GPA is looking bad after sophomore year, PLS HELP!!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hello, I just finished sophomore year after an awful freshman year, doing worse than ever before!!
I am posting this thread for a) looking for how I can improve myself for junior year and get nothing but all A’s b) how badly will my freshman and sophomore grades be looked upon. c) how will a good SAT score- I’m aiming for 1500+/1600- along with an upward trend in harder AP cIasses be looked upon in junior/senior year. I’ve been struggling with bad anxiety and such, which is probably why I’ve been doing so bad. This part really scares me because I doubt colleges really care about circumstances in your personal life and I’m worried how my grades will be looked upon- especially in classes that are supposed to be easy! While I’m not aiming for Ivies or such, I’d still love to get into a school like UNC-CH but my grades from before are really making me worried about that. Here are my grades…

Freshman Year:
English I Honors: A
Health/ Physical Education: A
Latin 1: B
Math 2 Honors: B

Math 3 Honors: B
Biology Honors- B
World History: B
Computer Programming 1: B

Sophomore Year:
Chemistry Honors: B
Accounting 1 Honors: B
AP Human Geo: C
English II Honors: B

AP Psychology: B
Pre-Calculus Honors: C
Microsoft Word & PowerPoint: B
Latin II: C

Okay, so that’s that. (Weighted GPA Calculation–> A = 5 pts. weighted gpa, B= 4.5 pts. weighted gpa, C= 3.5 pts. weighted gpa)
(Unweighted GPA Calculation–> A= 4 B=3 C=2 D=1)

Junior Year: Next year I’m planning on taking: AP Earth & Environmental Sciences, AP Computer Science Principles, AP Statistics, English III Honors, American History I honors, American History II Honors, Accounting II Honors, and Human Anatomy Honors. Please give me insight on these classes and how I can work to get all A’s!!

Oh, and my extracurriculars- I’m not into all that many except for the fact that I’ve been learning indian music as a hobby for ~10 years now. I am hoping to volunteer at a local hospital in a couple of months. So, I guess another question would be what extracurriculars would be good for someone like me at this point to stand out. Also, this may or may not be irrelevant but I am interested in going in the pre-medical track in college majoring in either biology/psychology.

Ughhh I’m sorry this was super long, but thanks so much if you read all of this, I just want to know that I am not completely screwed (even though I know I made it pretty bad). I’d love to hear from you and help me figure out this mess!!!

2

You’re really gonna have to work hard this next year so make sure you are prepared and motivated. I definitely recommend taking online classes to help with your GPA and I would also recommend taking more AP classes. You’re current classes are alright but I recommend you take AP English and AP history rather than honors for sure. I personally just finished my junior year and those were my two easiest AP classes, I also took both the AP exam and EOC for US history and the AP exam is shockingly easier since the topics are much broader. Look into doing online dual enrollment as well.

As for extracurricular, 10 years learning Indian music is impressive but if you want to stand out, they will be looking for if you’ve gone anywhere with that such as competitions or winning awards, etc. I recommend volunteering in areas that suit your interest so maybe look into Science Centers or hospitals. Due to your current grades, I think extracurricular may have to be a very important focus so maybe even try starting your own non profit organization (it’s a lot of work but it is possible)

You aren’t completely screwed I promise! Your GPA may not be a strong suit in your future applications but if you work really hard,get your test scores high and have killer extracurricular, I’m sure you will be fine!

3

Hi! Thank you so much!! You have no idea!

I love the idea about the non-profit organization, I will surely try that out! As for the indian music, it is mostly done as a hobby and I haven’t found ways to compete for it, but I perform at local charity events and such. Also, I was considering taking APENG and APUSH but I feel like taking too many could drag my GPA even down, so I stuck with just 3. Another thing to note, my counselors are really not the greatest at giving me advice with things as such and I believe there aren’t any courses that could translate to points added to GPA nearby which really sucks. I will def look into it and see tho.

Just a few more things to ask…
Do colleges only look at your overall GPA or do they care for junior/senior grades more? Also, any tips for succeeding in the classes I have as of now for junior?

What abt extracurriculars that show leadership? Any ideas?

4

Only on CC is a B average in Honors and AP classes considered “bad.”

You’re doing fine!! There will be plenty of colleges from which to choose. No need to kill yourself trying to become a Stepford Student.

5

Take the AP classes you have an interest in and believe you can do well. Getting B’s in Honors classes is not the end if the world but if you are not prepared, those could lead to C’s in AP classes so choose wisely. Also from the start, ask your teacher for help.

6

I agree with @Gumbymom. I think that you are trying to push yourself to do too much. You should take AP classes only in subjects where (i) you like the subject, and (ii) you do well in the subject. Drop back to CP classes in the areas where you are not doing well.

You also should try to study more. Attend every class. Try to sit near the front. Always pay attention. Treat everyone with respect. Always try to stay ahead in your homework. Start to do homework the day that it is assigned. If you do not understand something, then seek out help early (well before the homework is due, and well before exams).

Don’t worry about ECs. Participate in ECs only if you are interested and only if you have time. You want to get your grades up. A year from now see where you stand.

7

There isn’t a mess. Those are your grades, and you need to work with what you have. I’m going to be honest with my insight: You are a B student taking some hard classes. It’s good that you are challenging yourself by taking honors classes. Next year, you have an even tougher schedule taking a lot of APs. Very selective colleges want to see the highest grades in the toughest classes.

If you suffer from anxiety, I can’t see how taking an even more rigorous schedule is going to help you be in the best position to get high grades. You’ve received a B and a C in what some consider to be somewhat easier AP classes. AP classes aren’t meant to be easy A’s, so if your plan is to get all A’s in them, you might b setting yourself up for disappointment.

My advice to you is to cut yourself some slack. Maybe don’t take three AP and three Honors classes next year. Consider taking 1-2 AP, 2-3 honors, and some regular classes where you might excel and get A’s. Your grades are what they are. Find colleges where your grades put you in the top 75th percentile, instead of the bottom 25th. UNCCH is going to be a high reach probably. A great test score will help, but most colleges prioritize grades.

You’re going to have a much better high school experience and feel a LOT less stressed and anxious if you aren’t holding yourself to some unrealistic standard.

8

I wish I could give Lindagaf’s post more than one “like!”

9

Hi CrystalGorl08! What types of schools are you aiming to attend? I think that is important to address before discussing your grades any further! For a state school, you are doing quite well! For HYPS, you would probably need to step it up a bit, but the idea that HYPS do not take into account personal circumstances is far from the truth. The college admissions process, as formulaic as it is made out to be, is a holistic admissions process (or that’s what I’ve been told :)). They take into account factors that are beyond your control. You are smart, and I am sure you know that those types of schools require a higher GPA, but your cause is not lost – I assure you!

10

Performing at local charity events is amazing! An EC like that can really go a long way, especially when it comes to college essays. If you are looking for leadership EC’s there really isn’t anything too specific. Just take charge by helping make change. Also one thing I wish I knew is often times, colleges will look at your loyalty and impact within your EC’s rather than how many you do. As for what colleges look for as far as GPA, it is typically your sophomore and junior year, however it is important to maintain your grades senior year as colleges may take back any scholarship they may have given you if they see you slacking.

Tips for succeeding your junior year would honestly just be do everything as soon as you can. Junior year is a hard year and it’s easy to fall behind. Don’t overload yourself and in order to do that, take classes you are actually interested in so studying won’t be such a painful task.

11

Could roughly close to a 35-36 act score help? And a 4.0 uw gpa for the year (JUNIOR YEAR)