Due to a lack of finances i was forced to take two years off school between junior and senior year. Since we owed my hs money, they refused to let me continue and held my transcripts until we paid (which we still haven’t been able to do), meaning i wasn’t able to transfer to another school. It seems like my situation will be improving soon, meaning i should be starting my senior year this fall. That means its time to apply for colleges soon, but i’m worried that colleges will be put off by this. during this time i was able to take some french and german classes, but due to a lack of funds i had to stop.
For these past couple of months i havent really been doing anything, because right now there is hardly any money to eat and pay rent, which means activities are out of the question. i have taken some online courses on coursera, but we couldnt afford the certificates so there is no proof of this. i am currently living in colombia, which technically is where i was born, but spanish is my thrid language (after english and german) so its hard for a non-native spanish speaker who hasn’t graduated hs to find work. Im very worried that colleges will see my situation (and the fact that there is very little proof of activity during this time) as laziness or depending too much on my financial situation and will reject me.
I know my situation is quite unique - especially considering my international background and the fact that i’ve attended 5 different schools each with different pre college programs (two of the schools offered IB and i did the first year of the DP at my last hs, there was one school that only offered honors, and the one i hope to be attending this year only offers AP) plus my last school’s main language of instruction was spanish meaning my grades dropped significantly, though i was able to remain in the top 10% of my class - so I was wondering if anyone would be able to tell me if i can still save this and be able to attend a good college, or if i should give up hope considering how extreme my situation is.
@tessagray Please don’t ever give up hope! I cannot speak to the intricacies of college admissions, but the first step is to finish high school and complete whatever standardized testing is required. Then you will have a platform of achievement on which to build your college application list. I think, given your background, you could write a fantastic essay to tell your story to any interested college.
I am not sure if your goal is to apply to college in the US,but I can’t see that happening if you dont have any money,sorry to say. Surely it’s less expensive to attend university in Colombia than it is in the US. I think you need to find a way to at least get your high school diploma and take it from there. But don’t give up hope. Finish high school, even if it means taking some kind of part time job. Is there no free public high school where you live? Frankly, your best option mightmbe to do that, if it’s avaiable.