<p>My SAT scores are:
2110 reasoning
760 Chem
740 Math II
700 world history</p>
<p>3 out of the 7 classes i had in sophomore year second semester i received D grades in; however, each are validated by taking higher level courses the following year and with above a 560 in SAT score. That won't instantly reject my application, at least. Even if it does, my other route would be application by exam, which i qualify for.</p>
<p>I don't really have that much to put on my resume; I've played classical piano for 12 years and clarinet for 6; I was the VP of the school's speech and debate club back in freshman year, and I'm a member of the school's Robotics club. </p>
<p>I am a resident of california, and am of asian decent. </p>
<p>I know this is probably wishful thinking, but I would really love to get admitted into UC irvine or UC davis. Is that a possibility at all?</p>
<p>unfortunately, it’s highly unlikely. you have good SAT1/2 scores, but your gpa is extremely lacking. your gpa barely meets the minimum GPA requirement for UC consideration. you are probably under 1 percentile admitted gpa for davis and probably ~2-3 percentile for irvine. they are both very high reaches. merced and the CSUs would be more realistic.</p>
<p>note the average for davis is 4.0 gpa, top 10 percent ranking, and 29 act/1950 sat1. you are above average for testing for sorely below average for gpa and, most likely, ranking. irvine isn’t far from davis either.</p>
<p>you’re test scores are amazing, but your GPA is weak. despite that, you have shown a lot of improvement which is a big thing colleges look at. i have no doubt you’ll get into a good school, especially if you pull through with amazing grades this semester - that’s really important!</p>
If my weighted GPA is 4.5 this semester, will that influence my chances of admission at all, or am I still stuck in the ditch I’m in now?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>how exactly does the UCs’ admission-by-exam method work?</p></li>
<li><p>Can I apply for academic renewal (to cancel out the horrible grades of sophomore year) and instead just use my SAT scores and high level classes to validate the missing requirements? And if so, how would one go about doing it? the UC website is extremely vague.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>UCs don’t look at senior grades at all for fairness. i believe admission-by-exam is for students that don’t meet minimum requirements i.e. you don’t meet the minimum 3.0 gpa. academic renewal, i think, is limited by how many grades you can wipe off and, obviously, by circumstance; you should really talk to a counselor about academic renewal because i’m not certain about this.</p>
<p>don’t forget you have community college as an option. you can always redeem yourself through transfer. it isn’t a bad option for any student.</p>
<p>You qualify by exam, but you only have a chance at the lowest tier UCs like Merced and maybe Riverside. Apply to Irvine (and Davis) if you want, but I would be shocked if you did get in. Still, you only have to pay a fee. Do you have any reason for your low grades? If it’s a very good reason, that might change many things.</p>
<p>OP can you explain on your app what happened sophomore year that you got those grades. I think if you can do that effectively and make a convincing argument as to what you learned from it you have a shot. Your SAT scores are very good.</p>
<p>unfortunately, my reason is addiction to video games and computing in general… it would be pretty difficult to make a strong case about it; besides, i’ve gone through 4-5 drafts of each of my UC essays already, so i suppose that’s more or less out of the question.</p>
<p>UC Davis and Irvine might me a bit of a reach for you. It’s great that your GPA has been progressively increasing, but the overall GPA is still pretty low. Your SAT’s are fantastic, but it’s your GPA that UC’s take into most consideration. Your GPA and SAT scores show that you may be smart, but you’re lazy. No one wants a student like that.
Write about any personal difficulties you may have had in your essays. Were you depressed? Did someone in your family become extremely ill? You can’t say that someone died or that you’re bipolar, though. That’s just ridiculous. Keep working on your essays until the last minute: 1-2 days before Nov. 30. Four or five drafts are nothing. People write up to a dozen drafts. Know when to completely start over.
Still, I would recommend that you apply to Davis, Irvine, Riverside and Merced. Research those schools and choose less popular majors, like Anthropology, Ethnic Studies, Religious Studies, etc. You can always change your major later, but beware, if you major in something completely different from what you really want to study, you’ll end up taking electives that are unrelated to your major. For example, majoring in Religious Studies but taking pre-med electives. Try to pick a major somehow related to what you want to study. But if Religious Studies are what you want to study, go for it.
Give CSU’s a chance too. You don’t have the luxury of getting elitist, and CSU’s are actually very good schools for certain majors. Ex: SLO’s architecture program is amazing.
Don’t ever mention your video game and computer addiction. You’ll be shot down faster than you can blink.
I would say in your case you need to apply to at least ten schools if you want to go to college. Don’t limit yourself to UC’s and CSU’s.
And I hope this has taught you a lesson. Get proactive, and ditch that video game addiction. You’re life isn’t going to end if you never play a video game again. In the future no one is going to take pity on you if you continue being lazy, and no one is going to care that you’re freaking out. If you’re getting offended by this it shows you still have more to grow. Take a deep breath and look at your SAT scores. You’re smart. Very smart. Most people only ever dream of getting a 2230. It’s okay, people don’t care which undergrad you went to, and ten years from now you won’t either. Get into the best undergrad you can, develop good study skills, get good grades, and get into a great grad school. Grad schools will care more about your GPA than your school. Think long term. Your life isn’t over. You can fix all of this. But you need to get studying.</p>
<p>In summary: 2.7 UW GPA,
3.11 WGPA
2230 SAT I
760 SAT II Chem
740 SAT II Math 2
700 SAT II World History</p>
<p>massive improvement per year from sophomore to junior to senior in terms of GPA (2.59 to 3.64 to ~4.17-4.5)</p>
<p>I hope davis and irvine will see this change a positive light and hopefully slightly overlook that 1.83 in sophomore year, the single thing that is destroying my chances right now…</p>