Hello! I’m only in my first year of HS, and I’m setting my sights onto A&M because my father was an alumni from there, and the campus and the people are pretty nice. It’s also in state price, so it will be much cheaper for me. However, I know freshman year grades aren’t as important, but so far I’m maintaining the 90-95 area for all of my classes so far. I’m also planning to attend the A&M stem camp and their tennis camp every summer, so I can show how much I like the college. I do have some other things on my resume such as violin All state, and other things. Can all of these things get me accepted?
If your a freshman you need to stop worrying, or else 3 years is going to be a long time.
Don’t stress.
Don’t close any doors (i.e. do well in your classes)
Put some time and effort into your standardized tests in a few years.
Keep doing things you really like to do (orchestra, etc.)
A&M Cost of Attendance $30,000 per year in-state.
It is way too early to worry about any specific college. You don’t have enough HS coursework done to have a meaningful GPA and you don’t have standardized test results, and you have no class rank yet. Typically going to a camp at a school does not impact admissions decisions. For now you should do the best you can in the most rigorous courseload you can manage, get involved in things you enjoy at school and/or in your community, study for standardized tests when the time comes, and spend time with friends and family. Come back to CC in two years.
I agree with the above, but want you to know that freshman year grades matter. They are 1/3 of the grades/class rank you will be reporting when you apply to Texas A&M in the Fall of your Senior year. It sounds like your grades are great! They are as important as your Junior year grades through so keep that in mind.
I must agree with kayeeloo. I am a mom of a senior who could have made just a few changes that would have improved his rank and GPA. Boy do we wish we’d known freshman year what we know now. Don’t stress, but definitely do your absolute best as you realize that only the first three years of high school grades matter when applying for both admission and scholarships. Good luck, and just enjoy your time in high school!!
You are wise to look into college requirements for acceptance early. Freshman grades are important, as is the long term plan for your academics. What classes and pathways you take will determine your ability to be a competitive applicant. Make a list of schools you would be interested in attending, then research the requirements for each (math courses needed, foreign language requirements,etc) and begin to map out when you take the ACT & SAT. Having been a HS teacher, I know there are some juniors who didn’t realize the college they wanted to attend required certain minimums in coursework and they did not have them completed in time. I began a college book for my children as freshman, listing courses taken & instructors, copies of grade reports & test scores, ECs & their advisors/coaches, recorded volunteer hours, requirements for the various schools they were interested in initially. As the years went on, they had a list to pull from for college apps and recommendations.
Thank you all for the responses. I’ll try to maintain my grades for now, and just enjoy HS.