Hi! I had a pretty shaky start to my college career as my goals are around UNC Chapel Hill and University of Notre Dame (both very competitive schools). I am heading into sophomore year and a lot of my grades did not work out very well… I need to know what is realistic for me and some tips. I will let you know what classes I took and what weighting they were as well as what I got, as well as what I am taking for next year. Thanks for whoever helps me out with useful information.
My grading scale is on 10 point so 90-100 is an A and 80-90 is a B, etc.
Freshman Year:
Honors Math II (Worth 4.5 for weighted GPA) : 92
Honors World History (Worth 3.5 for weighted GPA): 87
Honors Earth and Environmental Science (Worth 3.5 for weighted GPA): 81
Spanish I (Standard, Worth 4.0 for weighted GPA): 90
AP Psychology (Worth 4.0 for Weighted GPA): 81
Sports and Entertainment Marketing I (Worth 4.0 for weighted GPA): 91
Honors English I (Worth 3.5 for Weighted GPA): 87
Health and Physical Education (Worth 4.0 for Weighted GPA): 94
So yeah these are my grades, they were pretty bad but Freshman Year was kind of a rough start. My gpa scale is very weird for weighting so my final freshman year was:
Weighted: 3.875
Unweighted: 3.5
Many of my classes that ended as B’s were because of last minute things such as Final exams such as Honors English I, which was very unfortunate. I also don’t really have many extra curriculars right now which is another thing I need some help on.
Now here are my course requests for next year:
Honors English II
Honors Biology I
Honors Math III
Honors Civics and Economics
Spanish II
AP Human Geography
Honors Sports and Entertainment Marketing II
Honors PLTW Principles of Engineering
I heard that they are changing Honors PLTW to be worth as much as an AP credit which is 5.0 quality points for an A.
So thanks for any feedback in advance, Let me know what I can do!
I also am very interested in South Carolina schools like Clemson University and USC-- Columbia… However I would really need in state rates for those schools
As far as your grades go, if you are struggling with all honors/APs right now, it won’t get any easier next year. The schools you mentioned are reaches for anyone, even those with much better grades and ECs than you. My advice? Don’t load up on so many tough classes again and figure out how to keep your grades up. Also, while its good to have reach and dream schools, you should begin considering match and safety schools, ones where you have a good shot at getting accepted and would be happy to attend.
Now, extracurriculars. What are you interested in? What do you enjoy? Passion is everything and it makes committing to an EC much easier. Colleges love people who are passionate about and committed to their ECs. Finally, focus on 2-3 ECs in particular. The truth is, being well-rounded and having a finger in every pie doesn’t look that good. Colleges like unbalanced kids who are really strong in one particular area. Do you think Harvard cared all that much that Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates competed in their school’s History Bowl?
Yeah I know but I feel like with many of my harder classes I was so close to an A but just missed it or blew it, my safety schools as of now would probably be Appalachian State University or USC Columbia (These unweighted GPA requirements are in my ballpark). But a school that I would love to attend would be North Carolina State or Clemson.
As far as ECs, I was thinking I could do a bunch of volunteer work to stay in my school program but I’m not really sure what else I could do. I could maybe do Speech and Debate club next year and compete in that but since I’m already a sophomore would colleges be turned away by the fact that I started late?
There are many schools that I would love to attend, however they are out of state and very expensive.
Chasing some ECs at this stage isn’t going to alter your trajectory nearly as much as nailing your GPA and test prep. By all means, do ECs that you enjoy and don’t intrude on the other priorities – but it’s not a magic bullet by any means
All I can add is that starting an EC Soph yr is NOT too late. I suggest you really give some thought to what you would love to do. Don’t do debate if that’s not your thing. Find something that you can see yourself doing Soph, Junior and Senior year. You want to love it if you’ll be doing it every year.
Join a few clubs at school, or go ask if a nonprofit needs help with anything, and plan to gain in rsponsibilities as the year goes.
Your schedule for sophomore year is good, focus and try to get B+ to A- in every single class (A would be best, obviously, but if you get a B or lower immediately go see your teacher and ask what you need to review.)
Start looking at Khan Academy and its videos.
It’s too early for you to focus on schools. If colleges interest you, or if you feel they may motivate you, go and visit one large public university, one Medium-size private university, and one LAC. Take the official tour, write down what you liked, what you disliked.