Do I have a chance at attending this urban oasis of academia?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Barnard College
1

<p>I just visited Barnard and I think that I’m in love… I’m planning on applying but am extremely concerned about my grades. Do I have a chance?</p>

<p>9th:
Honors Ancient History- B+
Honors English 9- B
Spanish 2- A
Algebra 1- A-
Fashion Design- B</p>

<p>10th:
Honors Civics/Honors Modern World History – B+/B
Honors English 10 – A-
Honors Geometry- C-
Honors Spanish 3- B
Honors Biology- B+</p>

<p>11th:
English 11H- C+
U.S History- C-
Spanish 2- B
Algebra 2- C-
Theater- A
Concert Choir- A
Chemistry- C</p>

<p>12th:
Spanish 3
Pre-Calculus
Advanced Theater
Art History/International Relations
AP Biology
Nature Writing/Dystopian Fiction</p>

<p>-Attended public school for 9th & 10th, private for 11th & 12th
-Low grades due to depression. I take full responsibility for them but they do not represent my intellectual ability or hard-working and ambitious nature… Have recently begun taking medication and seeing a therapist
-Divorced parents, low-income mother, has been my responsibility to choose who I live with at any given time
-Behind in math and science because public school wouldn’t allow me to take summer classes to move ahead (begged for two years)
-Behind in Spanish because of disparity between foreign language curriculum at former and current schools
-Unique heritage (?) Moroccan and Russian Jew (father is an immigrant) and have grown up immersed in the French language</p>

<p>SAT I: CR-770, W-760, M-610
SAT II: Literature-750, BioE-720</p>

<p>Lead roles in school plays/musicals, 1st place in school-wide Shakespeare Monologue Competition, advanced to regional comp.
Leadership role in club at my school which connects inner-city youth with the arts
Volunteer at an aquarium and science/anthropology/art museum
Volunteered as a friend to autistic children almost every Sunday for a year
Won Honorable Mention in a national poetry comp.
Regularly babysit my little sister
Summer intern at television production company (9th grade)
Summer intern with my city’s waste/recycling department (10th grade)
Founded an environmental club in 9th grade but dissipated by 10th (raised $200 for environmental fund and organized a beach cleanup)
JV Field Hockey Team (10th grade)
Ballet classes (9th, 11th, 12th)
Fencing at school (12th grade)
Contributor to school newspaper (10th grade)</p>

<p>*Plan on entering my photography and collage work into Scholastic Arts Comp. this year</p>

2

<p>Your grades are going to be an issue, but of course you have no chance if you do not apply! Of course you need to do the following:</p>

<p>-Apply RD so you have a chance to blow those first semester grades out of the water, and so that you have a range of schools to choose from in the Spring;
-Make sure you choose recommenders that are familiar with your background and the things you have had to overcome. Make no excuses, but your circumstances are significant;
-make sure your application is focused…your extracurricular activities are very diverse! What are you passionate about??
-To reiterate my first point, make sure you have “safety” schools on your list as well…</p>

<p>I’m not gonna lie or sugar-coat things: as I’m sure you are aware, Barnard is the most competitive women’s college, and among the most competitive liberal arts colleges out there. And though it does seem you have had extremely difficult circumstances to contend with, this may not be enough for the Barnard adcom to over look. They need to know you will be able to handle the challenging academics at Barnard…</p>

<p>Best to you, and go do a GREAT job in your first semester of your Sr. year!</p>

3

<p>Thank you for your reply! Do you have any advice on focusing my application? I’m interested in and passionate about too many things…Also:
-Should the college be informed about my depression or would this further tarnish my application?
-How can I prove that I can handle Barnard’s challenging academics, besides 1st semester senior grades? Would an interview and thoughtfully-written essays help at all?</p>

4

<p>Really the best indicator of your ability to be successful at Barnard will be your grades. Beyond that, I do think an interview and of course your essays can help. If you have been clinically diagnosed with depression, this is indeed something that you can and, imo, should address in a thoughtful way in your essays. Don’t make it all about that one thing, but that is significant info. </p>

<p>As for focusing your application, you are the only one that knows how that needs to happen. After doing a lot of research into Barnard, what of the things you are passionate about is the one thing you really want to focus upon in college? And Does Banrard have that? Would you add something significant by being good at that??</p>