<p>Hi guys! I'm currently a Junior in highschool located in Bergen County, NJ. I go to a blue ribbon school, very smart and very high ranked but it's public.</p>
<p>I am of asian descent and my GPA is currently a 2.8. I do NOT take any AP/Honor courses, all are normal level and college prep. I'm on varsity swim team and will most likely be captain for the next 2 years, I'm in my church's youth group, I've done retreats at Guatemala and help volunteer, and I've also helped prepare many church events.</p>
<p>(Honestly nothing of this is me trying to sound like I'm at fault and it was completely my fault this happened, I really struggled through these times)
Now my story: My stepmother and father were not on good terms during my freshmen year of highschool, they would be constantly fighting and yelling at each other (Usually my mother's fault, my dad would take it out of hand), and sometimes resulted in physical moments. Police have been called to my house before and it wasn't really a good time. Freshmen year I did not do as well due to this, I really didn't care about anything at the time and received like a 2.6 GPA. Sophomore year my mother left us, I didn't get one goodbye, didn't get any last word from her to me, nothing. That affected me the whole year, I would skip assignments not do anything not study for a certain period of time which let me into getting around a 2.8 GPA. Junior year everything's better and i just started this year off. My first marking period I was doing well, then my Grandmother (Who took the position of my mother since i was born, i loved her very dearly) suffered from major blood loss which led her into breathing problems and she had to be taken to the ER. I've been doing well but during this time period (1-2 weeks) I had a lot of tests/quizzes, and I had to balance between driving to the ER right after school, staying until 9PM, then studying for exams and it was hard which led me into failing a few exams. At the time I had all B's and A's but it dropped down to C's. The MP just ended and i currently have 2 B's, and 3 C's. My dad works extremely hard from 7am all the way down to usually 8-10PM at night which leaves me at home completely alone. I cook my own dinners and completely take care of my self on the weekdays, that means I push myself to sit down and study when I could easily goof off and play games without anyone knowing. I'm striving to push through this year at least maintaining all B's or higher.</p>
<p>As for SAT's, im taking SAT prep courses, my highest score is a 1700 i'm looking to reach for at least 2000. So hoping my GPA is between 2.9-3.0(reach), and I get around a 1900-2000, do i still have a chance at a good 4-year university school? Community college is not an option because after I leave to college, my father will live with my grandmother and help take care of her.</p>
<p>Any schools you guys recommend that would accept me? Would they take into account my past/history? Thank you again guys.</p>
<p>There are no community colleges (or four year schools) near your grandmother’s place, nor can you attend a community college as a residential student?</p>
<p>In any case, there should be some four year schools that you can get admitted to (see the auto-admit sticky thread at the top of this forum, but also take a look at your various in-state public universities). Whether they are “good” depends on your goals (academic and post-graduation; e.g. do they have the majors you are interested in?). But you also need to consider cost and financial aid – run the net price calculators on the various community colleges and four year schools to see what kind of cost and financial aid you are looking at (out-of-state public universities tend not to give much or any financial aid).</p>
<p>If you can bring the GPA up to 3.0 and get high SAT or ACT scores, then there can be considerable scholarships available – see the sticky threads at the top of the financial aid and scholarships forum.</p>
<p>Yes, Bergen Community College which is an extremely respectable CC, one of the best, however I need to go to a 4-year university. CC is not an option.</p>
<p>So you are a junior. Do well this year, and options may open up. That said, seems like with all you’ve gone through, the residential part of a 4 year college would be the easiest thing to replicate. Just get an apartment and go to school. Clearly you can live by yourself.</p>
<p>IMO, you’ve had a lot of bad breaks, but you still need to demonstrate a record of academic success, which you haven’t been able to do that. That’s exactly what Community College is there for. Why go to a mediocre 4 year school, if you can do 2 years at a CC and transfer to a much better school than you’re going to be able to get into at this point.</p>
<p>When your dad is home, you need to talk with him about how he plans for you to pay for your education. Yes, there are places that will take you with your GPA and your current SAT score, but it is possible that none of them (other than the community colleges) will be affordable. </p>
<p>There are a fair number of community colleges that have residence halls, and there many more that have someone who can help you find a place to live off campus. If you run the college-matching search engines, and specifically ask for 2-year public colleges with residence halls, you will get a list. There don’t seem to be any in NJ, but there are a number in NY, PA, and MD, some of which would be within a couple hours of driving time
for you: [College</a> Navigator - Search Results](<a href=“College Navigator - Search Results”>College Navigator - Search Results)</p>
<p>If your guidance counselor doesn’t know what has been going on in your family for the past few years, go tell him or her now. It is quite likely that your guidance counselor will be able to tell you where students from your high school who have had grades like yours have been admitted in the past few years. That should give you even more ideas about your options.</p>
<p>I forgot to mention, paying for college isn’t the biggest issue.
My grandmother is extremely wealthy as well as many of my family in Korea. My dad’s job pays pretty well it’s just that it’s located in Long Island, that’s why he comes home late.
As long as the college isn’t outrageously expensive it could work.</p>
<p>UCs want to see at least a 3.0 HS GPA from California residents applying for frosh admission. CSUs would be more realistic California public four year school options if the OP cannot get at least a 3.0 HS GPA.</p>
<p>Going clear across the country, and shelling out about 50k each year might not be the best plan for a student with a shaky high school record. There area number of places closer to home that would admit a full-pay B average student. Those should be on your list.</p>
<p>There are several threads in the parents forum with titles like “Grade A school for a B student”. Go there and keep scrolling down until you find them.</p>
<p>Forgot that the OP is not a California resident. The UC minimum GPA threshold for non-residents is 3.4. CSU admission standards are also higher for non-residents. Financial aid will not cover the $23,000 non-resident additional tuition at UCs. CSUs are less expensive, but do not have financial aid for non-residents.</p>
<p>The point is, you can get into a 4 year college. The better you do in your Jr year, and the better you do on your SAT’s will determine if you have a wider range of colleges to apply for. Just do your best and post again after jr year when you have your gpa and your SAT’s. Then you can do a more specific search. Meanwhile get familiar with your instate schools and their entrance requirements and also what you may want to study and the types of colleges that appeal to you.</p>