Forgive me but I’m freaking out a bit over this.
Ever since I started junior year, I’ve been astronomically bad at Physics and Physics alone. This has been pretty consistent throughout high school (I’ve always done worse in science classes, typically science is my only B in a semester and I don’t think I’ve gotten more than one A in three years) but I just bombed another unit and my grade fell to a 71. It’s a combination of having a not-so-ideal teacher (but what can you do, just gotta live with it) and being stupid at the subject, but I’m trying to major in CS so I’m aware this probably looks very bad.
Getting a C in this will probably kill my chances at most of the top colleges, I’m guessing? I’d also like to know if a B looks sketchy to them as well. How much would a B in physics affect my chances of acceptance? I’m going through a lot of stress trying to bring it up, I don’t understand anything even if I study hard and it’s driving me insane. It’s not even an AP or anything, I’m doing great in my APs but this single honors class is killing me.
Go to your teacher and ask him or her what you can do to improve your grade. Getting a B would be a lot better than getting a C.
You need to change what you are doing. Physics is applied math and you need math for CS.
“Getting a C in this will probably kill my chances at most of the top colleges, I’m guessing? I’d also like to know if a B looks sketchy to them as well.”
To give you a very rough and general idea… you’ll need a 3.8/4.0 UW GPA in rigorous classes in order to be a competitive applicant at a “top college”.
Do your very best in high school. CS is a highly competitive major and most top 100 colleges have CS acceptance rates well below that of their overall acceptance rate.
Recognize that CS majors have to dig deeper to find match and likely schools, but they’re out there. Ultimately in CS, your skills and talent will matter more than where you went to college.
Man I hope I can pull a B.
@Groundwork2022 yeah I know it’s a long shot, I spent the past three years stacking my extracurriculars and trying to do the best I can but I’ve gotten to about a 3.73/4.3 without the potential C. I really don’t want to switch my major, but I have a horrible track record when it comes to STEM classes which is… bad. Knowing this, should I try to apply with a different major and either attempt to switch out or just roll with it?
@bopper same question. Switch major? I’m in a relatively low math class (regular Precalculus), and even though I’ll be taking AP next year it’ll be AB and I don’t know if I’ll do well in it. I’ve done great in all of my computer science classes and have a few minor ECs in the area but I’m aware it’s far from ideal.
No, be honest about your major. If you think high school physics is difficult, wait until you get to the weed-out classes that might make you eligible for a particular department in college. What is worse than getting rejected from a college? Getting in, and a year or two later finding out you’ve been shut out of your major. This is why careful research is in order. You might have a better chance at schools that don’t admit by major. You might want to look for colleges that offer free tutoring. Look for high retention and graduation rates because those are more likely to be supportive environments. Basically you are going to have to pick colleges thoughtfully, and for reasons other than rankings. Try for a dream school or two, but find alternatives you love too. Best of luck. Know there will be a place for you.
Also you might want to look at getting a BA in CS instead of a BS so you wont’ have as many STEM classes.