Hello! My name is Richard and I’m currently a senior at high school. I’m about 3 months away from graduating and I have no idea where I want to attend college. My high school experience has been really terrible. I have a 2.8 gpa and I haven’t even taken the SAT once yet. I feel like I have failed miserably and have regretted many of the choices I have made. I have applied to two schools, but haven’t submitted my test scores because I have yet to take the SAT. I’m currently thinking about either taking a gap year or hopefully banking that the schools I have applied to will accept a late SAT score. My parents do not want me to attend a community college. What are the chances that I will still be accepted? Will it be beneficial if I take a gap year to open more options for the following year? Any advice?
Honestly I think community college could be a very good place for you to start.
If a school requires standardized testing it is unlikely you will be accepted without providing scores.
If those schools require SAT scores as part of the app, then your app might not be complete and you might not get a decision back.
Will I be able to send a late SAT score and get my application reviewed?
I’d call them and ask.
DO NOT TAKE A GAP YEAR. It will get you out of the academic groove, however bad it may be, and will make you even less prepared for college. If you get into one of the schools you applied to, go on and attend! If not, take the SAT and go to Comm College. It’s your education, not your parents. Besides, after a year or two of CC you can always transfer over to a 4 year. Word of note, most schools require test scores, whether it’s community college or 4 year.
Why don’t your parents want you to attend CC ? It may end up being your only option – and honestly probably the best and wisest route to go. You’ll have the opportunity to turn your study habits around, take SATs, and get a sense of what you might want to pursue in college (or not – you may end up deciding on a vocational path). All the while without spending a fortune on traditional college.
Part of it stems from the humiliation of going to community college from where I am right now(not bashing on the people who attend CC). I really want to go to the two universities I had applied to, and do plan on taking the next SAT available. Hopefully, the universities are very understanding. Also, as a side note, wouldn’t taking a gap year be more efficient if I’m taking off one year, as opposed to attending CC and spending two years? Given that I will be productive during my gap year.
I’m surprised your parents allowed you to miss out on taking the SAT if the prospect of CC is a stigma. You don’t have to spend two years at a CC before transferring. Are the two schools you applied to test-optional?
Let’s just say my life is pretty rough. The two schools are actually state universities from where I live. They are not test optional. Therefore, I’m hoping they would be accepting if I give them a call. However, my gpa is low as is, and the next SAT is in April, and usually you here back from colleges during early April. I’m kind of stuck in a bad position right now. But my main focus and interest is attending these universities somehow.
Hi Richard,
As a parent, I wanted to let you know that you have not made any terrible or irrevocable mistakes. You are only 18 and you still have the opportunity to do and be whatever you want in life. I remember very well how I thought that things were a disaster at that age. I let it derail me. I don’t want that to happen to you. Whatever mistakes led to your GPA and being late on the SATS, you seem to be acting in a very mature way right now. For what its worth, I think your parents are the ones currently acting irresponsibly. There is nothing wrong with community college. There are many threads here about kids who end up at CC or at very low prestige colleges. So many of those kids end up successful and happy. They save money and no one cares whether they have a prestigious bumper sticker. I’m giving you the same advice I give to my own kids. Think about what you want for your life and work back from there. Can you get there from community college? Great. Do that. If you need help convincing your parents, maybe they could come to these boards and hear the experiences of people who have been there. Good luck.
What state do you live in?
What are the two universities and what are their application deadlines?
Have you taken the PSAT and what was your score?
If not, have you practiced? Are you registered on Khan academy?
What’s your budget (ie’, if your parents don’t want you to go to CC, do they have money to pay for a 4-year college?)
Some decent colleges are still accepting applications and are test optional (you only give your test results if you matriculate, for placement purpose).
Thank you very much for this advice! I am trying not to justify myself for screwing up, but you are right. Part of maturing comes from the realization of your mistakes. I understand where my parents are coming from as I am attending a very prestigious high school right now, and to go from this standard to a CC would be a drastic change. I’m hoping to negotiate and come to terms with my state uni, however if all else fails attending CC would be an option for me. Talking with my college counselor about this, she feels taking a gap year is not a bad thing at all, and would actually open more doors for a widespread of well known colleges. It is this expectation that comes from me not wanting to attend CC.
I live in Michigan and my application deadlines were in March. I have completed the application, but have yet to submit my test scores. This is the final step I have. This school is test required, so I do plan on taking the next SAT asap.
PSAT?
Budget?
This matters because in May there’ll be a list of (4-year, selective) colleges that miscalculated yield. Your common app must be ready to go because the few surprisingly top colleges on that list will see their spots snapped up in days. If you take the SAT in April you’ll have scores in May so you’ll be able to apply to a bunch of colleges.
