Hi hello um I just finished my junior year of high school. I take AP’s and honors classes and my GPA isn’t too bad (around a 4.7). In the third and fourth quarter, I received all A’s except in AP bio, I got a b+. But, my finals messed up my grades. I got a 68 on my foreign language exam, and it brought my semester grade down to a B+. As well as pre calc, got a C and now I have a B+. Keep in mind I only get A’s throughout the quarters and then midterms and finals come creeping up and totally ruin my grades. Maybe I’m overreacting, but my last set of important grades are A’s and 3 B’s. I’m also mainly freaking out because my ACT score isn’t that high, Ive taken it 3 times and still at a 22 (only because my math score is low). I know I’m not stupid, but my grades don’t reflect that I’m not stupid and I’m worried I won’t even be considered in an honors program when applying such as (university of Illinois @ Chicago). I’ve only taken AP’s and honors classes, and I wish my midterms and finals didn’t screw up my semester grades. Tell me I’m overreacting because that will ease my mind. And I’m worried colleges will think I slacked off because my grades and gpa in freshmen and sophomore year were way better and I think I only ended up with one B+. It’s just my school doesn’t prepare me for anything and everything I’ve learned this year was all self taught. If I missed a whole month of school it wouldn’t have mattered because I was teaching myself everything anyways. And colleges don’t know my schools a sh!tshow and sucks, so there’s no way they’d consider my reasoning of teaching myself everything. So I’m here freaking out about my grades and my act because I’ve been doing this all alone with no help because school is a joke and don’t care about anyone other than the above average insanely 36 act scorers 5.0 gpa average students who are literally favored by every single teacher in school. I ramble a lot when I’m nervous, and I just want to know if I have a chance of getting into an honors program. (Maybe it’s far reached of me to expect myself to get into such a good program). And I also have pressure from my parents, my mother is hilarious for thinking I can automatically jump from a 22 to a 30 on the act, and she hates the letter B. Once again, please let me know I’m overreacting.
Hi @yooimdun First let me say your are NOT stupid and don’t think it or say it. You work hard and B+'s aren’t bad grades, Looking on CC can be a little demoralizing at times as there are so many smart people on here.
If I’m being totally honest your test score seems low for honors programs. You would need to look at admissions stats for these programs to see where you land. If you have taken the ACT three times I’m not sure that taking it again would raise your score. Have you tried taking the SAT, that might be a better test for you? Is your family in a position to get you some tutoring if you need it? Have you tried to talk to your parents about the fact that you feel pressure from them? Have you talked to your counselor at school?
Just remember, there are so many good schools out there and you will find a school that is a good fit for you. Good luck to you!!
What is your financial situation? I ask because lots of schools are test optional now. At least the ones I know pretty well seem to be genuinely test optional, in that they don’t penalize students for not submitting test scores. However, many are private schools or are public schools that would be OOS for you. (I’m assuming you are from IL.) So they might well cost more than an in-state (IL) school for you, although some might offer better opportunities for financial/merit aid than others. For example, I find Lake Forest College (outside Chicago) as a test optional school. I don’t know anything about financial aid there. You can google “test optional colleges” to find some helpful lists.
If I may also make a suggestion: always stay positive, don’t worry about any limits at your high school. Focus on what you can control, work hard, and do your best. That is what works out best in the long run. This is most important in that a positive attitude will help you succeed. It’s also important in the admissions process. Those reading your application are trying to build a positive, forward-looking, energetic community.
Also, don’t worry about the small number of 36 ACT students, at your school or elsewhere. There are many, many schools where students can get a great education. HOW a student goes to school is so much more important than WHERE a student goes. The most financially (and generally) successful people I know did not attend elite schools or have exceptional test scores.
It sounds like you generally have good grades, even if exams did not go well. So keep working hard. Try to reflect on what you could have done differently so that you can have more success next time. Some things we can’t control. But we can work hard. We can be positive. We can treat others with dignity and respect. Doing these things we be our best path to success, even if there are obstacles (some significant) along the way. Good luck!
DePaul is test optional as well and would be a heck of a lot better school than UIC.
Thanks, and I talked to my counselor, and she didn’t even know I took it 3 times, and she obviously cringed when I told her my scores. All she did was suggest to me a practice book and that’s all. And I’ve talked to my parents, and all they do is compare me to my brother who failed high school but managed to get a 24. Ive also been told that tutoring doesn’t help, and the good ones are way too expensive, people who charge hundreds of dollars for one session. I’ve also asked about the SAT and I’ve been told to not take it since it’s harder and I won’t do so much better. But thanks for the advice! I just hope I miraculously get a feasible score since I’m taking it again on Saturday (a big mistake I did was registering again).
And @lbf schools don’t help much nowadays… it’s bad now. Counselors don’t do much now except making our transcripts.
@ProfessorPlum168 I heard DePaul isn’t good, like it’s a blow off school because it ‘accepts everybody’. But I haven’t looked much into DePaul, thanks for suggesting to!
@TTG I know I’m a pessimist, (and I’m sounding super dramatic) but when you’re in a class full of competitive and smart students, you feel helpless because help is being given to them, not you. Positivity is something I’ve been working on, it’s hard but how can I use positivity to stand out? All my life, I’ve been told grades, GPA, ACT, and extracurriculars is all colleges care for. What’s something I could do to stand out?
What? don’t know about acceptance rate but I’m 99.99% sure the stats at DePaul are better than UIC without looking. I guess I’m biased somewhat since I am a DePaul grad and 2 of the deans were my teachers. The Strobel program for Accounting is Top notched and the Computer Science school does its job.
@yooimdun Hang in there don’t give up on yourself!! Don’t go on what you heard about schools or what your perception might be. Do some research on your own about colleges. If you need to stay in state look at ALL of the public options whether you have heard of them or not. There are really a lot of good colleges and some are less well known than others. Will you need financial aid to help you pay for school? My Son goes to a test optional school but it is a private school and a lot of kids do not submit test scores and it doesn’t hurt them in admissions.
Here is a link to test optional colleges there are so many so keep an open mind 
https://www.fairtest.org/university/optional
^ Just the link I was going to post.
Thank you!! @“Erin’s Dad” @lbf