Throughout high school I’ve been to 4 schools from freshman-junior year. My gpa was terrible sophomore year but my freshman and junior gpa is solid.
Unweighted
Freshman : 3.91
Sophomore : 3.25 ( 2 schools ) 3.0 at first school and 3.5 second school
Junior : 4.0
I’m just wondering how this trend looks? I don’t know what to think of it because my comumaltive turns out to be no where I want it
Moving to two different schools my sophomore year was hard. I’m moving a lot because of families work. I moved again my junior year to another state and started out doing solid.
Also, I was a late apply to my high school because the move was unexpected. So all the AP classes were either closed or full. Should I address this in my college apps? I did manage take 2 honors classes though.
Yes–absolutely address in the common app–it’s great that you still managed good grades with a lot of disruption. You could also self study AP classes and take the test too. Check with your counselor that each school submits transcripts. Also, I think you may have a unique essay topic brewing in there.
Awesome thanks for the advice. Any suggestions on which AP class I should study for if I decide to do so? and all my transcripts from each school are organized together.
Look at the classes you are taking and check with your teachers. In my son’s high school, in some honors class the teacher uses the same book and syllabus as the AP classes, except they don’t take the test. Definitely choose a subject that you are strong in and that interests you–check through this site with “self-study for AP” for suggestions from others who have gone down this route.
I’m really interested in this question given that I had a similar trend. For reference, I’m in the midst of a gap year reapplying to schools, so far I’ve been admitted to MIT and McGill. Last year, I was accepted to Cambridge, Yale, Cornell, NYU, USC, Georgetown, and UMich. I had a similar GPA trend as you, but probably different circumstances. My school did not provide UW GPA, only weighted GPA. Weighted GPA was defined on a 4.0 scale out of 5. Any AP course was weighted out of 5, the rest out of 4. My GPA was as follows:
FR: 4.41
SO: 3.82
JR: 4.9
SR: 5.0
Cumulative: 4.53
Now by no means was my GPA bad, but I did get a C my sophomore year which isn’t typical for someone admitted to top schools. In the Common App additional info section, I would explain your circumstances in depth. My CA essay talked about my struggle SO year and how I overcame it, and I think if you do the same, you should be fine. On the CA, there is a section for you to explain any transferring in schools. I’d argue that an upward trend for GPA looks much better than straight As. I was always under the impression that if you have a 4.0, it means you aren’t challenging yourself enough. Granted, there will be many different factors for college admissions: test scores, essays, ECs. Your transcript is just one factor and will not be the deciding factor.