<p>Hi all!</p>
<p>I failed an English class last year--the second semester only, not the first semester. What should I do? Should I e-mail a personal statement, or just hope that they will ignore it?</p>
<p>Thanks so much</p>
<p>Did you fail the course entirely or just for one semester? Does your transcript show semester grades? The transcripts from my kids high sch. only shows the final course grades, not the semester grade.</p>
<p>Not sure how your school does the transcripts, but at my school they only show the course, level, # credits, and final grade which is all 4 terms plus midyears & final exams.
So if I got A's first and second term, and F's third and fourth term, and A on midyear, F on final... it would only say "English Honors, 1 credit - C" </p>
<p>Maybe ask your GC if it shows specifically each semester, or averages them together for one grade / course.</p>
<p>^^^^^</p>
<p>My school divides the year into the first and second semester. Grades for both semesters are shown on the transcript, and I failed the second semester, which is shown. </p>
<p>Thanks all!!</p>
<p>What should I do. (Applying to MIT and Caltech)</p>
<p>Was there a reason why you failed?</p>
<p>Yes, kind of. I thought that the class was really really stupid and pointless. But I got a 5 on the AP language test--self study</p>
<p>what English was it?</p>
<p>^^^^ AP english</p>
<p>ok wow, i got a 3 and eneded with a 91 in the class. thats amazing u got a 5 but failed the class. it will just show that you were lazy, but smart when it comes to self-studying...</p>
<p>Anyone else?</p>
<p>What should I do?</p>
<p>Well, it quite honestly was really stupid for you to just not try cause you didn't feel like it. But, I don't think there's any explaining you can do. Thousands of non-lazy applicants apply to MIT and CalTech every year, why should they take you over the vast majority who didn't fail because of laziness?</p>
<p>I disagree! Explain! Explain that the class was boring/teacher incompetent/whatever (just don't sound like a jerk when you do it), but point out that you rocked the actual test because you liked the topic/whatever. Then go on to say that, although it was a mistake, it is imperative that you are challenged in the classroom (why you love MIT/Caltech).</p>
<p>ack, i would probably not focus on your excuses for failing the class (they are not good and they are not original and they will win you 0 sympathy w/ admissions at both schools), rather on what you have learned and how come this doesn't mean what they might think it means- that you're arrogant or unteachable or full of yourself or something. spin it in a positive light. be mature and be contrite</p>
<p>Colleges do not want to hear that you failed because the teacher was lousy. That's no excuse. Colleges also have lousy teachers and they will expect you to figure out how to deal with it (without failing). If you could self-study enough to do well on the test, you couldv'e done well in the class too. Think of some other "explanation".</p>
<p>apply to only community colleges</p>
<p>Well, if I was in your situation, my worry would be if I would get into the state college, let alone MIT and Caltech.</p>
<p>Perhaps I did not explain properly. I typed my reply very fast and with some general statements.</p>
<p>First though, I do not suggest making something up, as Chedva implied with her "think of some other 'explaination'" line. Stick with the real reason and your honesty will shine through. </p>
<p>Second, Zipper, I am assuming that you have done well otherwise if you think you have a shot at CalTech and MIT. That is why I assumed that there really was some flaw in the teaching of the class, and not just that you are a slacker. Yes, you should have tried anyway; however, if that <em>was</em> the real reason, I would suggest briefly mentioning that reason (in a way that is carefully phrased so that you don't sound entitled or bratty) and then mentioning that it was a mistake/that you learned from it. At the end, you could mention how that led you to seek out especially challenging schools. I don't believe, as the others mentioned, that it is impossible to avoid sounding like a jerk when telling this reason. Don't make it the focus, but don't leave it out either because it will probably be obvious that you are BSing.</p>
<p>Also, I'd like to add that the statement that "Colleges also have lousy teachers and they will expect you to figure out how to deal with it" is only partially true. You MIGHT be faced with being stuck with a bad prof, but most colleges are not like HS in that respect. Core classes, which you cannot get out of taking, usually have many sections taught by different professors. Determining which prof to take only requires some time on ratemyprofessor.com or time invested speaking with peers. Non-core classes are within your major and so you'll probably like them anyway, or have the flexibility to take a different class still within the major. If ALL of the profs in the major you REALLY WANT are horrible then you should transfer anyway. Also, at MIT you can take classes at Wellesley, so you could always find a better prof somewhere else (not sure about CalTech, but many schools offer that kind of cross-registration). And while some schools have crazy class lotteries that make getting into the best classes harder, if you petition or ask the prof seperately, a lot of times you can still get in. AND most of the classes that are hardest to get into at colleges are "easier" science classes that non-science majors want to take. I am assuming that, as an applicant to tech schools, that will not be an issue.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the help. I took some EPGY English classes too--mostly A's. So, I think that if I get wait-listed, I will send in an explanation. For now, though, I think that I'll just hope they'll ignore. </p>
<p>Thanks, once again!</p>
<p>I'm sorry; I did not mean to imply that the OP should "make something up". I can see how my response could convey that, though. I meant that the OP should think of another way to phrase his issues, rather than blaming a teacher. Other kids have had lousy teachers too and didn't fail their courses.</p>
<p>As to avoiding lousy teachers in college -- good luck with that. I went through college, grad school and professional school. You can't always choose the section you want; many schools don't even tell you who is teaching which section of a course. You register for the course and get who you get. And ratemyprofessor.com only tells you how other people feel about a professor, not how you will react to that professor. I had profs that I loved that other people thought were awful and vice versa. To succeed in college, you have to know how to work around lousy teachers (who can be professors or TAs, depending on the school you choose).</p>
<p>zipper, I wish you the best in your college career.</p>
<p>I think you still have a chance at MIT and Caltech.
I'm kind of in the same predicament as you are in.
I switched schools (Magnet->local) because of the long commute
Grades dropped cuz I was mad at my parents.. Still got 5's on all my AP exams
Even though ppl say that AP scores are not looked upon on admission, I personally think they are..
because it shows your knowledge in a certain subject area.
GPA just rates your effort in class
yes it says you are lazy!!!
but that doesn't mean you didn't improve yourself
just write in the personal statement how you were someone with a certain doctrine and changed it
aka. get an awesome rec letter from your teacher...
you need to change it fast.
you may not be able to change the actual grade but get some reason other than you were aloof</p>