<p>I know this is long but please read this, I really need this advice:
I am desperately seeking some good advice on my situation, as I do not know what do about it. I am currently a high school sophomore finishing the year out with less than stellar grades. I'm not about talking A's with a few B's. I'm talking about C's and a couple D's. The weird thing about this is, my highest grade is in my AP European History class. I absolutely love it. I excel at it and it is claimed to be one of the hardest APs you can take in my school. I am most definitely anticipating a 5 on the up coming exam. In addition, I go to an excellent public school rated on the upper half of the top 100 schools in the U.S., not just public, but all schools. The problem is, as many have noticed but been utterly confused by it, is that I love to learn. I read voraciously about all things; literature, physics, nature, psychology, anything science or history related. Anything that I want to learn about, I go and seek it out. Despite my terrible grades, I have been recommended for all AP courses next year except my language(honors level) (Italian doesn't offer an AP) and Chemistry (honors) (I don't understand because I was recommended for AP math with a 70% in an on level math class. My math teacher said to me that I grasp the concepts very quickly and preform well on tests, but that he often finds me dozing off in class so perhaps an AP level class would keep me more interested.) The consensus I have received is that: "You never turn in your homework, but the work you actually complete is exceptional" (especially in English, I have a gift for writing).
This year and last year have been exceedingly mentally tough for me. I know I am very smart and very capable. This year, however, I had to deal with a lot of family issues I won't go into detail with them here. Suffice to day, they added to my boredom and hatred of school. Most of this year I hated school, but I have done some soul searching and had a bit of an epiphany a month or so ago. My grades as of now have improved dramatically, I have straight A's. </p>
<p>My question and what I need advice on is, what should I do about college. I know that if I had committed to school since the very first day as I am doing now I could have a good chance of getting into an Ivy. I'm fine with ECs, I have some unique interests. I'm not worried about SATs either, I'm very good with standardized tests and I'm taking a course in preparation. I am signed up for 5 APs next year, and my question is, do I still stand a chance at getting into an Ivy if I completely turn around and get 5's on most of my AP exams, keep my grades very high, and score at least 2100 on the SAT? I know I can do it, but do I still stand a chance? For my college essay, could my epiphany/revival be a good hook because of an extreme dramatic change, along with the fact I am well read and have a unique passion? What should I do?</p>
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I am signed up for 5 APs next year, and my question is, do I still stand a chance at getting into an Ivy if I completely turn around and get 5's on most of my AP exams, keep my grades very high, and score at least 2100 on the SAT? What should I do?
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The 1st thing you should do is reconsider your brand worship of "Ivy". It is a collection of schools of various sizes and atmospheres, yet you seem blind to the differences between them. So out of the 3,000 plus colleges in the US only 8 are worth aiming for, and it actually doesn't matter to you which one admits you as long as its part of the Ivy League.</p>
<p>Not that there's a snowball's chance of you doing this, but my advice is to read a book about the college experience such as "Colleges That Change Lives" by Loren Pope. Once you understand a bit more what the college experience can/should be, you can start deciding what type of schools are right for you and finding schools of various degrees of selectability that provide it.</p>
<p>The C's and D's are going to hurt you big-time. Remember that other applicants applying to these schools will be all A students. Plus they will have the top test scores and ECs needed. You will be at a distinct disadvantage. If you haven't read it already, you can pick up Michele Hernandez's book, "A Is for Admission." In it, she describes the Academic Index and how colleges compute it. You can run your own numbers and see how you stack up.</p>
<p>And I agree with the previous posters about your apparent "Ivy worship." It seems counterproductive.</p>
<p>I don't have a "worship" of Ivy League schools. I am heavily considering studying<br>
astronomy/astrophysics and the top programs for it happen to be at Ivy League schools, and a few very selective schools. I understand that college's main purpose is to gain an education and not for the brand name. I would appreciate it if you didn't jump to such conclusions.</p>
<p>Looking at your immediate future -- how much do the finals count for in your classes? Is it possible that A's on the finals would bring your final grade up? I would focus on your grades first and then worry about the future when school gets out for the summer. You are very fortunate that your teachers seem to be helping you and looking out for you. </p>
<p>I agree that a liberal arts/intellectual school would seem to suit your interests better. I have the Colleges That Change Lives book and it is very interesting. There is also a website associated with the book: Colleges</a> That Change Lives</p>
<p>There are plenty of bright people out there who found it very challenging to muster the motivation to do well in high school, but turned things around at some point by deciding that it was time to get to work. I used to know someone who had dropped out of high school at 15, and just retired as a college professor.</p>
