Help! I'm freaking out!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hey guys, I'm becoming a senior in high school next year and it's about that time when the juniors are able to relax a little bit (but not too much) and start worrying about college.
I'm honestly freaking out though because, while I'm sure I'll get into one of the 4,698 colleges/universities in the world, it's a matter of whether or not it'll be a half decent school (no offense to anyone out there considering I am not one to talk).</p>

<p>I seriously screwed up sophomore year because I was dealing with a couple of deaths in the family and friends (I assure you that I am not desperately looking for a shoulder to cry on, nor any sympathy/empathy), and my cumulative GPA as of beginning of Junior year was a 3.68(ish)... on a 5.0 scale. Which probably comes out to around 2.9? Oh god, it's worse than I thought.</p>

<p>This is the first time I very seriously sat down to think about my college future and what it holds for me. Though, I remember when I used to fantasize about going to Brown (because I went to Summer@Brown), Tufts, etc etc, when my sister was going through the college process. You can imagine the pressure that I'm in considering she attends Amherst College and my father's Alma Mater is Amherst College.</p>

<p>Luckily, I learned to cope with my issues of sophomore year through the guilt of studying. It seems that I'm about to finish off Junior year with a 4.4/5.0, roughly a 3.52/4.0. Yea, compared to some of the kids I've seen on this website, it ISN'T the best, but that's what I've managed to scrap together this year. And I'm fairly proud of myself (though I know I can do better).</p>

<p>What I really need from you guys is some suggestions on colleges that have some credibility in them, even with my horrendous GPA. And believe me when I say this, I sound like a snob. I know.
In terms of my SATs, I took them once already and got a 2000, and guesstimating on what I'll get on the June test, I'd say 700+ on all categories MINIMUM with the exception of 680+ on reading (seems to haphazardly vary). I'm aiming for 2200 and have been working hard.
I got a 650 on my Bio SAT II and I'll be taking the Lit/History SAT II in October (with the mindset of a pass/fail).
I'm pretty well off in Lit/History though, and am expecting 730+ on both.</p>

<p>On the extracurricular side/achievement, I hear that I'm at the Harvard prestige (lol.)
(Pardon me, I'll be tooting my own horn now.)
I am the Chapter President and Founder of my town's Junior State of America for 3 years, I am a volunteer certified EMT-B (Emergency services), I've been Vice President of my class' student congress for 3 years now, I've been editor for my school's newspaper for 3 school years, I am the founder and president of a "welcoming-committee" called First Class at my school and have been presented with awards due to my involvement in the community through this (3 years), I'm also a thespian, have done 3 years of Varisty Forensics and Speech and a to-be leader of the speech team next year, I volunteer with the Rotary, I volunteer at a local camp for handicapped children, partake in cultural awareness events, an avid member of local food drives (in particular the annual Veterans of Foreign Wars sponsored drive), 3 years of project interact (which is a huge volunteer organization at my school that works with the Rotary to get students involved in a variety of volunteer programs such as CancerCare, Habitat for Humanity, etc) and was selected to attend the West Point Leadership Conference twice in a row, finalist for the NCTE Achievement Award in Writing contest (winners are yet to be announced), interned at Congressman Scott Garrett's local office, and a part of the Varsity Finance team.</p>

<p>This is the only impressive part of my high school career.
But a man can only list his clubs for so long...</p>

<p>Anyway, I respectfully appreciate any form of help that you guys can conjure up for me.
I seemed to have reached an epiphany that I'm screwed for college. And honestly, I am scared. There. I said it.
Oh, and I suppose I should also mention that I'm Asian (with a hint of German).
"Atypical" academically.
:)</p>

<p>I guess what I'm really trying to say is, at this point, I'll take whatever college I can get into at maximum potential. I just want to know WHAT my potential is. Basically any suggestions on my safety, match, and reach!
I refuse to sit here and regret what happened in the past whether or not it was controllable or my fault.
I'd like to just apply ED to a school next year and try and hopefully get in. If it helps at all, I'm fairly good at writing essays so I'm not exactly afraid of the college essay process... and that can only help, right?
Thanks again, guys. Don't go too hard on me?
I'm scared to even click 'Submit New Thread.'</p>

<p>Sidenote:
I plan to major in International Relations.
I wanted to attend Tufts for their International Relations program, but based on my GPA that's a joke. (And I'm OBVIOUSLY not getting into Columbia or Georgetown)
And I suppose at the moment it's a dealer-favored crapshoot for me to apply, but I'll definitely be /attempting/ the whole IR scene (UVA, GWU, USD, AU, Northeastern, BU, JHU, Chicago, Middlebury, William and Mary). And I seriously know that I'm shooting way over my net.
I'm not sure what my chances are for NYU and Vanderbilt, but I'm (realistically) sure that they aren't high. I'll try anyway.</p>

<p>Didn't even notice I wrote so much...! SORRY!</p>

2

<p>Various colleges, different selectivity %'s, check for your preferred major(s):</p>

