Our DS '21 has very high test scores and low grades. We recently went to a college prep/SAT consultant who gave him two assessment tests. One similar to an IQ test. His results came back in the “high end of the expected range”–top 5% of the average 15 year old. The problem is that his grades don’t reflect this. He is an average “B” student on paper.
He tests excellent (near perfect) in his PSAT and PARCC last year (I realize that is much different than ACT or SAT). He is capable of excelling in a demanding environment. As far as we can tell, he has no “Extenuating Circumstances” –-no ADHD (although diagnosed as a child, but not anymore). He’s an introvert in class, rarely speaking up due to extreme shyness. That’ll make it hard to get to know his teachers for recommendations. He also transferred from another school his sophomore year. He studies, but not like most high-achieving kids. But he is in no way lazy.
How do we help a student like this, when it comes to applying to colleges? I feel that DS will end up at school that won’t match his true intellect (nothing’s wrong with just an “OK” college–I went to one myself). How do colleges see kids with low GPAs and very high test scores? Other than “suck it up”, what can we do?
Lots of colleges that admit B students will have offerings that will challenge any student. But that can depend on course and major selections.
How much of a concern is cost?
Cost is always a concern, but we are willing to pay around $20K/yr. The rest he’d have to take out loans. We don’t qualify for financial aid.
Any regional preference?
Would this student prefer a large University where they can, for lack of a better word, hide in the crowd, or a small LAC where he can get to know a small cluster of students and faculty?
Cost is going to be a bigger constraint than his grades, then. He can only take out $5,500-7,500 per year in loans.
We are in the Northeast, so that area is preferable. Lots of great colleges around here within 2 hours. We also have family on the West Coast and ties to the Midwest. He loves the idea of going somewhere warm–Florida, California. But those are far from us. We have visited two large schools in New York (undergrads around 14,000). He was a bit overwhelmed, but it was his first real college visit. He is open to large, but probably would do better in a medium-size college.
As far as cost, we are in NJ and two of our kids attended in state public colleges, cost about $30,000 a year with room and board.
I agree that cost is going to be the biggest issue. Does your state have a public LAC like St. Mary’s in Maryland. I would have him read or look at website for CTCL (colleges that change lives) and see if any of those schools resonate with him.
How do you know if he is capable of excelling in a challenging environment if he’s just doing fine and not super focused in his current environment? Underachieving can be a sign of ADHD (among other things) - could that still be an issue for him? Most colleges are heavily weighting GPA these days. Does he enjoy school? Does he enjoy learning independently?
There are bright, gifted, and high achieving kids at most colleges not just the big name ones you hear about. There are many excellent schools that don’t get much attention. Check out honors programs. Even if he isn’t eligible as a freshman, many have application processes for students to get in later. And can give students access to unique academic opportunities.
If 25K is the limit, cost is your bigger issue for sure. Especially if your EFC is higher. If you are looking at larger schools for financial reasons, really explore how the school might feel smaller for students. A year ago I was sure my kid was headed toward a smaller school. He has 4 schools on his final list right now and 3 of them are very large. Those schools all have had shockingly warm and welcoming departments he is looking at and have clubs, honors, and llcs to make them feel smaller and help students find community.
I do think CTCL could be a good resource for you. Those schools can be generous with merit. However, it still may be difficult to get to 25K for many of them. My kid has top test scores and GPA and has 2 offers from CTCL schools close to 30K.
What does he plan to major in? Does he know? If he doesn’t, what classes and activities interest him?
Maximum loan he can take is $5,500 first year, $6,500, $7,500, $7,500 in later years. Then he can probably add a few thousand in part time and summer work earnings. So the price limit is probably around $25-30k per year.
Are your in-state public universities within that price limit? Or are they within that price limit only if he lives at home and commutes (food, utilities, and commuting costs tend to be significantly less than living on or near campus as a resident student)?
Starting by commuting to community college for the first two years may save some money to allow stretching the budget for the last two years at a four year school.
Beyond the in-state public options listed above, he needs to look for colleges that (a) give large merit scholarships, and (b) he is “overqualified” for (in order to get those large merit scholarships).
