Good University for Brilliant guy with bad grades due to LDs...

Parents Forum Learning Differences and Challenges - LD, ADHD
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<p>Hey everyone this is embarrassing but here it goes, I am rising junior and I am looking at some universities for me. </p>

<p>This post is in 2 parts.</p>

<p>1st part.</p>

<p>Here is the deal I am not bragging when I say I a brilliant. I have a 138 IQ,remember load of knowledge, and I was specifically told by a doctor "You are brilliant, you need to go to an elite private school"...Which unfortunately was impossible for financial reasons because it cost $30k a year. </p>

<p>But I am having some problems in school. I have anxiety, depression and ADD. While I try, I can't be organized (laptops aren't allowed), never can remember homework, and can barely write papers. I will type a paragraph over a few hours because I am distracted. I think most of my friends will be shocked when the realize I am not in top 10 or even top 10%,since I tend to be private on this issue and I am appear strong socially. And I really want to be a good student, but for some reason I can't. I mean I don’t have a problem learning, but with getting the work done</p>

<p>And it seems to be getting worse. I am trying to get help, but it could be months before meds are worked out.</p>

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<p>2nd part....College,Grades..etc.</p>

<p>Back on my stats, My GPA is between a 3.2(most likely) and 3.6UW (highest possible). I had a TERRIBLE freshmen year and got a D in Spanish, which I may retake…My grades aren’t consistent. I get Cs(and a D on math final because…I somehow skipped a page),but I average out with Bs for year grades and a A or 2.</p>

<p>My SATs should be rather high in the neighborhood on 2100-2200 based on mock tests..</p>

<p>I have some strong ECs, State Science Fair 1st and 2nd place, Award winning marching and jazz band, Lead Attorney on Mock Trial Team, Co-Lead on Math Team,</p>

<p>For what I want in a university that is a research powerhouse especially in the field of physic, engineering (aerospace or EE),CompSci, and either international relations (international economy too) or political science. I would like for it to be very politically active and in a city or suburb preferably on the East Coast or California/Washington State. A good study aboard program is a plus. I would like for it to be as prestigious as possible and for it to be recruited by companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Microsoft, HP or Intel. As well as government agency such as NASA, DoE(LANL,LLNL…etc) and the NSA/CIA.
I don’t need specially accommodations either.</p>

<p>I have examples....</p>

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<p>Georgetown seems to fit your criteria, but it would be a reach so try to apply EA and write killer essays.</p>

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<p>my daughter found this book helpful.
Learning</a> Outside the Lines, an interview
You need to get 504 accomodations in place so that your performance is a reflection of your ability.</p>

<p>no offense but iq is only a small piece of what it takes to be successful re academics.
My oldest daughter who has 160+ iq, didnt have accomodations in high school, but the intensity and amount of work required in college threw her for a loop/
best to find out what you need before you are 700 miles away from home.</p>

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<p>I have 504 accommodations, but neither the counselors nor teachers do a very good job.....</p>

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<p>UW does have a program with accomodations but it is a huge school.
I actually wouldnt worry so much about the prestige of the school at least for engineering jobs.
my brother who has difficulty with testing and took years to get his degree, has a very good job @ Boeing.
he attended university colorado- co springs in EE.
his nephew attended u colorado=boulder in AE and started @ $60,000 a few years ago
(also @ Boeing)</p>

<p>Georgetown is very competitive for admission.Ds friend is a freshman in public health but is probably one of top 10 students in her very accomplished high school.</p>

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<p>As I see it, your biggest challenge right now isn't how to approach colleges, or which college to approach, but to find ways to work to your intellectual capacity despite your LD's. </p>

<p>You list three issues: anxiety, depression, and ADD. I would think about the first two as emotional issues that can certainly have a huge impact on academic achievement. They can both also be treated with therapy and sometimes with medication as well. If you are not receiving treatment for anxiety and depression from a qualified therapist, it might help your mood, your daily life, and your ability to do well in school if you sought out some treatment. Especially with the anxiety, it would be good if you and the therapist could begin to figure out how the anxiety impacts you in school and when you try to study, and came up with some strategies to help you in specific school situations.</p>