<p>Hamilton College (NY)
Colgate University (NY)
Hobart & William Smith (NY)
Union College (NY)
Connecticut College (CT)
Wheaton College (MA)
Providence College (RI) Catholic
Holy Cross (MA) Catholic
Fairfield University (CT) Catholic
St. Lawrence University (NY)
Drew University (NJ) </p>

<p>Assume your family can afford $50,000+ schools? Do you need financial aid?</p>

3

<p>Flyingbrad, I urge you to look at a fabulous LAC that you’ve never heard of on the other side of the country. It’s a highly selective college that looks at who you are, what you’ve done and what you’ll bring to the campus as well as GPAs and test scores. It’s rigorous academically, but very gregarious socially and has a nationally acclaimed debate team. The campus is stunning and the town friendly and charming. The students LOVE it.</p>

4

<p>^^^^^oops, meant to tell you that it’s Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA. Sorry</p>

5

<p>Add American U to SLUMom’s list.</p>

6

<p>I’ll definitely be looking into those colleges, thank you.
Also, one should take note that when I said I was finishing junior year with a 4.4, I meant junior year exclusively, so I’m not sure how that’ll average out with my previous CUMULATIVE gpa of 3.68.</p>

7

<p>The first thing I’ll say is don’t panic! Your GPA is not “horrendous”. There are plenty of good “creditable” colleges out there for someone with your GPA, SAT’s and extracurriculars. Yes, you are probably not going to Amherst College or the equivalent, but there no shame in that, other than the internal family pressures (I was a third generation Brown legacy, so I get that; fortunately I went before Brown became so hyper-competitive). You should check out the thread on here called something like “Colleges for the 3.0 to 3.3 Student”. There are lots of good suggestions in it. The Ivy League and equivalents are a crapshoot these days for anyone but the very top of the top, anyway. Do some research and you’ll find lots of great colleges for someone with your stats.</p>

<p>My son had a very rough Sophomore year and pulled it together Junior year, continuing to do well Senior year. He wanted a big school not in the city and paying $50K+ per year was not really in our budget, so he was looking mostly at publics. He got into UMass Amherst, UConn, U Delaware, and Syracuse, all for engineering and all with merit money of varying amounts. He’s going to UMass because it has the top public engineering program in New England, is closer to home (we live in Eastern Mass.), he likes the town of Amherst, and the price is right. Do I wish he had gone to Brown? Surprisingly, not really. Even if he had the grades to get in, I don’t think it would have been the right “fit” for him. He’s really looking forward to UMass. Anyway, my nephew is continuing the family tradition at Brown (just like your sister is at Amherst) so no need for him to go there.</p>

<p>And here’s a thought. If you go to UMass Amherst, you can take some courses at Amherst College through the Five College Consortium at the UMass tuition rate…</p>

8

<p>Do you have any idea about how much you/your parents can afford? Run a estimated EFC if you can. I agree that applying ED would be ideal if you know you can afford the school regardless of what their financial aid package looks like. ED can nudge you in when it’s more of a reach school and I agree with you that it’s a good strategy if your gpa isn’t at their average admit level. It’s worth a try if you know you can afford that school anyway.</p>

<p>I don’t know if you are more interested in LAC’s (since you mentioned Amherst) or whether a bigger university is your preference. I agree that American would be a great school to consider. And not sure about their IR, but would add: Boston U, Northeastern, U. of Mass -Amherst. What state do you live?</p>

<p>Oops, see you already had BU on list. And wanted to add that my son also had to climb from freshman year on and he did it! We weren’t so hopeful before junior year and so you really never know how it will all play out in the end. Focus on your goal and keep moving towards it. You may really surprise yourself!</p>

9

<p>First of all, thank you to everyone who took the time to read my predicament and help out! All of it was so encouraging, and I have definitely added said colleges onto my list and will be checking them out.</p>

<p>@hornetdad
And in terms of money, let’s just say that my father used to invest in the market, but is no longer doing that. So definitely not in the best of situations… but as determined as my parents are, they have assured me that as long as I get into a college, they would some how acquire the necessary funds to get me through college. (Of course, I’m willing to work too…and don’t let that last sentence sound as sketchy as it was. :P)
All in all, I hoped to get into a upper level school because they give great financial aid packages, but obviously that’s not going to happen… and so there’s another source of stress for me.
p.s. I enjoyed the Five College Consortium comment hahah, thank you. </p>

<p>@jkiwmom
As for the early decision problem, I’m aware of the fact that it puts me into a binding pledge with the said school that I’d apply the following year; however, I’ve heard a story where the schools supplied the student an insufficient amount of financial aid funds and he was not able to attend. Instead of releasing such binds (which I know is an option too), the school instead adjusted the package to fit the student’s need.
What exactly the likelihood of this happening more than once…? (aka to me hehe)
I live in New Jersey, and as of now I’m interested in anything. I’ll take LAC, College, University, anything really…
And good news! I found the SAT’s to be unusually easy! Hopefully I did exceptionally well.
I hope to surprise myself.</p>

10

<p>Frankly, the chance of you getting your FA offer adjusted because you think it’s low is not very high. Most students who get an adjustment to their FA are high scorers who can help the school in their rankings. Going ED means you don’t even have the option of showing an FA offer from a comparable school.</p>

