Maybe I Should Just Give Up!

Applying to College
1

<p>Anyone who has known me on this forum and in real life, would know that I am really concerned with my preparation for college. I also can't afford college, making me have to try harder to get a scholarship at a decent school. All my life, I was told how great I was. I was told that I was extremely amazing. I never knew how dumb I was until I came to CC and opened up my horizons. I realized, not only on CC, but many, many kids in my own high school are better than me. Simple as that. I just want to give up.</p>

<p>So here it is:
1. Race: Asian. My parents say that it would be okay if I went to community college, but in school, no one would ever think that I would go to community college.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>1 honors class out of the possible 5. Even if I end up at state school, I would not necessarily get the scholarship I need, because in reality, there are ivy caliber students who apply to state schools and actually decide to go to them.</p></li>
<li><p>My GPA. Since first semester has not ended yet, I don't know my exact grades. I know my grades, but without true semester grades, it's not really worth it. But here they are anyways: 6 A+, 2 A. <------ But remember mostly regular classes.</p></li>
<li><p>Test scores. 18 PLAN, 152 PSAT. I know with the PLAN that many kids who had worst GPAs than me did better than me. With the PSAT who came later, I just secluded myself, because I didn't want to feel hurt. </p></li>
<li><p>Extracurriculars. It consists of studying, German that is. My friends are in ski club, art club, etc. They have things that actually make them look cool.</p></li>
<li><p>All of this college stuff has detroyed the way I think about myself. I used to think that I was smart. In 7th Grade, I really thought that I was going to UMich or something like that. In 7th Grade, I had worst grades, worst ECs, etc. However, two years later believing that I will go to a great school is no longer believable. In fact, I don't even believe in myself anymore. I envision myself being laughed at in 12th Grade for going to Onondaga Community College.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Should I really hang in here and just calm down (even if I end up in community college or get laughed at)?</p>

2

<p>What about your ACT and SAT scores? GPA as a whole, even if your classes aren’t super crazy?
DON’T GIVE UP!!! :)</p>

3

<p>Consider Monroe Community, it’s a highly regarded CC in NYS haha.
On a serious note, since you’re in state and cost is an issue, I highly highly recommend University at Buffalo. It’s really cheap for in state and gives out generous scholarships. It’s the most bang for your buck school I know of.
Best of luck!</p>

4

<p>Let me let you in on a little secret. College Confidential literally represents the best of the best of American students. The students here have impressive stats, but they represent a notorious fraction of all the high school kids out there. Nearly all high school students get into their college of their first choice, I am POSITIVE that you can easily get into a state school and not have to resort to going to a community college. Don’t let the elitism and selectivity of college confidential get you down. If you really can’t afford college, remember, just because their are ivy caliber students, doesn’t mean that they qualify for need based aid. I’m sure there’s a college out there in your state that recognizes your need.</p>

5

<p>^^^^such as UB!!!
Also consider Stony Brook and Binghamton.
Or possibly even Geneseo, but they’re not as good with financial aid.</p>

6

<p>^^ditto IndianOptimisit… I used to compare myself to the “chance me” ppl and looked at my own and thought what’s WRONG with me, until i noticed that most ppl on cc tend to be that small portion of students with killer stats o_0</p>

7

<p>ugh take the stats here with a grain of salt- if you keep comparing yourself to CC people, your head will explode. </p>

<p>Look, take the SAT and PSAT and see how it goes. SUNY Binghamton in NY is the top suny school, and the tuition isn’t bad at all compared to a private school. </p>

<p>STOP COMPARING YOURSELF. Not everyone can do everything! And german is plenty cool. :P</p>

8

<p>If you want to feel better, google the common data set for a dozen or so schools you are interested in. You will notice that a great many of them accept students who have GPAs and test scores well below your own (unless you are looking only at the very top schools). 90% of the colleges out there will be delighted to have you. And if you are in their top 10% stat-wise, many will offer you scholarships. </p>

<p>And don’t apologize for your interest in German. Just make sure you explain why you are interested, what you hope to accomplish doing it, and what it has enabled you to learn about yourself.</p>

9

<p>I feel the SAME!! Aid is not a requirement for me but I feel SO disheartened over here. My grades are very good but my ECs are bad!! What do I do? I am already a junior!! PLease excuse my overuse of exclamation marks, I usually write better.</p>

10

<p>First, you all need to learn to stay off the Chance Me threads. If you can’t do that, at least make sure that you don’t believe the stats that students post for themselves. If you don’t have their transcript in your hands, you don’t know when they are being truthful.</p>