<p>With ADD, again, there is treatment beyond medication. There are learning specialists (I wonder if your school district has one, and if you and your parents can request that you get some sessions with him.) who can help you to figure out ways to approach learning that will be effective for you. </p>

<p>If you have specific accommodations that will help you do better in school, it is not OK if your teachers and GC aren't so good about them. It is, in fact, completely unacceptable. If you are not receiving the accommodations in your plan consistently, then it is time for your parents to get involved, perhaps with an advocate, at an updated 504 meeting.</p>

<p>Although this may sound like a huge hassle, doing things that help you achieve at a level that is more in line with your abilities will also help you with college. You have two whole more years to begin to overcome some of the issues that have made achievement difficult for you. Please don't go into your junior year thinking that school is just going to remain the same as it has always been for you. If you haven't yet gotten the therapeutic, learning specialist, medication, and accommodation support that you need, you just don't know how well you can do in school, or how good you can feel.</p>

<p>I would also suggest that you send a private message to transitionsuccess, a professional who works with LD students, who might know the names of some experts in your area who could be helpful to you.</p>

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<p>My oldest attended a very academic LAC. There were more students than you would think, who were so brilliant they zoomed through competitive high schools, but when they got to college hit the wall and finally were diagnosed with LDs</p>

<p>LACs give students with learning differences more flexibility, not so many engineering programs though.</p>

<p>But you should be able to use your laptop in class if you want- have it written into 504. If they think you are going to play games- make them pay for it and get you a word processor.
We had to get outside testing for younger D, before school would look at it, but it is important to have strategies in place before college.</p>

<p>HOwever- I am very impressed that at your young age, you are cognizant enough of what is needed for college . Advocating for yourself- is very impressive & adcoms love to read about students who overcome challenges.</p>

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<p>I by no means am against a huge school.
UW is nice and ideal,but they are really selective these days.</p>

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<p>I have an appointment with therapist 2 weeks from today.
I know there is treatment beyond medication,but medication has generally worked well in my family.</p>

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<p>AnonyMom said exactly what I was thinking. Unless you substantially raise your GPA, you won't get into the type of school you really want. Maybe meds alone will help you, but don't be so quick to turn down accomodations.If a 504 isn't working, you need an IEP. To get an IEP, you need some type of diagnosis. You've got to work quickly and hope that schools will take notice of your drastic improvement.</p>

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<p>You mention in one of your posts that it could take months to get meds to work right for you... but working on a weekly, or more than once-weekly, basis with a therapist in a very targeted way with the issues that are holding you back at school could begin to have an impact, little by little, very soon. Having the accommodations you need available for you every day, consistently, from the moment you walk through the schoolhouse door on the first day of your junior year could also make a difference. </p>

<p>The issue isn't the existence of the LD's, but the very specific impact they have when an LD student is just too keyed up to sit down to study a particular subject; or doesn't remember to write down the assignment in class and doesn't remember it once they get home; or sits down to take a test and gets so anxious that they have a hard time remembering what they know or organizing their thoughts; or is slowed down so it takes them longer than most students to get their thoughts into an outline and write an essay; or tries unsuccessfully to study in a solid block without breaks; or has trouble getting his or her focus back so they can return to study after a break; or starts thinking, what's the point, I'll never do well anyway, when they need to be studying, to the point that they're not in the right frame of mind to learn; or when they try to take a test in a room full of noisy people and get completely distracted when someone taps his pencil; or --- you fill in the blank. A good therapist who has worked with intelligent LD students will understand how to help you deal with the small, particular things that undermine your academic success despite your intelligence and motivation. </p>

<p>If you can get your grades and scores into a higher range, you will be a more appealing candidate to more selective colleges. Having grades and scores at on one level before you were able to really buckle down and take advantage of the help you deserve, and then at another, higher level after you get the help, is going to make you a stronger applicant. Please focus on finding ways to cope with your LD's in high school; the same techniques and approaches are going to help you in the kind of selective college you'd like to attend.</p>

