I’m applying to a wide range of schools because I need to. I feel unbelievably embarrassed to admit this, but I just looked at my weighted GPA on naviance 5 minutes ago. It’s a 3.23 weighted. I officially give up on any of the top 20 schools or any top neuroscience schools that I was going to apply to. I honestly couldn’t care less about what my guidance counselor says or does anymore. I think at this point we can all establish that I simply do not qualify. My first SAT, which I took on June 6th, was a 1750. I’m at a loss. I wish I had time to study. This brings me to the extenuating circumstances now. Ever since I was 14 (9th grade), I have had to work about 35-45 hours per week to help financially support my family. My dad legitimately gambles a lump sum of his salary away and I could not just stand by and let us lose our home and other things. Will colleges penalize me for putting this before a 5.0 GPA or whatever? Will schools actually take this into consideration? I am legitimately afraid of what’s coming my way during application season. This is no longer some measly fear of being deferred at a top school. I officially give up on them. I took the most challenging schedule possible within my school and now my stats are absolute garbage. What can I do at this point to salvage my application? Is this even considered an extenuating circumstance? I am so stressed out. All I think of, all day everyday, is how I am going to be rejected by every single school I apply to. I have been studying for the SAT to take it again( I feel like the CB’s mistake actually affected scores). I definitely need financial aid, so that’s going to put me in a bad light as an applicant. We are low income for sure. I was rejected by Questbridge’s college prep program, so I don’t see how I will gain acceptance into NCM. I did go on to attend a free, residential, EXTREMELY selective (16% acceptance rate) program this summer. It was for math and science. I want to go into neuroscience. I am still taking the most rigorous classes during my senior year. I just have no idea what to do. It’s just going to kill me to watch my arrogant classmates get into the schools I can’t even apply to. I really have no idea of what to do.
Oh my god… Just realized that I made a huge spelling error. Extenuating*
That work schedule is crazy. Definitely put your 35-45 work schedule on college apps, and talk about how it affected your academic performance. It will definitely be taken into consideration.
Keep in mind that the vast majority of high school students have WAY more free time than you do. It’s not your fault that you couldn’t study for 5+ hours a day and have 20 different EC’s like most CollegeConfidential people. Also, if your family income is low, colleges will take that into consideration as well.
Extenuating circumstances matter, but realistically that is not likely to overcome a 3.23 weighted GPA and 1750 SAT for many competitive schools unless you have some hooks. Your circumstances are difficult, and people will generally be sympathetic, but you will still need to show that you are able to focus on your academics. Your best bet is to focus on your grades and raising your test scores and apply to a range of schools but be realistic. Transferring could be an option down the road if you are able to make your academic record more reflective of your abilities.
@Argonian183 Do you think that if I make straight A’s during senior year (by continuing to get ahead of coursework) and get an SAT in the 1900-2000 range, I would have any chance at Johns Hopkins? I’m sorry for flooding you with questions. I’m just so afraid. My dad and everyone around me is clueless. They all actually think I have chances at top schools. I wish my dad would realize that Harvard is not in my near future.
@renaissancedad what do you consider to be hooks? I am a minority if that even helps at all. I am first gen for college and also low income. I don’t know if these could even be considered strong in 2015-2016.
URM, 1st generation and low income all help, but even so you need to get your scores and GPA up. The average GPA for the Johns Hopkins entering class of 2019 was 3.74 (unweighted). Only 15% had a GPA below 3.5, and only 4% below 3.24 unweighted. The 25-75% SAT range was 2000-2280, so the 1900-2000 range would still be below the 25th percentile, or at the extreme low end of it at best.
You need to talk to your guidance counselor, and come up with a realistic plan. I think that with your situation and good ECs and letters you could probably overcome either low GPA or low test scores, but both will be difficult. Perhaps not impossible, but I would certainly have other options. You will need to write some really strong essays to get people’s attention, and make an extremely compelling case that your grades and scores are not reflective of your true abilities.
Applying ED to a reach school such s Johns Hopkins might also give your chances a slight bump.
@renaissancedad So it’s better to apply ED to JHU? It would actually slightly bump my chance? I don’t know. I feel as if applying RD may help, with a strong senior year GPA to prove that I am capable of succeeding in academics. I have gotten A+'s before in math and science classes in 9th and 10th grade. However, all of my grades went downhill during junior year. It was an absolute nightmare. My recommendation from my Spanish teacher should be EXCELLENT. I can speak the language near-fluently, but I am not even remote Spanish. My GC LOVES me so that should be STELLAR. I may ask the math teacher I had in 9th and 10th grade. I did an amazing job in her classes; she also watched me move up from average to advanced math (meaning I had to take two math classes sophomore year).
I think you make a good point, especially given that it is your junior year that is the major problem. Colleges will want to see strong mid-year senior grades to help suggest that your junior year was an anomaly, so applying ED probably will not benefit you.
@renaissancedad I’m just nervous because I’m expecting rejection after rejection. Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my questions!