<p>Second, you need to visit the Financial Aid forum, and read about need-based aid. Sit down with your parents and run some of the financial aid calculators (there are good ones at [College</a> Calculators - savings calculators - college costs, loans](<a href=“College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools”>How Much Will College Cost – BigFuture | College Board) and other websites). Talk with your parents about how your family can pay for your education. Are student loans OK? Is part-time work OK? Is working full-time and studying part-time OK?</p>

<p>For those of you in NY, please, please remember that your state has a marvelous system of community colleges and public universities. You can indeed afford to study there. Is it good enough for you? Read up on all the famous graduates of CUNY. Find out about guaranteed transfer agreements between your local community college and the various SUNYs and the NYS divisions of Cornell. Learn which community colleges, CUNY, and SUNY campuses offer the major(s) you want.</p>

<p>Never forget that while most posters here write nearly incessantly about the fill-in-famous-name-here college/university that they are dreaming about, on May 1, 2010 many of them will be accepting an admissions offer from their home-state public U Quite a few will commit to their closest community college. Why? Because by then they will have learned that it is the only place their family can truly afford in the present economy.</p>

<p>The sooner that you can be completely honest with yourself about which forms of higher education are affordable for you, the better. Once you know that, you will find good options that fall within your budget.</p>

<p>Wishing you all the best.</p>

11

<p>I wanted to go to Seton Hall once. I guess I still do.</p>

<p>My hometown university (Syracuse) is kind of too competitive, I guess.</p>

<p>UB seems nice, but it seems like everyone in my hometown applies to that school for some reason.</p>

<p>Iona seemed good, but problem is they don’t have a German program. </p>

<p>Despite no German program at RIT, my cousin went there and he said it was awesome!!!</p>

<p>Can I still get into some of these schools with a weak courseload?</p>

12

<p>SUNY Oswego</p>

13

<p>

Yes, just hang in there and calm down. I myself would hear others mention I’m smart bla…bla… seeing cc users specifically I notice a much better stats, more than likely to get admitted into prestigious schools but in no way do I or would I feel dumb or lesser of. If you would like to attend a good university I’m sure it’s still possible, probably not UMich as you mention ( not sure didn’t see your stats) but there are many other options of good schools ( most say MI residents are lucky with all the great universities within the state). As for grade trends, it happens… though universities do prefer a positive trend, negative of sketchy trend can cause a rejection.</p>

14

<p>Are you in 9th grade right now?? If so, you have lots of time to make your best effort in school, on SAT scores, and on ECs. Even if you are older than 14, you are being awfully hard on yourself. Hang in there esmee. Anyone who cares this much about doing well will put the effort in wherever you end up, and be a “success” at whatever you choose.</p>

15

<p>Yes, I am in 9th Grade, right now. I am 14, turning 15 in a few months. I try my best, but everything seems to not be good enough. It just angries me that I wanted to go to the best colleges in the world, but no one ever told me that I was just not plain good enough. Like the UMich example. One of the top football players in my area when I was in elementary school was Mike Hart. He played football for UMich. I cared for Mike Hart, until 7th Grade, when I actually started liking UMich. When I saw Mike Hart on TV, I was like he’s smart, but he’s probably not as smart as the kids in my class or I, because he went to a worst high school, then us. So, I thought: It must be easy to get into UMich. Wrong!!! It was just my arrogance. It was also me not knowing about the college admission hooks. </p>

<p>In junior high and now, since I go to a college prep school, we always talked about college. However, they haven’t told us about hooks yet.</p>

16

<p>9th grade?! Do calm down, there’s time to improve. I’m no guru; in fact, I’m just a senior, one that was deferred from her first choice. Take what you’d like from this, but I’m sure others will agree on some points.
My first piece of advice that others may not agree with is to GET OFF CC. It’ll only stress you out and waste time that could be used more productively. Maybe once you start up the college process again, you can use it as a reference point; but PLEASE do not compare yourself to others on this website.</p>

<ol>
<li>Race: Asian. My parents say that it would be okay if I went to community college, but in school, no one would ever think that I would go to community college.</li>
</ol>

<p>I hear you. I’m Southeast Asian, I have a lot of Asian friends, and I understand there’s a lot of pressure. However, it will not hurt you as much as you think, and you shouldn’t factor it into how you treat the next few years. Don’t worry so much about what others will think. I know the embarassment is easy to focus on, but you want to get a great education for YOU. Plus, there are people who go to community college and end up transferring. There are tons of options, and no one’s judgment should affect your own.</p>

<ol>
<li>1 honors class out of the possible 5. Even if I end up at state school, I would not necessarily get the scholarship I need, because in reality, there are ivy caliber students who apply to state schools and actually decide to go to them.</li>
</ol>

