High-Acheiving Student With Questionable College App

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hey guys,

So basically here’s the deal. I consider myself to be a driven, motivated student with a passion for education and knowledge. HOWEVER, I have struggled with the useless busy work and countless amount of redundant packets I have received in high school. My test categories in my classes have always been above at least a 94%, however homework not so much. This has resulted in my transcript, to say the least, looking awful. It appears to an admissions officer as if I am a terrible student in the eyes of anyone who doesn’t have much context to the situation I was in personally. What really pisses me off is that there are students who get by with As and Bs in subjects where they cheat, copy, and never understand the material but their lackluster completion of assignments results in inflated grades.

I do take responsibility though of my poor grades and realize that I made quite the mistake. Especially considering CA is a competitive state…yikes.

After realizing that my dreams of college admission would be quite crushed, I got a job, saved money, and had my parents match that money to be able to retake MANY of the courses online. I received As in all the retake courses and it replaced it for purposes of grade calculation, but both the old and the new grades are present on the transcripts. (FINAL=Used for GPA purposes)
Anyways, here are my grades: (Original Sem1, Retake/Final Sem1, Original Sem2, Retake/Final Sem2)
9th:
Hon. Biology: A,-,C,A Final: A,A
Hon. Precalc: B,A,C,A Final: A,A
Hon. Spanish III: B,A,C,A Final: A,A (Retake was unweighted/non-honors)
Hon. English 9: B,A,C,A Final: A,A
Hon. World History: B,A,D,A Final: A,A
P.E.: A,-,B,- Final: A,B

10th:
Hon. English 10: B,A,D,A Final: A,A
AP Biology: B,A,A,- Final: A,A
Hon. Chemistry: A,-,A,- Final: A,A
AP Human Geography: A,-,A,- Final: A,A
AP Calculus BC: C,A,A,- Final: A,A
AP Physics 1: B,-,A,- Final: B,A
AP Spanish Lang: B,A,B,A Final: A,A

11th:
AP English 11: F,A,A,- Final: A,A
AP U.S. History: B,-,A,- Final: B,A
AP Chemistry: B,-,A,- Final: B,A
AP Physics C: A,-,A,- Final: A,A
Calc III/Diff EQ: C,-,B,- Final: C,B
AP Psychology: A,-,A,- Final: A,A
STEM Research Fnds: D,A,A,- Final: A,A

12th:
AP English 12:
AP Stats:
AP Comparative Gov:
AP U.S. Gov:
AP Macroeconomics/MicroEconomics:
AP Spanish Lit:
Advanced Performing Arts:
Advanced STEM Research Fnds:

Final Weighted Cumulative GPA (As of end of 11th Grade): 4.707 Rank: Top 2%
Final Unweighted Cumulative GPA: 3.829
SAT: 800 Math, 800 Writing, 710 Reading 2310 Cum.
New SAT: 800 Math 780 Reading/Writing 1580 Cum.
ACT: 35 Composite
SAT Subjects: Math Level 2 800 Bio M 800 Physics 800 Chem 800 U.S. History 770 World History 720 Spanish w/ Listening 760
AP Tests: AP Bio-5, AP Human Geo-5, AP Calc BC/AB Sub-5,5, AP Spanish Lang-5, AP Scholar with Distinction
Pending AP Tests: AP Physics 1, AP Physics 2, AP Physics C Mech, AP Physics C E&M, AP Environmental Science, AP World History, AP U.S. History, AP English Lang, AP Psychology, AP Chemistry

Accomplishments:
Intel ISEF Finalist (2 years)
Intel ISEF Grand Award Winner
State Science Fair 1st Place (2 years)
Debate Team Captain & 3 year participant
Seimens Regional Finalist
Created and Patented novel Device (no more info bc anonymity)
Created and Patented novel medicinal treatment
Extensive research in lab settings/peer-reviewed/published in smaller journals
NHS scholar, Honor Roll
Thespian Honor Society Member
Spanish Honor Society Member
Elementary School Science Lab Volunteer/Mentor
National Merit Semifinalist (PSAT: 1510/1520)
Albert H. Small History @ Normandy Institute Scholar (Selective History Institute)
NHD 3 time National Qualifier, National Winner 1st Place
Google Science Fair Regional Finalist
Published Creative Writing Portfolio
Started Cultural Club at School, President of Cultural Club
Started NHD outreach club at school, President
Started Comparative Gov Club at School, President
LGBT Rights Activist (Gay-Straight Alliance)
Ethnic (Not specifying bc anonymity) Outreach Community Program
We the People Participant
Governor Recognition for Scientific Research
Superintendent Recognition for Historical Research
Math Tutor

Info:
Race: White Non-European
Income: Qualify for Reduced Lunch
Gender: M

My goals are to apply to top schools (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, MIT, Caltech, GTech, Ivys, etc.) as well as to UC schools. I am just worried that, although my GPA is higher than it was before, the old grades (Ds, Fs) on my transcript will prevent me from getting into the colleges of my dreams. What do you all think? Please give me HONEST opinions.

