to spend some time reading this! Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! (this is extremely long sorry :).

2

Sorry if I missed it in your post, but did you mention what major you want? That will definitely factor into it. Also, in your essays you may be able to explain what went wrong in that class and how you improved (got an A+ in your online class). I don’t think it’s the end of the world. Those schools you mentioned in your title look at a lot more than just grades.

3

are you instate for UC? if so, ask your counselor.

Disagree with lilac. You don’t explain a C unless something occurred outside of your control, such as a serious illness. The fact that you skipped two levels of math is hurting you, not only in Calc but in Physics; its a self-inflicted wound. For a math-science guy, low scores in Alg is not good. Low score in Physics (AP=3?) is not good. (My son who was a Lit major scored a 3 on the Physics exam.)

So to answer your question, your chances of top colleges are really low. Stanford and Ivies want top scores across the board, not just math-science guys. Sorry.

Also, stop making excuses. You did not get ‘screwed’ by the curve. A harsh curve just means an easier test. A 780 is not low and not due to test anxiety. Do not retake.

4

Calculus is a different type of math, and requires a step-change in thinking about how you approach the problem. Many students initially struggle with the jump, for lots of reasons.

As @bluebayou noted, a 780/800 ≠ “really killed” Also agree that writing about the mean teacher who gave you an undeserved C and made you so anxious that you also got your only B in another class is a waste of an essay, and is more likely to hurt than help.

fwiw, if you have been working steadily, studying until 4am is generally a sign that how you are studying is not working, and you should be asking for help.

As you are apparently in a hyper-competitive environment, I strongly suggest that you spend the summer identifying 1-2 genuinely safe, and 3-4 genuinely match schools that, if they were your only choice,you would not cry. Don’t worry about your dream/reach schools for now- they will take care of themselves. But if you want next April to be happy, put your back into finding real options that are likely or certain. Pro-tip: think outside the box. Identify very specific things that are genuinely interesting to you, and go looking for strong programs / strong profs in those areas. If World Expert Prof in Topic A that you are interested in is at Midwestern State U, and you will be able to work in that lab, then all of a sudden MSU looks exciting in a way that you hadn’t expected. Note that many colleges and universities whose overall admit rate is high enough that competitive candidates discount them actually have some very strong segments and people- and can open more doors than you may assume.

5

It sounds like you’re a bright student who has worked very hard and had a great deal of success. This is good.

I’d like to echo @bluebayou’s recommendation to stop making excuses for the rest of it. This is an issue of overall mindset, and it’s important that you reset your thinking ASAP.

It may help to revisit your comments from just a single post:

“My teacher was the strictest one at school, extremely egotistical, and didn’t care much about her students”

“I was going through many emotional problems during that year.”

“I began to become anxious while test taking”

“Due to this emotional toll on me caused by this one [Calculus] class, I got a B in AP Physics”

“kinda got screwed by the curve”

“my test anxiety really killed my score”

“I’m not a great test taker. It makes it hard for me to show my knowledge where it counts the most”

OP, it isn’t that these things aren’t true, or that they didn’t legitimately factor into the weaker areas of your record. It’s that this is exactly what a cumulative record IS – the great, the good, the bad, and the ugly, in the midst of whatever life throws at you. Your easiest teachers, and your hardest teachers; the days you felt confident and the days you were impacted by anxiety; the tests that came together for you and those that didn’t. This all accumulates into a total picture for an admissions office to consider.

What I’m getting at is that you can’t give yourself credit for your successes and then turn around and cast blame elsewhere for everything else. It’s all you. Do you think that you won’t ever have to deal with egotistical, uncaring professors in college? That there won’t be tough curves? This is just part and parcel of a comprehensive education. Moreover, high school students everywhere are dealing with an occasional egotistical, uncaring teacher, emotional problems, tough curves, test anxiety, etc. Are you under the impression that other kids’ low grades or less-than-perfect scores are totally representative of them in a way that yours aren’t representative of you?

