<p>MIT is now my top choice, but I know how important a perfect math record matters for them. Am I already doomed?</p>
<p>9th grade First semester: I was incorrectly placed in an Advanced Algrebra II Honors-type class, called AAT. I was coming from a French private school and did not know what AAT was. I had never even taken Algebra. I got a D for that semester. I switched out and spent the second semester in Geometry Honors and got a B.</p>
<p>10th grade They put me back in AAT, and I got a C all year long. Again, I had never taken algebra and they were not guiding my math track very well. I was lacking foundation.</p>
<p>I self-studied math over the summer between 10th/11th grade. This is when I pulled myself to the level.</p>
<p>11th grade I took Pre-Calculus and got an A all year. I took the Math I subject test and scored 750, reported as 95th percentile. I'm taking the SAT on Saturday and expecting a 740-770 on the Math section.</p>
<p>12th gradeI will take AP BC Calculus and get an A both semesters. I will also take the Math II SAT Subject Test in the fall and get an 800.</p>
<p>Should I forget about MIT? I know that I show improvement, and have a kind of excuse, but is it enough?</p>
<p>i know a guy whose gpa was like 2.something in his sophomore year and managed to pull his gpa up to 4.0 in his junior and senior year and got into MIT
Good luck! :)</p>
<p>I think you have a chance, especially since you showed a very marked improvement. It’d be helpful if you got a recommendation from a math teacher who could elaborate on what happened in your past (or the guidance counselor to do that for his/her recommendation).</p>
<p>If I were an admissions officer and saw someone got an A in calculus and a D in Algebra II, I’d just assume they’d matured plenty, or rather had a silly year or two when they were finding their bearings.</p>
<p>you definitely shouldnt say 12th grade i WILL get an A both semester, i WILL get an 800 on Math II, and don’t expect everything to happen (740-770 on Math in SAT I). thats just the wrong attitude. i know you’re on a roll (good job dude) but keep it low when you do your application, MIT REALLY doesn’t care much for braggers. I agree with someone who said before that a teacher recommendation explaining your peculiar situation would help tremendously.</p>
<p>My own opinion is that you should have the attitude “I will get an A” since it’s not usually that bad to, unless your teacher hates human beings entirely, but don’t sound pretentious in the application.</p>
<p>I’d take to heart that you shouldn’t consider MIT strongly unless you take calculus, having done precalculus, and really sail through it and develop strong analytical skills. But I’m willing to believe that you could’ve had a very strange transition to the way your math curriculum was structured, and that’s what caused a bad first two years. Like I said, if you struggled then because of silly reasons and you ace calculus now you have the act together, done. But else, I’d be very scared to consider admitting a student who only claims to be able to do better, and hasn’t given evidence – for his/MIT’s own good.</p>
<p>Alright, don’t assume you’ll get an 800 and As. It probably won’t happen, but if it does, that’s great! I don’t know your grades and SATs, but if you can make the story sound good and get a good math teacher rec, then this won’t ruin your chances.</p>
<p>Well someone has to get an A in Calculus, why would you say “it probably won’t happen”? I had the highest A in my Pre-Calc class… mostly against the same people who will be in my BC Calculus class. My high school also has one of the highest BC pass rates in the U.S</p>
<p>And based on collegeboard practice tests, i’m confidently expecting a 750 on SAT Math, which i took today, and a 770 on SAT Math II Subject test, which i will take in the fall. I still have all summer to bring that 770 Math II to an 800, which is a relatively a common score on that subject test.</p>
<p>I am not saying these things out of blind arrogance. Most of these “predictions” are pretty much current realities, not ignorant dreams… :o Sorry if I came across as pretentious, but I’m not going to start doubting myself for no reason</p>
<p>Dude, you are well on tract apparently… so it’s not like red alarm. If I were you, I would just study hard, try to have you math teacher write a good rec about you, explaning you came back strong.</p>
<p>Just remind yourself Calculus is not like precalc. And well, if you end up at MIT, you will have much more to worry about than a few simple math tricks/computations, like you do in HS.</p>
<p>i definitely don’t struggle with math, it’s usually the easiest topic for me to learn.
lacking foundation in a strange environment was the cause for my D</p>
<p>and an extra recommendation will not be possible since that 9th grade, first semester math teacher was indifferent. he did not want to help me, either with math, or to figure out the error in my placement</p>
<p>EDIT: looking back, i don’t think it would make sense for MIT to penalize me on that D. if I reach the same end result, and demonstrate mathematic achievement and aptitude, what difference should it make to them… right?</p>
<p>would you guys recommend AB or BC calculus for me? Some say BC because you get more time in class, and that it’s “easier”. I’m not sure though, and I’m considering AB</p>
<p>BC covers just a bit more than AB. My non-mathy S took AB this year and found it pretty easy. If your school has a good rep for doing well on BC and you were at the top of the class in Pre-Calc, I’d say go for BC.</p>
<p>BTW, MIT does not reject you for less than straight As in math. S had a couple Bs scattered in there (one semester of functions, two semesters of MV/DiffEq where he had As on tests and low Bs on p-sets – and HW was 30% of the grade), is a math major, and got into MIT EA.</p>
<p>The place to address the early grades in Math is in the GC’s letter. Presumably this person realizes you were in a poor math placement and can explain. Be sure to set up a meeting with your GC and discuss this and how it might be presented in a letter. Applicants should not discuss grades in essays; it comes off as making excuses, whining or blaming.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, remember that MIT gets thousands of qualified applicants. There just isn’t room for everyone, no matter what one overcomes or what one does with the opportunities available. Admission is not an entitlement for hard work.</p>
<p>Well that wouldn’t rule out the possibility that our high school can have one of the highest pass rates. The specifics shouldn’t matter much, I just paraphrased what my teacher said to give my school some credibility. And I was told this by a trusted teacher, so I’ll assume it to be true.</p>
<p>When I said you should not expect As and an 800, I was not saying you are not capable of that, because I believe you MOST DEFINITELY show the capability. I’m just saying when you ask to be chanced, it sounds kind of arrogant if you say that you will get a perfect score along with two near-perfect grades. Also, pre-calc is very different from calc, so you could just not understand calc. There are a lot of intangibles, and I think we all know what happens when you “assume” lol . But really, I am not trying to be offensive, I am simply trying to say that you cannot assume that you will do exceptionally well on your SAT II and BC Calc class. A more appropriate response would have been:</p>
<p>Math II: 750+ (based on practice test results)
Grades in BC Calc next year: Most likely As or A-s</p>
. But really, I am not trying to be offensive, I am simply trying to say that you cannot assume that you will do exceptionally well on your SAT II and BC Calc class. A more appropriate response would have been:</p>
i agree with everything you said</p>