<p>Better than 0. Do the best in your classes, and you can be in honors classes next year. Upward trends are great for college, and you’ll make everyone (including yourself) very proud of you. After you work your ass off these next few years, then you can assess what schools will be willing to give you money. Try working in the summer and save up; every penny counts.</p>

<ol>
<li>My GPA. Since first semester has not ended yet, I don’t know my exact grades. I know my grades, but without true semester grades, it’s not really worth it. But here they are anyways: 6 A+, 2 A. <------ But remember mostly regular classes.</li>
</ol>

<p>That’s still great, and don’t let yourself feel otherwise. Talk to your GCs and teachers about taking accelerated classes, and if not, maintain the highest grades possible.</p>

<ol>
<li>Test scores. 18 PLAN, 152 PSAT. I know with the PLAN that many kids who had worst GPAs than me did better than me. With the PSAT who came later, I just secluded myself, because I didn’t want to feel hurt.</li>
</ol>

<p>Don’t feel bad about this; as a freshman, those test scores are not bad. You have two years to familiarize yourself with the exams, the format and content. You will not get an 18 on the actual ACT; you haven’t even learned half of the math you’ll need for it. Same for the PSAT. You can start looking at some practice stuff for them, but most people improve drastically from their freshman scores.</p>

<ol>
<li>Extracurriculars. It consists of studying, German that is. My friends are in ski club, art club, etc. They have things that actually make them look cool.</li>
</ol>

<p>That’s awesome, I always wanted to learn German. It doesn’t matter what makes them “look cool” - and even if it did, you have them beat. You already have an interesting foundation, and if languages are your passion, go for it! Look for volunteering opportunities, internships, clubs you can join. If you don’t find any, start your own! Colleges don’t look for a laundry list of boring activities. They want to see that you were passionate and invested in something while you maintained your grades.</p>

<ol>
<li>All of this college stuff has detroyed the way I think about myself. I used to think that I was smart. In 7th Grade, I really thought that I was going to UMich or something like that. In 7th Grade, I had worst grades, worst ECs, etc. However, two years later believing that I will go to a great school is no longer believable. In fact, I don’t even believe in myself anymore. I envision myself being laughed at in 12th Grade for going to Onondaga Community College.</li>
</ol>

<p>Should I really hang in here and just calm down (even if I end up in community college or get laughed at)? </p>

<p>You are a freshman with straight A’s that knows German. Work hard for the next few years, try new things, stop worrying about what others will think, and get the hell off of these boards. :)</p>

17

<p>are u kidding me?
a 9th grader? a freaking 9th grader? i thought u were a senior by the way u were signaling the end of the world but…a 9th grader?
OMG, trust me you have so much time to improve. 3-4 years until u apply for college dude and just cause u don’t get into the top colleges in the world doesn’t mean ur life is over, there are still plenty of “good” colleges out there! and who says you can’t make the top colleges? u still got like 4 years left man!
ur getting too stressed out, life isn’t all about what college u go too. study hard and have fun, and don’t get ahead of urself. make most of what u have now instead of worrying bout the future, too much.</p>

18

<p>*** is this post. 6 A+ and 2A contemplating community college and doubting state school admittance. ■■■■? I know you are serious, but please.</p>

19

<p>haha I was just like you during my freshman year, don’t worry though, as long as you try hard you’ll certainly get into a good college XD</p>

<p>1) lol community college, the nightmare of all asian people, don’t worry man, I used to think that way too since everyone thought I was a gangsta wannabe failure, well guess what, you still have 4 years ahead of you so just try your best, you’ll be amazed by what you really can do, Besides, you really think 6A+ can only get you to a community college? </p>

<p>2) Well don’t compare yourself to other people, I “only” took 2 AP in my junior year while everyone took like 8~ Just focus and get good grades, college will see if you actually work hard or not. oh also for the scholarship issue, again don’t worry, there are MANY MANY ways to pay for college </p>

<p>3) lol you know not everyone can get a 4.0 UW and 5.0 W GPA, if you really want to you can start taking harder courses to challenge yourself next year.</p>

<p>4) haha guess what did I get in the PSAT during my sophomore year -> 152, and see where I’m going for college next year :slight_smile: impossible is nothing</p>

<p>5) Please, do what you enjoy, and stop trying to make yourself look good by joining those MUN science olympiad FPS blah blah blah, I never did any of those and I still had a pretty good resume</p>

<p>6) … chill. you have FOUR YEARS man!</p>

<p>anyways, good luck and tell me when you get into Harvard :)</p>

20

<p>I’m every bit as anxious as you are. So I really don’t know the right things to say, and if I did, I’d feel like a phony saying it. All I can promise is that in a few years, the college admissions process will be nothing more than a tiny speck in your memory.</p>