Hey CC, I’m a Junior in high school with a 2.0 GPA, and a 26 ACT on the first try. I grew up with extremely strict parents that are from Africa. In middle school I was a superstar student with all A’s and a spot on the National Junior Honor Society in one of the best private schools in the state. Eventually, my dad was tired of paying a lot of money, and switched me to a charter school. I joked around to much and my GPA took a beating. I transferred high schools in the middle of my junior year because my old school was losing its academic rigor. I stepped up and now have a 3.5 GPA in the second half of my junior year so far. What are my chances of getting into a decent state college or brand name university? I live in Minnesota but am willing to travel two or three states across the border line. Please don’t suggest Community College, as that is utter embarrassment to my family and friends. I have done a bunch of extra curriculars such as captain of basketball team, and coached underprivileged Somali kids in Minneapolis. I volunteered at hospitals for more than 100 hours and have tutored kids for free at a nearby tutoring center for more than 2 years. Please help!
Go sit down with your own guidance counselor and find out what that person has to say. Your counselor knows where students from your high school whose grades and test scores are like yours have been admitted in recent years.
Also, you need to have a discussion with your parents about how much they are ready, willing, and able to pay for your education. You need to know what the budget looks like.
You don’t want community college, but I am pretty sure that is the only way (since you have a 2.0 GPA).
You could get into a 4-year college but it would most likely not be a “respectable college”. With a 2.0, there is no doubt your class rank is also pretty much down the drain.
If you want a “brand name university”, you are going to have to go to community college. I don’t see how it should, in any way, be embarrassing. You no doubt already feel embarrassed by that 2.0 GPA.
If you desperately need an excuse, then financial situation (the ability to save lots of money by going to CC and knocking out the general requirements), could be used. Being in a bad financial situation is not embarrassing at all (and your dad, who is tired of shelling out money, would no doubt appreciate it).
Stepping up your academic rigor to a 3.5 is nice, but that overall of a 2.0 is still a big issue. Not to downplay your efforts, but a 26 on the ACT, while not bad, isn’t exactly enough to balance out that GPA, especially for respectable state schools.
You have very good EC’s, however, EC’s are only good as the ice cream in a cone. If you don’t even have a cone (academics), that ice cream isn’t going to sit very well.
What do you consider a respectable college?
Do you want to play basketball in college?
There are four-year schools that are accredited, regionally ranked, etc. where you would be admitted.
For example, an ACT score >= 23 means regular admission at Washburn University in Topeka, KS.
It will be difficult to get in anywhere with a 2.0 GPA, let alone a top 100 coege. Getting your ACT score up will help. There is no harm in applying to a couple different places and to your state school, but I’d be prepared to go to a community college. There is no embarrassment in going to community college for one or two years and then transferring to a good school. If you really didn’t want to go to community college, you should have taken high school more seriously.
The amount that your parents are willing to PAY for college will largely determine where you can go. Your stats will keep you out of the schools that give the best financial aid or merit.
So, your parents will be paying most/all costs. So, ask them how much they’ll pay each year.
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There is no embarrassment in going to community college
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In some families, it is an embarrassment, but one that a person might have to endure to get where they need to be.
However if this student has parents that will PAY for all college costs, there probably are some schools that will accept him.
You also could plan now for a gap year. That way you would apply to college with your full high school record, not just with the GPA for grades 9 through 11. A very strong senior year that shows your committment to improvement will give you more options than you have right now.
I went to community college. I have travelled all over the world and live in a large home in a lovely suburban area. Steve Jobs went to community college. So did Walt Disney, Tom Hanks, Morgan Freeman, Terri Hatcher, and Arnold Schwarznegger. The time to be thinking of getting into a “respectable college” is not when you are a junior in high school. Great job pulling up your GPA, but you are most likely going to have to go to community college so find one you like that has good agreements for transferring credits to local universities.
You don’t want to hear it, but here is another vote for CC. You can’t just wish your way into a “respectable college”, you need to prove you have the academic chops to succeed there. In the long run if you do well at a CC you likely will have more strong options available to you. Good ECs cannot make up for a subpar GPA.