“no ADHD (although diagnosed as a child, but not anymore)”
Oy. People do not grow out of their neurological differences. They just learn to handle them a bit better. Or they find a medication that helps them focus better. If your son had a formal ADHD diagnosis as a child, his neurology remains the same. He’s just manifesting it differently. Go have another fight with the resource team at his school about this and get him a new IEP. Acing the standardized tests while pulling B averages in class is practically an ADD/ADHD diagnostic. The only thing that could make it look more like a diagnostic is if he’s got straight A grades when it is something he’s really interested in, and really abysmal grades when it is something that he isn’t interested in.
@zoekirbymikey I was one of those kids myself, having gotten 99.9% in SAT but 3.0 GPA from high school, college to graduate school. I even applied to Harvard with 3.0 GPA because I thought I was just as smart as kids who got 4.0 in high school. lol But I was lazy about studying hard and told myself I was saving my energy for when it really mattered: the business world. Therefore, I feel I am somewhat qualified to give advice from my experience. So, my advice to you is make sure he majors in a field he likes. That way, his effort will naturally go up.
I never understood how most kids could try hard even when they didn’t like most courses, just for grades. I think looking back, because I knew I had certain level of smarts (not saying I was brilliant; just capable of getting all As if I really tried, and I did get all As in one semester in college just to prove to myself I could if I wanted to) – and because colleges were free for me – I didn’t feel too bad about goofing off in classes I didn’t like. For lazy but smart kids, I highly recommend going to colleges which are free over prestigious ones. That way, they can take all kinds of classes and find what interests them.
Even now, I am super lazy unless I really feel the need to do something, so I do things despite my laziness. Only good thing about me is that once I feel I have to do something, I really keep at it and have strong belief in myself no matter what people say. It takes a certain level of confidence to know that you are smart even when you are getting Ds and Cs in many classes. I really recommend students get Fs and Ds when they are in middle school when GPA doesn’t count because it really frees you from thinking that getting As means you are smart. You can be very smart without getting good grades.
It was my experience that transcripts mattered a heck of a lot more than even perfect test scores in admissions.
Well, I wrote great essays and got good letters of recommendations also. Reading George Orwell’s essay on something called the “Art of Bullsh*tting” helped me greatly.
I know lots of kids with high test scores and lowish grades. Often with ADD, but some who only put out in courses they cared about. If the rest of the application is great - teachers who love you, interesting activities, great essays you might do better than you fear, but there’s a limit to how much better. You have to realize there are kids who get A’s without trying in courses they find boring, either because they put out the effort, or because they really are that smart.
My dd’s close friend was just like your son in terms of super high test score and 3.0- 3.3 GPA. He had a very rough go with college acceptances because he over reached. My advice when you are ready to build your list of safety and match schools is to use the weakest link on the application, not the strongest.
High average is just about the perfect IQ in terms of fitting into any educational systems. “B” students are good students and he has a knack for test taking. There are tons of colleges that will be happy to have him! I’d really focus on affordable options as any college should be just fine in terms of appropriate peers.
This is the smart student who gets denied at many schools. High ability but lacks the study skills to get the job done. This was told to us by UW-Madison admissions people at a middle school talk years ago.
Your son may be underperforming because he is bored. He is also a boy and boys tend to mature later. He still has time to get grades more in line with his ability if he is motivated to do so. My gifted kid had lesser grades after his first three semesters of HS- found out years later he was often bored with the most rigorous curriculum (online classes would have been a blessing if then available to him). Teens are often rebellious and won’t listen to parents.
Time to sit down with your son and have a low pressure talk. You will learn more about what makes him tick. He may do well, become motivated, if he finds out getting top grades means the difference in being able to go to a state flagship caliber school where there will be many with his abilities or needing to settle for lesser schools. Find out what most interests him. With those ideas let him know what is required to do that. Realizing what is required to do something could be the motivator.
Your son may not realize that the ticket to being with academic peers is to get the grades to get into the schools they go to. He may not want to be a “nerd” at this stage. He may not realize the difference grades now will make for college. There is plenty of time for him to raise his gpa- that UW admissions person said improving grades matter. Therefore your son needs to hear it is not too late to change.
A person with very high test scores may be just as bored in an average college. As a parent you need to figure out why your son’s grades are less than you would expect. Perhaps a teacher/counselor who knows him can give insights.
You can’t change who he is (a B student) but you can make sure he takes the most rigorous courses available at his school. A B in a demanding class, honors class, college track class will mean more than an easier course load.
It will all work out.