Thanks everyone.

2

Can you please clarify which grades are being sent to colleges? I’m not clear with the grades you listed. My school’s transcript only gives one grade per semester per class, and if you retake it you get another one, that’s why I’m confused why there’s 5 grades? (it could very well be different for you, I just don’t understand what each grade means)

3

@jakejake637 yeah so basically, all of the above listed grades will be present on the transcripts. I have a key provided (Original Sem1, Retake Sem1,etc.) and those are the original grades for each semester and the retake grades. The final grades are the ones used for GPA calculation and are on the transcripts in a separate section, but the old grades are still present on the official transcript as well (Not used for GPA).

4

Bump

5

you’re amazing.

Let’s break this down:

NHD 1st PLace Nationals +

Isef Finalist + GrandAward +

Seimens Regional Finalist +

2 Patents +

Published +

NMS +

Google Science Fair Regional +

So many clubs +

(Essentially) Perfect Test Scores +

GPA - (and barely so)

A bunch of stuff I’ve never heard of, but are probably very significant. +

And White 0.

so assuming you’re not a robot, relax. Enjoy Junior Year, and write killed essays next year. i predict you’ll get into the majority of places you apply- it’s obvious you’re very very competitive.

Good luck dude. I wish I had your app, but I dont so.

You’ll be fine.

6

Too many consonants. Should be all vowels.

I think it was the Pomona admin officer who told prospective applicants that having a consonant on your transcript is not the kiss of death, but you don’t want to be able to spell words with your grades, like BAD is really BAD.

But you probably know this.

What I wonder, based on your description, is what kind of a person are you? How likeable are you, that is, will you come across as arrogant and “homework is beneath me” or, as I suspect, when you are engaged in class discussions you are a positive influence on the entire class. Will your teachers write about you as a once in a career type of student?

Your test scores are fantastic, as are your ECs. Will your GC or teachers be able to explain your apparent lack of effort earlier in the year, as opposed to the implication that you just couldn’t hack the brutal schedule?

The comment about how others cheated/coasted and got inflated grades is understandable, but it could be seen by some as arrogance. Every kid knows the rules in high school, and all have to play by them. If you have evidence of cheating then you have a responsibility to take action and report it. But those kids are not the ones you have to worry about - it is the million other kids who are more impressive as far as GPA is concerned, even if their ECs pale next to yours.

I wonder how you qualify for reduced lunch, yet you and your parents are able to afford online courses to make-up grades you didn’t like. As I understand it from all of the information sessions at the elite schools we visited (my pups are at Columbia and Stanford), admin officers generally are okay with students re-taking classes when there is a legit reason for it - like an illness, but to do so just for the sake of grade grubbing is not looked on favorably by many of them.

With all that in mind, I still think you will be fine at an excellent school that will provide sufficient aid to make it affordable.

Best of luck to you.

7

I am sorry, I question the truthfulness of your post. How can you be intel finalist yet get F, or C on math? If I have these doubts, how would admission officers feel?

Even if everything is true, admission officer would question your time management and coping skills and I am not sure if their opinion would be favorable.

8

@SincererLove I know it’s hard to believe…I don’t even understand it. While I do agree there will be some questionable areas with admissions officers, I think the fact that I was taking a full 7 class AP/honors course load while working at my job and all my ECs AND retaking the courses shows that I’ve grown and learned to develop efficient time management skills. The classes I got a C in were Multivariable Calc and Diff EQ which are NOT my strong suits at all. I really struggled in that class, and multiple tutors didn’t help. I don’t plan to pursue that area of study in the future anyways. My strong suit is in the sciences not the upper level math courses. And the F I received is not my final grade. I have medical documentation that allowed me to be able to participate in a remedial program that allowed me to retake the class and receive a FINAL grade of A.

9

@3puppies I definitely understand the purpose of homework, but our school has adopted a policy of these “modeling” instruction packets, which are utterly useless and don’t help us students learn, but instead suck away valuable time that we could be using to study and actually engage in the topic at hand. Many of the top students in our school don’t really do much outside of school and don’t have a passion for any one subject area or activity that is very apparent, so I’m not too worried.

To be clear, I love learning and love that I have the opportunity to be educated unlike many people around the world who don’t have access to education. I also am glad that I have learned from my past and have taken the intiative to grow for the future.

I just wish the system of education in America will undergo some sort of comprehensive reform and match that of top achieving countries around the world that would help weed out the kids that coast by and take high level classes just for the sake of it without actually having a love for what they’re learning.

I have a few teachers that love to have me in their class just as much as I love being in their class. I often go the extra mile to get myself and my fellow students more engaged in the topic, and love love love being able to help people understand new topics.

Hopefully, my GC will be able to explain it in a way that doesn’t seem like an excuse, but that clearly and definitively explains the situation and the steps I took to remediate it. He’s a pretty awesome GC so I’m hoping for the best.