<p>My sense is that colleges want to know that students can do the work. If you can come to terms with your LD's to the point that your academic achievement improves, colleges will see your determination and probably be more optimistic that you are moving in a direction that makes it likelier that you can handle their academic demands.</p>

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<p>I also have an IEP...The teacher rarely tell me what I am missing.I think they try,but it doesn't work.
I do understand what toledo mean, I need to show some improvements.</p>

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<p>OK, here is an idea. Be sure that you have a big calendar book that you keep in your backpack, and take it out in every class to write down what the teachers tell you is due. Do not expect yourself to remember a thing; write down what the teachers say or write on the board the minute it happens. </p>

<p>Also, as soon as school starts, remind each of your teachers (maybe with your GC's help) that you have an IEP and that you would really appreciate their help as you are struggling to be more organized and to hand everything in on time. Ask them if it would be OK for you to email them once a week with a list of what you think the assignments are, and with the question of whether you've missed handing in anything that week. If they're not OK with the email, ask them if there is a time each week when they'd be willing to take a look at your calendar to be sure that you've written down all of the assignments, and also to look in their grade book to see if you're missing anything. Even if you have to go in early or miss part of a free period or stay a bit late, keep these appointments every week. </p>

<p>Even if the teacher gives no assignment at all, write something in the calendar for every class every day, such as "no assignment." If you have a teacher who tends to give an assignment every day, or every Monday, etc., and all of a sudden you find a "no assignment" written in your book for a Monday, you will know to contact the teacher or an organized friend in the class that very day to make sure you haven't missed anything.</p>

<p>This is a big hassle, but it will keep organization on your mind; you will get to know each of your teachers a bit better; and all of your teachers will see that you're trying to improve organizationally. </p>

<p>To take it a step further, if you have a really organized friend in each of your classes, on a different day than the day you check in with your teachers each week, compare your calendar to their calendar. </p>

<p>Be sure that you write the day and time and place you meet with each teacher into your calendar book so you won't miss appointments. If you take out the calendar in every class, you are going to get used to checking it, and you are going to miss fewer and fewer assignments and meetings. It's not going to be perfect, but let's say that in the first month, you get a 20% improvement over the first month of your soph. year. That would be huge!</p>

<p>If you hate the sound of this idea, sit down and think up your own system that is going to help you keep a record of all your assignments; hand them in on time; and find out what you've missed every week. Pretend you are making up a system for a very intelligent but disorganized friend if it feels too weird to be doing it for yourself. The point is, you need a system that will help you address this problem right away, starting the first day of school, and you need to stick with it to give it time to see if it works for you.</p>

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<p>I guess I could try that...can't hurt.</p>

<p>Are there any universities that are more "forgiving" for LD students?</p>

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<p>Having an IEP is a great first first step. Now what is in the IEP that would really help you? Only you can decide what will work for you. Your school is required, by law, to follow the IEP. My daughter has stayed after school for 15 minutes each day, going around to her teachers to make sure she had the assignments written down correctly. We have also used a lot of e-mail correspondence. Colleges aren't really "forgiving". If you find something that will work for you in high school, they may be willing to continue that program in college.</p>

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<p>I meant forgiving in admissions....</p>

<p>They only real request that I want in my IEP is I want to take foreign language on a Pass/Fail basis...I mean I have trouble writing in English,How do they expect me to write in Spanish.</p>

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<p>Spanish is phonetic. English isn't. Believe me, spelling is WAAAAAAY easier in Spanish once you memorize the rules.</p>

<p>How much foreign language do you need in order to graduate from your HS? Is there a way to get out of it all together?</p>

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<p>^^^^^
A lot of collegesrequire it.</p>

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<p>^^^^
Thanks for help,but I am have one problem But I don't want to go to a small school.
They lack program,classes,research I want
And I go to a smaller high school (about 750 students) and I absolutely hate it because it is small..</p>

<p>I am not saying such as school doesn't exist, because Cal-Tech is small with top notch academics...But they joke saying MIT is for those who couldn't get into Cal-Tech</p>