11

<p>Ahhhh, this is not as bad as you think. Your cumulative was 3.68, and now you are going to add in final junior year grades of 4.4??? You still have some good options if this is the case! And, Erin’sdad is absolutely right, that you do not want to apply ED with the thought that they will adjust your FA package. Your friend’s situation is not at all the norm, so establish the estimated EFC now and get a clear, CLEAR idea of how much your family can afford before ever applying ED. If, and only if, you can afford Tufts, and that’s your first choice/dream school, would I say that ED would be a good idea. </p>

<p>So here would be my list of schools with IR (confirm though) and the prestige I think you are wanting --I haven’t separated out by target or reach, because in reality all of the top ranked schools are reaches for everyone now. I have included a couple safeties though:</p>

<p>-American (50% acceptance rate, but one of the top programs in country! :slight_smile:
-Tufts
-GWU
-Boston U.
-Occidental (3.59 avg. gpa of accepted applicants)
-U. of Michigan (3.75)
-Kenyon (3.80) (one of my personal favs, but I’m biased bc my sister is an alum :wink:
-Mount Holyoke (3.66)
-Colgate (3.62)
-Vassar (3.71)
-Wesleyan (3.82)
-Oberlin (3.6)
less prestigious names, but great schools and you should look at:
-Clark U. (3.47)
-Lafayette (3.46)
-Goucher (3.17)</p>

<p>If you decide to apply to lots of schools (another common strategy in this situation), then make sure you start writing essays early. You don’t want to apply to a bunch of schools with so-so essays. Take the needed time to perfect each and every application if you really want to increase your chances of having some great options in the end. Address the sophamore year in some way --either have your counselor address it. Good luck!</p>

12

<p>Have you mentioned your rank. </p>

<p>What are your safety schools </p>

<p>What is your likely major.</p>

13

<p>No mention of rank in OP, so guessing school doesn’t (?), and she was actually asking for safeties and any other suggestions, but mainly interested in prestige/well knowns. GPA drop 10th grade (with deaths in family), upward trend since. Intended International Releations major. 2000 SAT’s and retaking (goal of 2200 in June sitting).</p>

14

<p>The 3.68 was out of 5.0 - not 4.0. The grades published in the CDS’s are out of 4.0.</p>

15

<p>I was under the impression that her school was giving extra pt. for AP’s bringing it up to a 5.0 total possible weighted, and she had a 3.68 W (now higher with the 4.4). Is that not the case? OP, let me be more specific, do you have all A’s and B’s in transcript? Are there C’s in the mix? I may have goofed entirely on the list I posted above, so just trying to clarify…hmmmm…</p>

16

<p>^ The weighting you state above is probably the case. But that does not mean the OP can compete for places like at UMich. Those GPAs you quote on post #11 are out of 4.0. Out of a 4.0 the OP will be near the 3.0 level. Since colleges weight Honors and APs differently the CDS is anchored to a 4.0.</p>

17

<p>*I’ve heard a story where the schools supplied the student an insufficient amount of financial aid funds and he was not able to attend. Instead of releasing such binds (which I know is an option too), the school instead adjusted the package to fit the student’s need.
*</p>

<p>Don’t use some anecdotal story as some kind of reassurance…</p>

<p>1) you don’t know if that story is true.</p>

<p>2) you don’t know how much the adjustment was</p>

<p>3) you don’t know if the student had a better package elsewhere that was leverage.</p>

<p>4) you don’t know if the student had super stats and was highly desirable.</p>

<p>5) you don’t know if the family had some kind of extenuating circumstances…such as a disabled younger child in the family or large medical expense or a non-custodial parent who wouldn’t pay.</p>

<p>It’s ok to apply to a few of these schools to see what happens, but also protect yourself and apply to a few financial safeties as well.</p>

18

<p>Well, it’s not exactly anecdotal, I actually know the guy that experienced this and it was for an ED case. Though it does make sense that the school would do it for someone who is likely to assist their rankings. I’m supposing it was a substantial adjustment though, considering he went from almost not attending due to insufficient financial aid to class of 2009.</p>

<p>And, yes. Sophomore year, I believe I received two C’s. Perhaps only one for the final grade? Otherwise, all A’s and B’s. Which makes my GPA out to be in the 3.0-3.5 range (out of 4)… not exactly as of now.
Our school doesn’t rank until senior year, so I’m not even sure about that yet since it seems to vary per GPA per year.
Btw, I am a male. :)</p>

19

<p>Okay, this is actually what I thought you were saying (an A/B student, except for the soph year). It’s true that colleges will calculate the weighted AP’s or Honors classes differently, but I think you are still within the ranges of many of the schools I listed. Some schools will drop all freshman grades, some schools will remove PE grades and other courses they want to remove from the gpa calc, some will completely unweight all grades, and some will calculate gpa directly from weighted. It all just depends on the school’s method. Make sure your upward trend is really amazing this next fall!</p>

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<p>I just read my school list again --thought I had more under 3.6 schools. Unfortunately, yes, the other’s are mostly out of your range (thought you were heading into the 3.7 gpa range by senior year in my earlier post). I would add George Mason. Up and coming in VA and a good IR program.</p>