Really, I didn’t do retakes in the classes for simply “grade-grubbing.” I was warned about that from one of my teachers when I notified her. Rather, I needed to keep a certain GPA to remain in membership at my schools NHS chapter, be involved in certain EC activities, and be eligible for graduation with high honors.

Also, my family qualifies for reduced lunch, and therefore also qualifies for a district-issued fee reduction when taking remedial online courses through the district managed public online high school. I also mentioned how I took up a job at a local tutoring company, making around $10 an hour. With a reduced fee of $120 per semester retake, I make enough money for my parents to be able to match it to pay for the classes as well as have some left over to help them pay for food and bills.

And our school doesn’t allow more than a certain number of retakes without some sort of valid excuse usually with medical documentation, which I do have (only for semester 1 of my junior year) from two doctors who I have gone to and currently go to one of for treatment of my obsessive-compulsive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder (which if you’re wondering is paid in part for by our states Medicare plans and took many battles between insurance companies and gov. Officials to be able to be covered).

10

@usastudent101 thanks so much! And lmao people don’t believe that someone can be successful in ECs but not in some classes…probably because I’m SUPER passionate about those ECs and not so much about classes like Multivariable Calc haha. And I’ve had a really really rough personal life, so it’s hard to convey that with stats and lists alone.

I hope to use this summer to relax and work on writing comprehensive essays that can show colleges a more personal side of who I am, rather than solely what I’ve done.

Good luck to you as well! Honestly, one doesn’t need all of these ECs to get into good schools. I only participate in these activities because I LOVE them. If you let them know what YOU love, you’ll be set.

11

Thanks for the additional clarification. I remain convinced that it is likely that some of the elite schools will pass over your application because of your transcript grades - they have to have some reason for rejecting 19 out of 20 applicants, but you also present yourself as someone that fits the “passion” they all seem to claim they want most of everything.

If you don’t mind sharing, what state allows taxpayer dollars to pay for a student to retake courses online, and in particular, how are the courses you describe considered remedial? It would seem to me that your situation is not what those policies were written for. Then again, since you describe the homework modeling packets as “utterly useless”, you are clearly not the student for whom the American education system (which a part of me likes to call “simply babysitting”) was designed for either.

And be careful - there are plenty of people who are passionate about Multivariable Calc. :slight_smile:

Most importantly, though, I want to give you credit for working through your OCD and anxiety issues - these can be terribly crippling for many students, and the fact that you have gotten help is impressive enough on its own. Getting Medicare to pay for it is a completely separate and still super impressive achievement.

You may not realize how many other students read through CC, many of them going through their own levels of stress and anxieties. You are evidence that these issues can be overcome - even if there are roadblocks like a lower than desired GPA or more than a few poor grades on a transcript. Your story may give some of them hope, so thanks for sharing.

Kudos to your GC. It sounds like you have a good relationship with him, and you are very fortunate to have a GC that understands your situation. Most public schools GC are far too overworked and in many cases, uninformed or unprepared, to provide meaningful help for a majority of their students.

12

@3puppies that makes total sense! I understand that there are blemishes to my record that will cause schools to deny me, and I totally accept responsibility and acknowledge that.

I’m just hoping I can get into any top school (preferably Stanford as my intensive research have made me fall in love with the opportunities, atmosphere, and student body that school has. I just wish I had the financial capability of being able to visit. :frowning: ) that provides ample opportunity and resources to propagate my passion of research in STEM fields and STEM outreach.

I go to school in AZ, and the online high school that offers the classes is a public school that is part of our district, so regardless it is funded for by taxpayers. The fee reduction (which is only $30 [from $150 to $120] but every dollar helps when money is tight) is actually funded for by a unique law we have in AZ that allows families to make voluntary donations to the district which are then refunded by the state tax agency as credits toward the tax return at the time of filing taxes (we call them tax credit donations).

By remedial, I mean it not in the traditional sense (sorry for the confusion) but simply that it was a way for me to remediate the grades. They are full length classes with a final exam and the rigor of an original brick-and-mortar class, since the curricula are the same as those found in the brick-and-mortar schools in our district. So in short, it was a STRESSFUL second semester considering I had to juggle my classes, ECs, job, and the retake courses. It was like taking 10 classes at once. But I did learn a lot, not only academically, but important life lessons as well such as how to effectively plan my time out, down to the minute.

Also I don’t mean to sound like I’m too good for the school system by those comments. I’m sorry if I come off that way. It’s just a shame seeing so many of my peers and myself not being able to fully learn the material because of convoluted and inefficient methods forced on students in these “modeling” instruction packets by legislators who design curricula without realizing the implications on students and educators.

Thank you so much for recognizing those issues that students struggle with, because many parents and authority figures fail to do so (including mine unfortunately). It means so much to me and other students that you recognize that. I’m upset that I wasn’t able to reach out for help earlier in my life because of that, as I feel there is now some lost time and potential that can never be gained back. My GC is truly a blessing; he got me in contact with our school’s social worker who got me directed in the right paths to getting help. But hey, better late than never!

13

@3puppies oh and I’m aware many are passionate about MV calc but I’m definitely not one of them haha :))