Again, it’s not that you haven’t legitimately faced challenges, or that what you’ve written isn’t an accurate summary of the things that stood in your way from doing your best. But there is nothing unusual about any of them, and other students are facing them as we speak, some handling them better and some worse. Your record is what it is. Stop making excuses, and follow the great advice of @collegemom3717 and start forming a realistic list of matches and safeties that you would be genuinely happy to attend. Then the “top colleges” you’ve listed can be less of your focus, as you’ll have other wonderful options (hint: there are MANY fabulous colleges and universities for high-quality students such as yourself! Let this search be a fun one!)

Good luck, and let up a bit on the self-pressure if you can help it. Your future is bright.

6

All of those schools are long shots regardless of your stats. Don’t put all of your hopes into their basket. You can make your way in this world with a degree from just about anywhere as long as long as you apply yourself, do well, and get involved in clubs and/or research and/or a relevant pert time job. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook went to Auburn.

What stands out to me like a sore thumb is what @collegemom3717 commented on: “I actually worked really hard, studying till 4 AM for the tests and taking copious amounts of notes and doing many practice problems, but I guess my efforts weren’t enough.” No highly successful students study this way. You need to find a way to improve your efficiency. The best summary of habits I’ve found is in Cal Newport’s excellent book, How to Be a Straight A Student. Get it. Read it. Put the lessons into practice or you will find college more challenging than it need be.

For math in particular, you need to move beyond simply doing problems. This doesn’t teach you the conceptual deep understanding of the topic, but only how to recognize patterns. Without the former skill, you won’t know how to do the problems that don’t follow the patterns you’ve memorized.

Good luck.

7

If you are being assessed as a pure academic admit, and , yes, top schools do take a lot of them, but not enough given how many apply, your chances are much lower than the already low usual. There simply are too many kids who ace that Calc and the Physics too. You go behind them on s purely academic basis.

As for your ECs, I can’t assess them. Neither can any of us on the board because we are only going by your description. The AO reviewing your app will decide if the activities, research and development warrant a cross check by someone in the college who know this stuff well. Unless it’s a nationally known venue like Intel, it’s to assess what all these students are doing. Whether it’s a good spin, under parental guidance, or the real thing. If it’s truly something of great interest, it could take precedence over the academic glitches. It’s rare that happens. Those adults working with you on these are in better position to tell you how these works stand in terms of innovation.

8

Thank you everyone for your feedback! I will end up implementing these tips as much as I can. I understand that I came off as “complaining” it’s just that I have been focused onto getting into these schools since my elementary school days, and when my hs career went downhill for me, it really took a mental toll on me, causing me to think this way. I am working on fixing my thought processes and hope to improve myself for the future.

As for my college applications, I still plan on applying to these top schools, because there is no point in not trying. I also was looking at my highschool’s future planning website, and saw that there were a couple students who were able to get in to some of these top schools with sub par grades and test scores (one person got into Stanford with a 1080 and 3.28). I don’t know what the future holds for me, but rather than be as pessimistic as I’ve been, it’s better for me to just focus on positive things and be happy.

9

Guaranteed to have a BIG hook, likely football player.

btw: IMO, UC’s are not worth it if you have to pay OOS fees.

10

For the 2nd time today, agreeing w/ @bluebayou:

=

hook or (rarely) an extraordinary story.

Agree that picking a few dream-type schools if just fine- but does mean figuring out what you want about those ones in particular for you (not just the bragging rights / parent approval). Dartmouth students are rarely the same as MIT students. Brown v Columbia? and so on. But: start with the harder ones- the safer/more likely ones.

11

Legacy is hugely helpful at Stanford too. It was either a football or basketball player (most of the other athletes are still held to pretty high standards), a major financial donor or a legacy.

I’m assuming you’ll want to major in SE, CS or ME based on your FIRST experience. Know that engineering for sure and CS/SE for the most part are pretty egalitarian. It doesn’t matter as much where you go as it matters what you do while you’re there. Apple has more employees from SJSU than any other school including Stanford, Berkeley and Cal Poly. If you don’t get into those schools, and the odds were always stacked against you even before the C, its not the end of the world.

Some students with the stats to be competitive at those schools have no interest in going to any of them. Sometimes it’s price. In other cases the big lectures and heavy reliance on grad student TAs. They make nice bumper stickers, but in no way define you or your career.

My suggestion is to start getting excited about matches and safeties. Just because a school is selective doesn’t mean it will be a great fit academically or socially.

Are you from CA?

Good luck!