<p>i think i might be screwing myself over - my uw gpa on my app was 3.78 (w 4.4) but now that i'm a senior i have major grade slippage - down to about a 3.5-3.6 uw this semester. how important are the midyear reports? i will be receiving 3/4 B+ this semester (3 are in ap classes) and one B, but since my gpa was already borderline, is this just simply too low? i'm guessing (hoping) my w gpa this semester will hover around the same, considering the lower grades are in ap classes. i just remember an ad. counselor telling me "stanford acceptees are the ones who can get As in the AP classes". so what are thoughts, opinions, and feelings about midyear reports? how much slippage is too much?</p>
<p>Each applicant is reviewed based on their own circumstances. Statistics cannot be applied broadly on every student as each student may face different circumstances.</p>
<p>should you include an "update" letter about ec's and community service with the mid-year report? will it help or hurt?</p>
<p>Have your counselor do that for you (if you know your counselor well). For example, my counselor wrote a second letter of rec to be included in the mid-year reports; it told the the adcom what I was up to, how my academics are doing, etc.</p>
<p>for the additional comments section, if the counselor doesn't write anything, would that be hurting one's chances of gaining admissions to stanford?</p>
<p>probably depends on the size of the school. large school means that the adcom already expects little counselor involvement (that seems to be the trend, but there are always exceptions) --> detailed comments are not expected. on the other hand, if you have a pretty small school with good counelor contacts, it could be expected. i don't think the adcom will hold a lack of comments against you - its not under your control.</p>
<p>Though certainly you have little control (in the end) with what your counselor does (and doesn't do), it is certainly favorable to have some comments written down, even if it is not as detailed as the original secondary school report. </p>
<p>It is important to have a working relationship with your counselor so that your counselor is informed of your activities; understandably, as a student attending a high school of 2500 (and 3500 last year--a new high school was built), it is difficult to have a counselor who is informed.</p>
<p>Thus, not having counselor's comments on the mid-year may not necessarily help you (that is, "make" or "break" the application), it certainly is helpful.</p>