<p>hey im about to send my apps away and I just wanna get an opinion from you guys on whether or not you think i should include this part in my additional information part. here it is:</p>
<p>-In addition to my lifeguard certification, I am A.E.D., C.P.R., and waterfront certified.
-I would also like to express concern over my junior year Integrated Algebra 2/Trigonometry grade. I feel that 76 as a final grade for the year wasn't a true assessment of my math ability. My grades for each quarter of the year were 72, 79, 64, and 84 respectively. I feel that my teacher's tests were not an accurate review of my math ability. I felt it unfair and frustrating as I tried my best along with biweekly tutors and still could not attain a good grade. My teacher's tests were extremely long and difficult and more than half of my class rarely finished a test within the 40 minute period. Her tests became increasingly easier during the 4th quarter when she realized that many of my classmates, me included, were on the verge of failing. I would like to emphasize that I received an 86 on the regents and feel that I fully understood the material but was not given an accurate assessment. Hopefully you will take this into consideration. Thank you.</p>
<p>so what do you think? note:75 is failing at my school.</p>
<p>and i wrote this because i dont want them to think i was being lazy the whole year like not doing hw and not caring because if they see i got a 76 for the school year but an 86 for the regents they would be like well this kid is obviosly smart but just lazy.</p>
<p>am i right?</p>
<p>omg please someone help me i need to get these in by tonite!</p>
<p>pleaseee someone reply</p>
<p>understood, well its better to send them. As long as you show some improvement in your studies, colleges are more than welcome to see who you are. After all, it is not just about grades. I am a sophomore trying to get into MIT my junior year. Its helllllll :(.</p>
<p>I would not submit that if I were you. The additional info is for “real” excuses-- a death, a family emergency, a health problem, etc-- not that you felt your teacher was unfair. If that was a valid excuse, I’d have pages and pages to write about how rude and unfair my physics, chem, micro, research, and trig teachers all were.</p>
<p>You got a 76 because you didn’t do well on the tests. Maybe the tests were hard, but colleges are not going to say, “Oh, okay, it was the teacher’s fault”. Just take responsibility for it and if all of your other grades are stellar, it shouldn’t kill you.</p>
<p>I agree completely with rebeccar. Don’t send it in. This can be looked upon negatively. Seriously, your story isn’t a plausible excuse. As rebeccar said, I could also write pages and pages complaining about all my teachers who didn’t give me the grades I wanted. </p>
<p>Plus, colleges get high school profiles which states what grades the students from your class are getting in that particular course. (as in, how many get A’s, how many B’s, etc) If, as you say, everyone is getting low grades, then colleges will take that into account. You make it sound like EVERYONE in the class is failing, but I doubt that. I mean if there are people performing better than you, surely it’s not the teacher’s fault for making the tests hard. </p>
<p>Seriously, don’t send it. It is just whiny. I mean pretty much anyone applying to colleges can say the same things you do to try and justify their not-so-great grades.</p>
<p>The extra info part is to say anything you feel is valid. Since all essays are a chance to show your maturity and ability to tackle challenges- which college is full of- you do not make excuses. That could be a warning flag to adcoms.</p>
<p>It’s Algebra2/trig- not like saying you had touble with AP calc. If the rest of your record is strong enough for your colleges, you may decide to skip any explanation. If you do go ahead, it would work only if you are able to show your increasing efforts, the steps you took to master the class, some evidence of improvement- not that tests got easier. No excuses.</p>
<p>Btw, hs profiles don’t include info about specific classes- you can see samples via google or collegeboard. However, it is possible a GC would note in his/her recc that this one grade is due to a teacher’s unusual standards.</p>
<p>@lookingforward</p>
<p>Oh, sorry about the hs profile. I thought all schools had it similar.</p>
<p>My hs profile includes how many got A’s, how many got B’s. etc. Maybe it’s because my class is relatively smal with 45 people. </p>
<p>I really doubt that a teacher would be letting EVERYONE get your grades though, OP. In that case your excuse might be valid but I seriously seriously doubt it.</p>
<p>Sounds like whining!!!
I wouldn’t!</p>
<p>Why is 75 a failing mark? I wouldn’t want to go to your school. :/</p>