<p>Hello there! I had a few questions about college opportunities based on grades. All of middle school I maintained a 3.75 GPA or higher, however this is my first year of high-school at a college preparatory school and my GPA has dropped to a 3.0. My grades have significantly gone up since first quarter and I think by second semester I will have gone to a 3.2 based on the rate my grades have already gone up. It has always been a dream of mine to attend Stanford as an undergrad and for Law. In the past, I was in Girl Scouts and few extracurricular activities. This year I have managed JV & C-Team volleyball and play JV basketball and I'm beginning to work on my Gold Award for Girl Scouts. My school's debate team is only open to upper class-men, therefore I was not allowed to participate. SO, do you think having a 3.0 GPA in my first semester of high school will significantly affect my chances of getting into Stanford or colleges in general? Also, what other extracurricular activities would look good for applying to any college?</p>
<p>Just work hard and keep your grades up. One semester isn’t a big deal as long as you can being your GPA up over time. Also don’t try to throw yourself into extracurriculars. Do a couple of things that you’re VERY interested in. This shows your personality and a sort of consistency. Don’t worry, you have a lot of time before you need to start worrying about college! Crack open a SAT book whenever you have a chance, but just relax, focus on your grades and a few good ECs, and enjoy high school :)</p>
<p>I think it’ll affect your admissions for schools that consider freshman grades, but some schools don’t consider freshman grades (the UCs, for example). Don’t worry about it though. IMO, a 3.0 freshman year will probably not be a deal breaker if your grades go up from now on. Besides, there’s nothing you can do about it now.
Freshmen worried about what extracurricular activities would look good for college. 
Like Kevindee said, do stuff that you like. Also, since you’re a freshman, try new things and discover something about yourself.
If you like public speaking and can’t do debate, do Mock Trial, MUN, or Y&G or even enter a public speaking contest in FBLA. Or start a club - that definitely looks good on college apps.</p>