<p>How much can extenuating circumstances excuse a poor GPA? </p>
<p>My stats:
32 ACT
3.7 weighted GPA (all honors & AP) 3.5 unweighted </p>
<p>Good EC's and very good rec's from teachers and my counselor. </p>
<p>My counselor is writing especially to explain why I have 5 years of high school ( hospitalized end of sophomore year for 3 months and then subsequently was homeschooled for a year before re-enrolling in high school). I had cancer and my mom wanted to me to focus on life instead of school but I got better and found I was reallllllyyyy far behind in school work so I had to repeat junior year. </p>
<p>I want to attend:
Swarthmore
Vassar
Colorado College
Trinity College (CT)
Wellesley
Williams </p>
<p>I interviewed everywhere it was possible to explain my situation. I'm also applying through Questbridge first since my family has 0 EFC. </p>
<p>Well first of all, I’m sorry you had to deal with obstacles that made your life more difficult than it needed to be. I’m glad that you’re doing better now. </p>
<p>You don’t mention any extracurriculars ? I’m not exactly sure how much these admissions officers will take into consideration of your situation, but you definitely have a fair chance if you have decent extracurriculars. </p>
<p>Something that could really help you out given your unfortunate situation is writing a beautiful essay that really touches the admission officers. Lure them into your world and portray your feelings during the time of your illness. Let them know about how you fought cancer and how you dealt with life during those times. How unfair life seemed to be when you first got diagnosed and how you’ve grown as a person since then. However you tell them,(through your essay or your interview), make sure they understand how you felt and the challenges you had to face in order to get to today. </p>
<p>I wish you luck and i’m glad you won the fight :)</p>
<p>@yojackie thanks!! As for EC’s, I didn’t want to be long winded but in short:</p>
<p>Varsity tennis
President of environmental club
President of giant games club
Board member for a religious nonprofit organization (name omitted for privacy)
Environmental steward at a local well known conservancy (Name omitted for privacy)</p>
<p>I think you have solid chances at the colleges on your list. I would also suggest adding a few from the “Colleges That Change Lives,” as lower matches and safeties.</p>