I didn’t try hard enough in my early years of high school. I have 3 B’s on my transcript from freshman and sophomore year and can’t do anything about my academic record now as a rising senior. I got all A’s junior year, but what is the point? It doesn’t matter. College admissions officers at elite schools won’t care that I attempted to atone for my mistakes junior year by getting good grades in AP classes and studying for the ACT. Even if I get a good score when I get my results back in a couple of weeks, it doesn’t matter. I feel as though I’ve disappointed my family and won’t be able to get where I need to in life because I slacked off when I was a underclassman.
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Three B’s is “slacking”? Do you seriously believe three B’s is what is preventing you from “getting where you need to be in life”? Methinks someone has been in quarantine too long.
I think it’s slacking because if I had worked harder, I could have avoided them, and it’s entirely possible that they will close doors for me. I’m not worried about going to college; I’m worried about getting in to elite schools, like Stanford and CMU and Cornell.
Why do you need to get into an elite school? There are thousands of schools with varying levels of selectivity and some of them will be a great fit for you.
Money. How many millionaires do you think come out of a school like Carnegie vs. a school like Ohio State? Same goes for Cornell, Stanford, etc. That’s my only goal with college, anyways. It’s a financial investment, and nothing but.
If you don’t get into Stanford, CMU or Cornell, it will not be because you got three Bs.
They get tens of thousands of qualified applicants, and yes, they accept students with B’s here or there IF those students can show they match what the school wants and needs in that particular admissions cycle.
First, three Bs are not going to keep you from going to an elite school. Where did you get that idea? These schools are not looking for perfection.
Second, your life is not over if you don’t go to an elite school. The vast majority of people do not go to elite schools. You don’t need an elite school to get where you want to go in life.
One thing that’s great about being young is you have time to fix your mistakes! You just have to take a longer path that is more circuitous and requires more work.
So if you don’t get into the caliber of college that you want, pick a school that suits you and where you can showcase your abilities. It will put you into a great position to either transfer into a “better” college, or into a great grad school.
And I said “better” because some of these “lesser” schools are providing incredible opportunities for their high achieving kids, so you might actually get a better education and experience at the “lesser” school. You’d be really surprised!
@stachlj958 First of all, you are showing improvement in your grades, which is a good trend. Secondly, to echo @CheddarcheeseMN you may want to expand the list of schools you are looking at. In many cases you can find better student resources and financial aid at non “elite” schools. What is your current list of schools? What major do you want to go into? Do you know what your financial status allows for you to afford? Have you looked at scholarships you qualify for?
Many millionaires either dropped out of college or never went at all. And, I hate to be the one to break the news to you, but money is not what it’s all about in this world.
Three B grades won’t keep you out of an elite school, but your attitude might I’m afraid. Schools like to see resiliency in students, as well as the ability to make mistakes and learn from them.
@stachlj958 , someone is poisoning your mind if they have been telling you that a college applicant with all As and 3 Bs has done “something wrong”. Whoever is doing that is causing you unnecessary emotional distress.
If you are feeling like you “want to die” that is nothing to state lightly. Seek help immediately. Call a crisis line, ask your parents for help right away.
If you are simply still upset about your 3 B’s then refer to the comments in your other threads on this topic.
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/2188814-will-3-bs-even-with-an-upward-trend-ruin-me-for-the-most-elite-schools.html#latest
Closing thread