How much does a not-great freshman year affect you?

Applying to College
1

<p>Hey guys!</p>

<p>I've lurked here for a while and decided that I should ask my first question. I'm a current sophomore at a VERY competitive school in NorCal. The colleges I'm looking at are UC Berekely, UCLA, UoM Ann Arbor, etc. (I'm interested in Engineering).</p>

<p>I'm wondering how much a 3.4 in my freshman year will affect me (I got a 3.3 and a 3.5 for two semesters in freshman year). Starting from this year I've gotten pretty serious and got a 3.8 for the first semester and I am on my way to a 4.0 for the second semester. Next year I'm hoping for a 4.6 or even a 4.8 since jr year is the first year we can take weighted classes.</p>

<p>Disregarding SATs and ECs, I was wondering how much a not-so-great freshman year will affect my chances at the above schools. I'd appreciate some pointers, thanks!</p>

2

<p>I don’t think the UCs even consider freshman grades.</p>

3

<p>I had the same question as well. My average dropped to about 83% in my freshman year because my school suddenly increased the difficulty of the exam to prepare for a regional exam at the end of sophmore year. So with regards to the others in my class my rank has not dropped but I did drop from 8th grade to 9th grade. But if they look from 9th grade onwards I have an upward trend for 10th. So am I in trouble?</p>