BUT… The PSAT would give an indication of what’s possible and budget matters obviously.
I’m sorry to hear you’re having a tough time. I recommend you check in with your guidance counselor at school to find out the best next steps and options. I wish you all the best.
OK, deep breaths. There are still some options:
- On the subject of Community Colleges, there are some with dorms. I mention this simply because they have open enrollment; neither the lack of an SAT nor your GPA would stand in the way of being admitted. I found these in Michigan
Gogebic Community College Ironwood Michigan Lake Michigan College Benton Harbor Michigan Southwestern Michigan College Dowagiac Michigan Jackson College Jackson Michigan North Central Michigan College Petoskey Michigan Northwestern Michigan College from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_colleges_in_the_United_States_with_campus_housing - Lots of schools have rolling admissions, meaning they'll still accept your application. Google found me a list that also included admission percentages, but it didn't get through the rules here. It should be fairly easy to find. Choose schools that accept a fairly high percent of kids, and start there to do your research.
Also I just googled Michigan Colleges with high acceptance rates…here’s the first page of the site. Why not see whether any of these look promising?
1 Lake Superior State University
Sault Ste Marie, Michigan
1,615 Applicants 92% AVG---- app deadline is Aug 15
2 Davenport University
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2,219 Applicants 89% N/A — test scores “recommended” not “required”
3 Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo, Michigan
15,175 Applicants 82% AVG+ Michigan University"
4 Grace Bible College
Wyoming, Michigan
364 Applicants 81% N/A
5 Grand Valley State University
Allendale, Michigan
16,989 Applicants 81% AVG+
6 Albion College
Albion, Michigan
2,703 Applicants 80% AVG+
7 Oakland University
Rochester Hills, Michigan
10,162 Applicants 80% AVG+
8 Wayne State University
Detroit, Michigan
10,009 Applicants 80% AVG+
9 Ferris State University
Big Rapids, Michigan
10,297 Applicants 78% AVG-
10 Siena Heights University
Adrian, Michigan
1,777 Applicants 77% AVG-
11 Saginaw Valley State University
University Center, Michigan
7,025 Applicants 76% AVG+
12 Eastern Michigan University
Ypsilanti, Michigan
14,236 Applicants 75% AVG+
13 Michigan Technological University
Houghton, Michigan
5,386 Applicants 75% HARD
14 Calvin College
Grand Rapids, Michigan
3,824 Applicants 74% HARD
15 University of Michigan Flint
Flint, Michigan
3,918 Applicants 74% AVG-
16 University of Detroit Mercy
Detroit, Michigan
4,453 Applicants 73% HARD
17 Cornerstone University
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2,620 Applicants 73% AVG+
18 Aquinas College
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2,635 Applicants 72% AVG+
19 Cleary University
Ann Arbor, Michigan
195 Applicants 72% EASY
20 Hope College
Holland, Michigan
4,420 Applicants 72%
It sounds like you are ready to self-reflect and move ahead with a positive perspective, which is great.
I’d strongly recommend a gap year. Students are often pushed from high school to college without really understanding what it all means. A gap year spent working can really provide a lot of important lessons and give a young person some insight into how college (or not college) will help to shape their future.
How about this idea–go work in a national park for a year? I like to suggest this. A year is not long. Think how quickly time has gone by since March of your junior year. Xanterra and Delaware North and some other concessionaires hire people to work in hotels, restaurants, shops, etc. in national parks. You could earn money have opportunity to hike and spend time in nature, which can itself be very transformative. What about seeing the Grand Canyon every morning as you walk to work? Or living in Yosemite or Yellowstone? The concessionaires often provide housing and sometimes subsidized food so you wouldn’t have to deal with finding a place, signing a lease, utilities, etc.
Then when you applied to colleges next year, you would potentially have a great story to tell them.
Or, if it’s easier, find a job around your own community and work for a year. Take that time to reflect on yourself and what’s important to you. Who makes you your best person?
As emphasized above, this can be just a detour on your path–and many, many people have detours. It might teach you by example. You can learn that whatever was getting in your way of putting yourself in a place you want to be. Then you can address whatever that is.
And your disappointment in how you’ve done in high school does not bar you from any future. In the post right above mine, Hope College is the last school listed. I know two people who graduated from Hope. One is a fabulously successful tech entrepreneur. The other is in a creative field and daily works with the most famous people you could name, doing amazing things. Good luck!
I’d suggest you first establish if you have a possibility of going to either of the two schools you applied to. Call their admissions offices TOMORROW and explain your situation. You can register for the SAT now, take it May 5, and get your scores to schools May 18. Or you could do a late registration for the ACT by March 23, take it April 14, and get scores to schools by April 24. Ask the schools if either would make it at least possible for them to give you a positive decision. If not, you have to move onto other options.