<p>I'm a pretty ambitious student. I have good credz, always striving to do my best so on and so on...I have a pretty solid GPA, about a 4.2. Just about all straight A's, one B. All honors/AP...butttttt...I got an F on my math midterm (Algebra 2 and Trigonometry Honors) and now no matter what, my final average is going to be a C or B- (MAX) in that class.</p>
<p>I had a HORRIBLE day and completely stopped trying on the midterm...I messed up pretty badly.</p>
<p>Would my chances at top schools, possibly Ivies, be torn away with ONE "C" on my transcript? My marking period grades were not bad, better than most people in my class...it's just that midterm that messed it up.</p>
<p>I'm ending my sophomore year in a couple of weeks.</p>
<p>I've never had a final grade below a B+ so this is completely new to me. Having people on this site freak out over their "insufficient" 4.4 GPA makes me worried that I'm inadequate myself.</p>
<p>No, you aren't inadequate with one B+/C at all, especially if you have had great grades in other courses. The people on this site that you see freaking out about a 4.4 GPA are just Type-A personalities. Honestly, the 'chances' threads are just skepticisms based on assumptions. Since it only occurred in your sophomore year, you have a chance to make up for that during your junior and senior years. Colleges like to see upward trends, not downward trends so maybe you could try to get As in math during the next two years. Just be realistic when you apply to colleges during your senior year. You certainly have the potential but is it guaranteed that you will make it into the Ivies? No, so just be realistic. The Ivies have a limited number of spots so they cannot accept every stellar candidate. Have a couple of backups that you can see yourself going to just in case. Seriously though, I think you are fine so have no worries.</p>
<p>I screwed up both of my math finals last year and I got into Georgetown. Repeat after me: YOU. WILL. BE. FINE!! Please, for the sake of your sanity, stop worrying.</p>
<p>Haha thanks you guys. I wasn't SO stressed out over this but some people on this forum make you feel like you're not doing enough, you know? Otherwise, I accept that I messed up.</p>
<p>Don't worry so much about your grades. Pursue what you're passionate about, and you'll do fine, and enjoy high school more. Colleges don't want grademongers, they want people who've done meaningful things. Of course, having decent grades help, but a C isn't going to kill you.</p>
<p>There are people who are too obsessed with being perfect, thinking they won't be able to get into an Ivy school if even a single B makes it onto their transcript. To those people - loosen up. It's not that bad. Grades are not the most important thing. Rigor of schedule, extracurriculars, teacher/counselor recommendations, standardized college entrance exam scores all play a role. A single C won't hurt you if you've been a top student up before then. Grades are nice, but they aren't the end-all be-all. I don't have admit stats for Harvard or Yale, but Princeton should be indicative:</p>
<p>82% had h.s. GPA of 3.75 and higher
11% had h.s. GPA between 3.5 and 3.74
4% had h.s. GPA between 3.25 and 3.49
3% had h.s. GPA between 3.0 and 3.24</p>
<p>So sure, High GPAs are a bonus. Students are still admitted from lower ranges, so there are many other factors to consider!</p>
<p>In addition, remember that one C does not drop the GPA that much if you've had all A's/a few B's before.</p>
<p>I'd worry more about the next few weeks than I would about college admissions a couple of years from now.
An F on a midterm is serious...have you gone through that test to make sure you understand that material? How has the class been since then? Are you ready for the final?</p>
<p>I remember taking the midterm and thinking the multiple choice was easy (60 points), but I was frustrated and half@$$ed it...I spent little time on the graphing section (40 points), so I was almost guaranteed a 60 right off the bat.</p>
<p>It wasn't that I didn't know the material. It was more a mixture of anxiety, apprehension, stress, and just a bad day in general that made me do so poorly. Math really freaks me out.</p>
<p>I don't think it'll affect you too much as long as you have something else (like ecs) to balance it out. I have seen people with some Bs and a couple Cs get into the top schools, so I think it's tolerable. Just don't overdo it by going into the D range (danger zone), or even worse the F range. Besides, you're just a sophomore; there is no need to worry about college right now. For now, just focus more on your studies (rather than on college admissions which is lightyears away -- you'll only tire yourself out if you do that now) and do the best you can.</p>
<p>I think you are fine if it is just htat one thing. If I were you, I'd take an AP Math course at some point. i don't know how your school does it, but if you can, take AP Calc or AP Stats next year and get a good grade on the AP exam. Or take one of the SAT math subject tests and get a good grade. That'll show colleges you can do math, they'll just assume that the class you took was really hard or you just screwed up once.</p>