You need to build a compelling case that your junior year was an anomaly, and will not occur at the college level. This will be difficult. Some things that you can do:
- If you have high grades from similar difficulty courses freshman/sophomore year and get high grades the first half of your senior year, it will help. It will suggest that your poor grades were not due to a jump in the difficulty of the courses, or due to poor work habits.
- If you have strong standardized test scores, it will help. Again, it will add weight to the idea that those grades are not reflective of your true abilities. As of right now, the 1750 SAT score only reinforces your GPA, so you need to address that.
- If you can give a compelling explanation of why your grades suffered, due to circumstances beyond your control, it will help.
- Being a URM and 1st generation, low-income applicant will help.
- Having strong ECs or awards will help.
- Having your GC address these issues directly and attest to your work ethic and abilities will help, as will glowing teacher recs.
- Writing strong essays that tackling this issue head on and make it clear that you are someone who will succeed in the face of difficulties, and not someone who will perform consistent with your junior year transcript, will help.
It will probably take all of these things, and even then it will be difficult. I can’t promise success, but those are the steps I think you have to take.
@renaissancedad Will writing a letter to the schools help as well? I mean explaining the difficulties in a straightforward manner. Do you think that explaining to them that working was a commitment and that it shows dedication would do anything for me? I feel like something has to give. There has to be somebody out there that understands. There has to be somebody out there who succeeded in college admissions with a similar situation. How else do I prove to them that I’m not an idiot at academics? With the little bit of free time that I had, I self studied calculus. I do not know if I should continue with taking multivariable calculus by testing out of AP Calc BC. I feel like work will get in the way. But somebody out there in the realm of college admissions has to understand that I’m not a complete idiot. Again, thank you very much for all of your help and time!
If you know that your grades and stats are compromised for the top schools, why would you apply to those schools to set yourself up for rejection?
Redo your list.
Apply to schools that you CAN get into.
Being arrogant about why you have to apply to those top schools, won’t help you, come decision time.
It’s firstly and foremostly GPA and test scores because the schools need to see if you are capable of keeping up with their courses. Yes we know you can work a full week, but that’s not gonna get you in.
You aren’t the only student who has had to work to support a family because the parent couldn’t. But, you need to realize that a lot of kids get good grades and succeed in spite of their parents gambling and alcoholism. Cut back on your hours, since you are being a codependent for your father, go to social services for help.
Redo your list.
@PolyglotGirl, I suspect @aunt bea is correct for the most part. I think it’s ok to apply to 1-2 reaches and you may just possibly get lucky, but the odds are extremely low, and you need to take a more realistic approach. You need to focus on your schoolwork and show that you can do the work. If you raised your test scores, got top grades this year, and did well your freshman year at a “lesser” school than your original target, then you might be in a better position to transfer.
The fact that you still feel that “work will get in the way” is not a good sign. If your priorities are supporting your family, then by all means do so; you will not be the first qualified applicant to give up their future to support their family (or enable their parent’s addiction, depending on how you look at it). If your priority is your education, then you need to be able to focus on that. What is your plan for next year, when your family will have the same dilemma? Are you planning on supporting your family while hopefully attending a top college? That’s just not realistic. I don’t think you’re a “complete idiot” by any means, but I don’t think that you are clear about your priorities, or you wouldn’t have neglected your GPA to this point, or still be taking on more work than you can handle along with academics. You need to get your priorities clear, and even then it will likely take some time to dig yourself out of this hole into which you got yourself.
@renaissancedad At this point, Johns Hopkins is the only reach I am considering. Perhaps cutting down the hours will make a difference. I just need to make calculations and see whether cutting down will help my family or not. I wish I had a time machine or something like that.
@“aunt bea” @renaissancedad Thank you guys very much for your time! I truly appreciate the time and thought you put into your responses. At this point, I think it’s a matter of my doing well senior year and being enthusiastic and optimistic about my true options at this point in my life.
@PolyglotGal I don’t know what the SAT/GPA averages are for Johns Hopskin’s, so I can’t really tell you. Getting a better SAT score would help, and increasing your score by 300+ is definitely possible. I went from a 176 PSAT to a 2100 SAT, if that gives you inspiration.
You should not be stressing. Stressing is bad. Also, doesn’t neuroscience require a graduate-level degree? If that’s the case, then your undergraduate university honestly doesn’t matter all that much.
@Argonian183 YES THIS IS INSPIRATIONAL!!! Can I just take a moment to congratulate you on that amazing achievement? You overcame the odds and the statistics to do amazingly on that SAT! You crushed that predicted score of 1760! Seriously, you are an awesome person! I want to ask you about how you achieved this, but it’s all too subjective in terms of methods and whatnot. Also, thank you very much for taking the time to share your story and help me with my dilemma.
@PolyglotGal Haha… it’s not particularly amazing by CC’s standards, but thanks. Do you have the SAT official study guide? That’s what I mainly used to study.
@Argonian183 Yes! We got the most recent ones for free at this summer program I attended earlier this summer. I have been using it