<p>Fresh: 3.92 uw 4.5 w
Sophe: 3.4 uw 3.9w
Junior:3.7uw 4.2 w</p>
<p>Ok....so you can see my drop sophemore year......My reason for the drop in grades is that a very strong friendship I had ended very abruptly and unpleasantly...it wasnt death or anything but caused my grades 2 slip....do you think this is a good enough excuse?</p>
<p>personally...i don't think that's a good explanation. I think that colleges will say that you have to know how to control your academics and your social life.</p>
<p>its a friendship from kindergarten until that point tho...like a family member...its not just a regular "high school friendship"..if that could make any different</p>
<p>anymore opinions....but i think i should still mention it though</p>
<p>Really, think twice about this.</p>
<p>what do you mean</p>
<p>Anyone else.....</p>
<p>I suggest you talk about depression.</p>
<p>Obviously you were depressed that such a friend "left." Focus less on your friend leaving and more on how you were depressed, how you overcame this depression, and what you learned from it.</p>
<p>That's what happened to me and I guess that is what I'm going to write. To explain my 3.8-3.0 drop.</p>
<p>Anyone suggest NOT to do this?</p>
<p>yea i wrote about depression....wow ur drop is severe..but nonetheless....i think im definitely going to do it......i went to this college fair and cornell was there...the guy looked at my resume and smiled...looked at my trasncript and smiled until i got to sophemore yr....i told him i would explain it in my essay and he smiled lol</p>
<p>last bump..</p>
<p>yea that's pretty much the worst thing you can do. writing about depression or any mental illness is off limits during the college application process. Do a search for it in the forums and you'll see what I mean. I understand that the end of your friendship was somewhat traumatizing, but other applicants have experienced far more tragic things (divorce, death of an immediate family member, chronic illness) and managed to work around their circumstances. Frankly I wouldn't bother mentioning it, a drop in sophomore grades is not going to kill your application, and the idea that somehow your explanation will resurrect it is ludacris. Schools will be looking at your most recent performance during your junior and senior years. As long as you have an upward trend during those last two years don't sweat it.</p>
<p>yeah it's pretty much making an excuse (a pretty lame one) for bad grades.</p>
<p>But... the essay prompt does say to explain anything that hasn't been explained in the application. This seems like a valid explanation - depression is a serious issue whether you believe it or not.</p>
<p>What do you mean by depression being off limits? I don't understand.</p>
<p>I agree with karupt.</p>
<p>Look at it from the perspective of an admissions officer. Do you really want to accept a student who has suffered from depression in the past? What if they relapse again at college? This just creates even more problems for the university. I'll point you to a couple of threads that explain it better.</p>
<p>im just going to say how it was hard for me and now i am stronger from it......the lady from UNC that visited my school said it is bad not to mention a drop in grades....so im going to say it.....i dont see how it could be badby mentioning it</p>
<p>
[quote]
i dont see how it could be badby mentioning it
[/quote]
My input is intended to be constructive although it is harsh ... I am not sure what
I would do in your case. I would want to explain the dip in grades but the issue is you do not have a compelling story about the drop in grades. Colleges want self-reliant resilant students ... and having such a negative reaction to a typcial life event (a best friend moving) does not give the impression of a student who will deal with adversity well at college; to me it gives the impression of a student who will not deal well with adversity ... so I would recommend NOT providing that explanation as I think it will hurt you. I guess the best approach I see is putting a positive spin on the current upward trend ... I've matured, I'm more focused, andshowing my true potential, blah, blah. </p>
<p>BTW - caring for your friends is a terrific thing and having them leave effecting your peformance is not bad thing ... but probably a situation with you will probably cope better as you mature. Good luck!</p>
<p>exactly^^^^</p>
<p>You want to stress your strengths. You may get pity for your weaknesses, but there are stronger people competing for the spots at top schools. So, only if you can explain how you overcame adversity and managed to succeed, you will shine. Losing a friendship might indeed have been a big thing in your young mind, but few adults would care much about it. So, don't make a big deal.</p>
<p>Sorry, but I think the college admission people will get the idea that you were just being lazy during your sophomore year and are now just frantically trying to come up with an excuse as to of why your grades dropped, even if thats not the case.</p>