What kind of grades do you need to get into BU’s college of general studies? Do they take a holistic approach when evaluating applications?
Copied from my answer in a diff. thread:
You can apply directly to CGS, or you can apply to a different college and check off CGS as a “back-up” in case they don’t admit you to your first choice. The reqs are basically the same as everything else (approx. 2000 SAT, 30 ACT, A- avg., etc.) but CGS is actually a little more lax with this. They typically put people in CGS if they are a little lower in terms of scores than the rest of the applicant pool, but still show potential to succeed at BU. Of course, that doesn’t mean that accept people with AWFUL scores, just slightly lower ones. CGS gets a bad rep for this, people say it’s the college for the “less smart” students, but really you get the same education so don’t let that scare you away. After two years, you are guaranteed a transfer to CAS (or some other schools) anyway, so what’s the difference?
In addition, yes they take a holistic approach. For instance, maybe your GPA isn’t stellar because you had a bad freshman year, or other extenuating circumstances. They at least want to see a general upward trend in grades. Maybe you have great grades, but aren’t a great test taker, and have awesome EC’s. The bad tests might hurt a little, but they won’t keep you out if everything else is great. Just write a great personal essay, and really gush about “Why BU?” in the app. My test scores were slightly lower than average, but I still got into CAS and even got a really nice finaid package.
Thanks @sms122397 . I appreciate the advice. My S GPA is not good. He had a rough start to HS. His ADHD really started to show itself once the curriculum got tougher and the district kept denying him services because they said he was “doing fine”. We knew as well as his teachers that he was very bright, but he wasn’t getting the support he was entitled to until we hired advocates (2nd half of 11th grade). His ACT tutor kept asking why he didn’t have services and extra time, I just said they denied it because he was passing. I had no idea what he was legally entitled to by way of his diagnosis, which they had on file since third grade. Anyway, he got the help he need and his GPA took off. He got a 29 on his ACT and now doors will hopefully open for him.
He also was being scouted for D1 soccer schools but at the Lehigh iD camp, he broke his ankle this summer, and that ended that, as he already had 2 schools tell him they wanted to see him one last time this summer and they were ready to make him an offer. Now we have to revisit what schools he is interested in, not only for soccer.
He does have that upward trend, i’m just afraid it’s not enough. I knew nothing about CGS until a friend mentioned it. I was curious what it took to get in, and I appreciate your help. Thanks again!
I think as long as the trend is there, and aware of the situation (there is a little section on the app to explain pretty much anything you want) I think you should be good. And I actually got a 29 on my ACT and I’m in CAS 
Hi! I am a current sophomore in BU’s CGS so if you have any questions about the program specifically I can answer them!
@laurrodes thank you! How was your freshman year? Would you mind telling me your gpa and test scores? You can private message me if you’d like.
@scout07 ill just post here so everyone can benefit. My high school GPA was a 3.88/4.0 but my test scores were not the best with an SAT of 1670/2400, in hindsight I probably should’ve tried taking the ACT. I was accepted into BU’s college of general studies january boston-london program. This meant that I had a gap semester during the fall of my freshman year and that I would be a spring admit. My freshman year started in January and I spend those 15 weeks in boston. I loved BU and my professors were amazing and really passionate about what they were teaching, I also really like how CGS breaks the school up into teams so you can get smaller class sizes and more individual attention. My second semester was over 6 weeks in the summer in London and it was the best time of my life. I could not be happier with my choice to attend CGS
Our older daughter graduated from BU after going through the CGS program. She also had ADHD, and we also hired a coach for her in 11th grade. She found CGS to be an excellent program in all aspects, although I would!'t necessarily recommend it for a science or SArgent major. MOre than one of her professors told her that they find CGS students much stronger than CAS because of the cohesive emphasis on writing and discussion. She was extremely happy, and is doing quite well working in her major.