<p>I'm still a junior in high school and my freshman and sophmore years weren't too great. I started out my freshman year with all regular classes, and no honors</p>
<p>ENGLISH 9R: 91
Social Study 9R: 93
Math B-1: 91
Earth Science R: 93
Spanish II: 86
PC/A Cert.: 92
Health 9: 86</p>
<p>Sophomore year I moved up to honors, and that had a devastating effect:</p>
<p>English 10H: 86
Social Study 9R: 95
Math B-II H: 85
Biology H: 81 (guess science isnt my thing)
Research Mthds: 88
Spanish III: 88
Career/Finance: 95
Business/Marketing Planning: 94</p>
<p>Cumulative GPA up to this point: 89.3</p>
<p>However, this year (junior) not only has my course load been heavy, but I've shown improvements in all of my subjects. Keep in mind these are only for the 1st two quarters.</p>
<p>AP Eng: A-
AP U.S.: A-
PreCalc H: A
ChemistryR: A
Spanish IV: A
Ceramics: A
College Marketing: A+ (final) ½ year course
Photo: A- (final) ½ year course
Health 11: A+ (final) ½ year course</p>
<p>I'm hoping to get A's/A+'s in my classes in all of my classes by the end of the year, and if i do that, my average will raise to about a 90-91. And I know that senior year grades dont count in the overall GPA/average, but lets just say I continue to excel in my classes and get A's in all of them:
AP Calc AB
AP Economics
AP Psych
AP Science (havent decided yet)
English: Creative Writing/Shakespear (½ year Electives)
Language: I'll have taken the Spanish regents by the end of junior year, so would I be better off continuing to take an advanced Spanish course or start a different language course like Chinese?</p>
<p>So with that in mind, how big of a factor does improvement play in college admissions? I've really gotten into the right mindset and become much more serious in my studies. My reach colleges are UPenn and Dartmouth, and hopefully they will be able to see that I'm willing to work and that my junior/senior years were when I really started to bust my ass.</p>
<p>Thanks for reading.</p>
<p>It looks to me like you did not approve all that much, though you did improve. And I do not mean that in a bad way. You already were doing quite well and you turned quite well into exceptional. Good job.</p>
<pre><code> I do not know the specifics of the colleges you listed but everything counts and the more you have the better off you are. Having an upward trend will definitely help you in the admission process. It will not be a deal breaker, but your colleges will see that you are getting more serious about working hard the farther you get into high school, showing them you are ready to do well in their college.
</code></pre>
<p>Thanks Cali but in my understanding, students going to colleges like UPenn or Dartmouth usually have cumulative average/GPA of around 92,93+ so my 89.3 isnt exactly on that level. Hopefully by the end of this year it will be a 90-91 as I mentioned before combined with my SAT scores (2250), year round sports (varsity football captain/varsity track captain), numerous EC's.</p>
<p>I also have to make sure that my 1st semester senior grades are all excellent as well, so its a big challenge. But hopefully my improvements will SOMEWHAT "offset" my lower GPA</p>
<p>Np man. </p>
<p>I know it is hard, but you cannot really focus your whole admission strategy on quotes.</p>
<p>Average Gpas and test scores are merely guidelines. I mean, even someone with 4.0 2200+ stats is still a reach for the top colleges. What you need to do now, is find something whether it is volunteering or an internship somewhere that would in some way create a hook for your application. Something like that will make you stand out to candidates with similar stats, as well as those who have higher stats then you. </p>
<p>If you can get up to 90+ like you think you can with that nice SAT score, you are in the running for the schools you mentioned. Keep it up!</p>
<p>Thanks again for your input. So do you think that overall, your improvement is more important than your GPA ? Of course with the improvement the GPA still needs to be somewhat high but even though my average is in the lower 90s do you think becuase of the fact that I went up and showed improvement, it will appeal to the college admissions?</p>
<p>Oh and how many volunteer hours do you think would be considered good? Over the summer I'm planning to volunteer at a hospital and I've also done church work since my freshman year (altar serving, youth group advising)</p>