And yes, you also need to find out your parent’s budget for your college education.
I think CC is a good option, I think the number of CC students is now almost as many as 4-year colleges. For four-year you’ll have a better chance for in-state so I’d start looking at UMinn-TC as a reach, then consider UMinn-Duluth, MSU-Mankato, St. Cloud State, Bemidji State, those schools have over 75% acceptance rates. You’ll have to explain your grades I think anywhere you apply, but esp UMTC and any private schools. So focus on public four years in-state, then publics out of state, then privates close by. And the in-state publics will be much more affordable.
My friend’s son-in-law who is a highly respected gynecological anethesiologist at a major NYC teaching hospital was intially a college drop-out who then attended Tompkins-Cortland-Community College in upstate NY before completing his undergradute degree at Hunter College in NYC before applying and attending medical school.
I once attended a lecture by a prominent young adult author who profusely thanked the English Dept at Onondaga Community College who supported and encouraged her.
Looks like you’d be admitted at University of Missouri as long as you have taken a typical college prep curriculum. It’s within your distance boundary.
https://admissions.missouri.edu/apply-freshmen/admission-requirements/
Do you have any interest in going to school in Canada? They won’t look at your freshman and sophomore grades, just your junior and senior grades. Your ACT is high enough.
Thank you for the advice, my parents are willing to pay full cost for college, no matter what the price is.
Money isn’t going to compensate for low grades. You can talk with your guidance counselor who can perhaps mention that moving schools affected you, and to stress your recent improvement.
You should adjust your attitude, or it’s going to come across in your essay. To say that community college is an utter embarassment is ironic given that your low grades seem to be due to you deciding to “joke around” rather than study.
If you can get an even higher ACT score, that might help. Good luck.
I don’t think the poster is saying himself that CC is an embarassment…I’m pretty sure he is just saying what his parents and family would think.
I understand his struggle very much as I have african parents too and trust me, all they care about is name recognition and prestige. The poster is probably open to CC but his parents aren’t, and since they are the ones paying for his education, he may not have much choice in choosing where he wants to go.
That being said, I also encourage you @ZachSavage2103 to talk to your parents and explain how doing two years in community college, getting your grades up, and then transfering into a 4 year college can help you out a lot.
My son auditioned for the music department at the University of Oklahoma and they said something very interesting in the opening information meeting.
In Oklahoma, they are required to take 8% of those that apply that don’t meet the qualifications for admission!
They said for you to let them know if for some reason you didn’t qualify for admission, because of scores or whatever reason, and they would try to help. The man speaking said that it doesn’t happen very often, but he’s never been unsuccessful getting someone in. He made it sound like all you may need is for a faculty member to go to bat for you.
Oklahoma is more than two or three states over, but they have some very respectable state colleges.
Try Kansas, Kansas State, & Nebraska.
I like Simpson College in Iowa for first generation students. Roughly 40% of the students are first gen and they do a good job supporting them. You will get a solid education. I am acquainted with 2 students there.
You can show that you have pulled your academic life together and will succeed. They will like your tutoring experiences. Does that GPA include this semester? What are your grades for this semester? Can you wow them with this?
In the past they have arranged for a bus to take prospective students to visit. Contact them to see if they still do that. At minimum they will be at the large college fair in Minneapolis in the fall.
http://simpson.edu
the admissions rep http://simpson.edu/author/eglawe/
Apply for this
George Washington Carver National Scholarship The Carver Scholarship is in honor of George Washington Carver who attended Simpson College. Carver Scholarships are awarded to both freshman and transfer students from distinctive and broadly diverse backgrounds, who will help enrich the educational environment and bring multicultural perspectives to the campus community. The Carver Scholarship awards range from $15,000 to 3/4 tuition. This scholarship is renewable with a Simpson College cumulative GPA of 2.25 up to and including 61 completed hours. Above 61 completed hours a cumulative GPA of 2.25 must be maintained. Download the George Washington Carver Scholarship application.
Edited to add the scholarship link http://simpson.edu/financial-aid/first-year-student-scholarships-and-grants/