<p>I had a friend in high school who performed brilliantly at times, and miserably at other times. He graduated from high school a year early (two years earlier than most of us, as he had skipped a grade), spent a year at a tony prep school getting much better grades, and then went to a well regarded liberal arts college. He later earned a Ph.D., and has succeeded spectacularly in business. (He was a founder of a company that later went public, and is now the CEO of a well-funded start-up.)</p>
<p>You'll improve your chances at success by performing consistently well from this point onward. That doesn't mean you'll be admitted to an Ivy League school. There are 23,000 high schools in the US, and fewer than 15,000 freshmen in the Ivy League; most of them began applying themselves academically at an earlier point than you did. No matter-there are plenty of other colleges out that have launched people on successful careers. Any kind of success worth having requires sustained effort. You've made a few steps in the right direction, but the journey will be a long one.</p>
<p>Why Ivies? People with much higher GPA and SATs have not been accepted this year. You should target lower schools, top 50 LACs, top 50 US News ranking. And that's if you get very good grade this coming year and first semester of senior year.</p>
<p>Yes, you're in a pretty deep hole, but the first rule of holes is to stop digging and it looks like you've done that.</p>
<p>I've got some suggestions for you:
1-Think about homeschooling. If your family troubles are not troubles with your family, but troubles your family is enduring, sometimes homeschooling can take the scheduling pressure off and allow your schooling to work with the family situation. Homeschooling also allows you more freedom to get rid of busywork and focus on the learning that you love. There's an interesting article posted in the homeschooling section about a boy who sounds just like you. The thread says something about regrets. It's at the top right now.</p>
<p>2-Think about an early college experience, like starting college a year or two earlier. College allows you so much more freedom to choose your own path, choose your courses and instructors, etc. that it's easier to get past the nonsense and learn.</p>
<p>3-Buckle down, suck it up and do what it takes to make good grades. If an assignment seems useless to you, remind yourself that doing the stupid assignment affects your grade and therefore your future. A tough lesson, but one you've got to learn.</p>
<p>Lots of sharp people have struggled in the same way you are over the years. You've just got to decide what you want to do with your life and figure out how to get there without going crazy.</p>
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I am heavily considering studying
astronomy/astrophysics and the top programs for it happen to be at Ivy League schools, and a few very selective schools.
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</p>
<p>University of Arizona is extremely strong in these areas.</p>
<p>The University of California nine campus system does not count freshman grades. They only calculate "UC GPA" from eligible courses (a-g requirements) taken taken from July after freshman year through the summer after junior year. </p>
<p>Are you able to re-take the sophomore year classes in which you have a D during summer school, or at another school to replace the D class?</p>
<p>Let me just add that improvement as you segue into your junior year would help you the most. Showing, academically, that you are a completely different person from junior year onward sends a message to colleges that you've grown. Recognizing your own faults and working to improve them is a major plus in an app. Touch on this theme in your essays, have them complement your hopefully vastly improved grades for your junior/senior year, and you should be in a much better position.</p>
<p>Also you might try talking to your teachers privately, explaining the problems you've had this year and asking if maybe you could do some extra credit work to raise your grade. I know people don't like "grade grubbers" but if you are making a sincere effort to improve they might be open to helping you out.</p>
<p>You're a late bloomer. Excellent, you'll do fine. Better to bloom late than not at all. </p>
<p>I would say to just continue to do the very best that you can from here on in and focus on being the person that you want to be. </p>
<p>When it comes time to look for colleges, look for colleges that are harder to get out of than get into where you can find the opportunities that you want. You should seek to excel and develop yourself intellectually.</p>
<p>I think Canadian schools just care about 11th and 12th grade plus test scores (Toronto, McGill, UBC). There are many great public research institutions that are not that hard to get into but challenging to get through (Arizona is a great suggestion, there are others). You will have all A's from here on in, so your chances may be better than you think at some pretty good schools. Once you get to college, you can hook up with top researchers and potentially take honors classes. </p>
<p>Don't focus so hard on the uber elite. It's very competitive, you could drive yourself mad, and there are plenty of great alternatives for you. There are plenty of graduate students at elite schools who excelled in less than elite undergraduate programs. You're not the only late bloomer you know. You haven't dug a hole, you've just arisen from one!</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If you can show a drastic improvement and tell a compelling story, schools might overlook your situation. I know many colleges completely ignore freshman year stats.</p></li>
<li><p>You could also try to get into a more realistic school, then plan to transfer to one of your Ivy schools sophomore or junior year of college. By then, if you can show a drastic improvement, I doubt they'd hold high school issues against you. I mean - you're 14/15. People know that's a tough time for some. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Good luck. You seem to have really figured things out. That's great.</p>