Expulsion Freshman Year/ How bad will it hurt me?

Applying to College
1

<p>Hey guys, I've recently came across a situation in which i thought i could just toss over my shoulders and move on. However, after reading several threads about similar situations to mine (which i will expalin a little later), it has severely came back to haunt them when they applied to colleges.</p>

<p>Here's my situation:
Around the beginning of 2nd semester of freshman year, a friend and I were caught with some marijuana. We were dealt with both by the school and law enforcement. Because our school has a zero-tolerance policy with drug/weapons/&alcohol, expulsion was inevitable. Consequences were that we had to spend the rest of the year in an alternative school. After that semester, we were eligible to return back to our home school from which we were originally expelled from. </p>

<p>I'm currently sophomore and I'm doing pretty well & I'm currently enrolled back into my home school. My UW GPA is a 3.75, and that is mixed in with several honors & pre-ap classes with one AP class i took this year. (APWH if curious) However, there's a problem. Earlier on in the year, i had requested a personal copy transcript to look at, and when i reviewed my transcript, it says the alternative school i went. Now, it doesn't say (name of school) alternative school. It just says the school name, so colleges wouldn't exactly know that i got expelled, but heres the tricky part: IT LOOKS SUSPICIOUS!!!</p>

<p>This i literally what my transcript looks like:
9th Grade 1st Semester (My Home School)
9th Grade 2nd Semester (Alternative School)
10th Grade 1st Semester (My Home School)</p>

<p>Colleges are going to want to know why i transfered to one only to return back to my home school the following school year. I really worried, because I want to go to UGA, but I think I might of screwed it all up because of it. They're going to ask, and don't think it going to make the situation any better by not mentioning my suspension. I honestly don't know what to do. As for the law enforcement part i mentioned earlier, I'm not too worried about that. I went through a diversion program and successfully completed it, so i can seal my record when I turn 17. By doing so, colleges will not know my record, and i don't have to check the box asking me if i've been arrested or if i have a criminal record (somewhere along those lines). My transcript is what gives it away. Should I lower my standards in what college i should go to or should i still try to apply to UGA & explain myself? (Note: UGA is not my only colllege, but it is my #1 college without an doubt) I really confused and just looking for help? I'd rather get my problem solved now, instead of waiting til Senior year, the year I will be applying for colleges. </p>

<p>Any help is appreciated!
(I hope this is the right forum i posted in. I'm new here, obviously, so if this isn't the right section, let me know. That way I'll be aware the next time, thanks)</p>

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<p>Keep up your grades and keep growing so when it comes time to applying to colleges you can use that experience as a differentiating factor. I think it gives you an edge (assuming you keep doing well and show you’ve turned things around). Don’t worry about it, admissions wants to see growth. They don’t expect anyone to be perfect. Mistakes are a good thing when you learn from them. </p>

<p>And if things don’t work theres always community college where you can then transfer to an Ivy League school :P</p>

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<p>ANY college you apply to will have a statement similar to this one from the CA:</p>

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<p>You need to answer truthfully and then reflect upon your situation. You’re lucky as you have a relatively long period of time to show how you’ve changed since the incident.</p>

<p>p.s. your HS GC will be answering the same questions about you in the Secondary School Report.</p>

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<p>On the contrary, I would use it to your advantage to base your essays on. Show how you’ve learned and matured and moved on from a blip on your life’s radar screen. How you overcame some bad decision making and are now a solid student and citizen. Don’t shy away from it; it have you character. And they will certainly find out. I say use it to your advantage.</p>

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<p>You’re overthinking it, dude. Colleges deal with kids who move a lot all the time. It’s not uncommon for military/embassy brats etc. to move 3 or 4+ times in high school, whether it’s an off-post school 5 minutes away or in a completely different continent, even within the span of a couple months. </p>

<p>If you check the box “No”, colleges will not suspect anything whatsoever from simply looking at your transcript.</p>

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Just remember this (vs. blindly following what Rob1995 stated).</p>

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<p>Thanks for watching my back ED ;).</p>

<p>Rob, </p>

<p>The reason I cited the part where the OP says they were expelled is because it’s very obvious from post #1 that, unlike some other HS violation questions posted here, this student was expelled by the school. There is no doubt about whether it is on their HS record, and what the answer to the Disciplinary question is. The transcript question is a red herring, colleges don’t have to be concerned that the OP went to different schools, their current HS will say that they were expelled, and the GC will confirm this in the SSR. It might be different if the OP didn’t return to their original HS, but since they did, the expulsion will be obvious. The worst thing the OP could do is answer No while their GC answers Yes to the Disciplinary question.</p>

<p>And no, the OP shouldn’t waste their valuable essay space to discuss this. They do that in the mandatory response to the Disciplinary questions, and then they move on to other more positive aspects of their life in the essay.</p>

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<p>Ok, thanks everyone for the replies. I not going to stress about it too much. I think i just got a little too carried away from reading other people posts about situations somewhat similar to mine. This incident happended over a year ago, and I’ve definitely learned a lot from that experience. I’ll definitely talk to my counselor about it as well. They can be really helpful. All that said, when the time comes, I’ll explain myself and hope the people looking at my application look past my mistake.</p>