<p>I created the same thread in the wrong category. So here it goes again. </p>
<p>I am a guy from India, currently in the middle of my Junior Year from CBSE board. I plan on going to an American university after school, but there are, of course, hurdles.</p>
<p>First of all, the admission process for American colleges is starkly different from Indian colleges. In India, you have to have a certain minimum percentage in grade 12 (which varies with colleges and fields) which qualifies you to give the entrance examination. If your score is in the top (100, 200, whatever) of the exam-takers, you get into the the college or else settle for some other one based on your rank. No extra curriculars required, no community service, no SAT (of course), your junior year grades do not matter, no essay required, no teacher's recommendations.</p>
<p>Likewise, there aren't any extra curricular activities in the schools here (VERY rare and few), there's no opportunity for work experience or community service for teenagers, either. And about the teacher's recommendations - most teachers have poor English and are very technical, reserved, unavailable(?) I may have to guide them somehow to write an acceptable recommendation since they'll probably only know my marks and little else.</p>
<p>But I do have a lot(few?) of awards/certificates which I thought could count towards extra-curriculars, working with my father for a few days would be work experience. I could also guide my teacher to write a decent recommendation and edit it myself for grammatical errors.</p>
<p>Now I only had to get good scores and I would have a good shot to my dream.
I've always been a good student (always got rank 1 or 2 in my class, got straight As in both grade 9 and 10, etc) And my score in grade 11 in the first semester exam has been good too.</p>
<p>Maths - 82/100
Chemistry - 95/100
English - 70/100
(that's the highest among all students, our teachers refuse to give a greater score. It's equivalent to 95+ in any other subject)
Computer Science (with C++) - 90/100
Physics - ??</p>
<p>Physics is the problem. The exam has two parts - Theory and Practical. I scored 55.5/70 in theory and would have scored 28-30 in practical for a total of 83 - 85 out of 100 which I consider pretty good. I would have.
Instead, a day before the practical physics exam, someone stole my file and I couldn't do anything about it (There's a long story here which you do not want to hear) So I had to take a leave because everything we had to write (we are basically marked for writing, even in the practical exam) was in the file and I had no other choice.</p>
<p>My parents talked to the principal about re-conducting the exam for me but she blatantly refused. So instead of 83-85 in front of Physics, my mark sheet will have M.L (Medical Leave) and instead of Rank 2 (which I so laboriously worked for and was going to get) I will have no rank.</p>
<p>Correct me if I am wrong (please do!) but I've read junior year performance matters the most in college admissions in USA (even though two out of three semesters' exams of grade 12 in my school would be over before the deadline and I can send that result)
Moreover, all the college application forms I have seen only ask for the class rank in the latest examinations/grade (I think it's meant to be the rank in the junior year) and I've also read ONLY that rank will be up for consideration as opposed to individual grades/marks. Because of my absence in one (JUST ONE) test, my school is refusing to give me a rank and even if it does (for the sake of the application) my score in Physics will be considered zero and my average will fall from mid eighties to mid sixties and the rank would be horrible too.</p>
<p>So I have been considering joining an IB school. I never knew there were IB schools in India at all until today or I would have joined one a long time ago since Indian education is otherwise very restrictive. I soon discovered that it is of course too late to join this year (the exams begin in November. I can't cover three months course in two to three weeks) The course material is VERY different from CBSE so I really have no advantage there.
Other than saving my rank, an IB school will help fulfill all other aspects of the application as well - extra-curriculars, recommendations (the teachers in the IB schools here have great English and are more engaging, personal compared to our robotic CBSE teachers), community service and other aspects as well. And of course, the rigor of the course will give me an advantage in the selection process (or so I've read).
But if I really need to join, I have to wait till next year and repeat grade 11 (I never dreamed something of the sort could happen to me!)</p>
<p>Sorry for the long story. Here are my key questions, other than any general advice you may want to give :
1. Am I blowing it all out of proportion?
2. Does junior year really matter so much?
3. Whatever year matters, do they really only look at the rank and not individual scores? Can absence in one small test make all the difference?
4. Will my lack of extra-curriculars be a big problem?
5. If I continue with my current school and get a good rank in grade 12, and send that, will they overlook the little glitch in my junior year?
6. If I choose to restart with an IB school next year and repeat junior year, will that be an issue in getting into the best colleges or even the mediocre ones? Keep in mind that if I repeat, it will have nothing to do with bad grades or failing - just a personal choice and an absence of class rank.
7. Are IB schools worth it? I may choose to repeat and then discover they are much harder than I imagined. What if my grades get worse instead? That's rhetorical of course.</p>
<p>Thanks !</p>