<p>no chance at all</p>
<p>so the overall consensus is that i’m screwed</p>
<p>where should i apply then?</p>
<p>my UW by year</p>
<p>9th: 3.2
10th: 2.4
11th: 3.4</p>
<p>Throw in a reach or two but apply primarily to schools where your stats, all of them, are solidly in the 50% range.</p>
<p>SJ,</p>
<p>I haven’t read your essay so I don’t know the circumstances surrounding your sophomore year grades. What I do see is that even without the issues that befell you in 10th grade, it seems reasonable to assume that you would have gotten around a 3.3. </p>
<p>My suggestions are:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Forget about the rigor and weighted scale of your school. I think your talking yourself into a sense of false hope. Schools will either use your UW or convert it to a 5.0 W scale.</p></li>
<li><p>Look for schools where 3.3 - 3.5 is the 50th%-tile GPA. These will be your match and potentially safety schools. A slightly above average GPA, which 3.3 is, combined with high SATs (which you haven’t shared), implies someone who is good at taking tests but coasts a little bit in the classroom. Obviously there may be extenuating circumstances that explains the difference, but at first glance that’s my reaction.</p></li>
<li><p>Choose one of Hopkins or Cornell, do your research, show interest and apply ED. You just never know, it might work out, but don’t be crushed if it doesn’t. You have a chance, but not a great one.</p></li>
<li><p>Go to some of the chancing website on the net and see what their formulas come up with because…</p></li>
<li><p>Remember, while most of us are well intentioned here on CC, we are ALL just guessing.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>well my essay states that freshman year i was cruising along (i spent a lot of time doing ECs and got home a 11 every night). I pulled like a 3.4 freshman year (5 Honors classes)</p>
<p>Sophomore year, my EC was taking much more of a toll on me as my teachers weren’t willing to become flexible with me turning in assignments. I ended up getting 3 Cs (English, Chemistry, Pre-Calc [all Honors classes] and 2 Bs. Junior year I decided to stop theater (for reasons explained in my essay a major one being academics). I started the year off getting all As in 2 AP/4 Honors classes. I had straight A’s 1st MP and and at the 2nd marking period mid report. However, i became sick and was out of school on and off for just about the rest of the year (I had to argue for my credits back in my classes). I spent the time studying SATs/ACTs/SAT2s/AP Tests. I ended the year with 2 As (both in the AP classes) and 4 Bs. I got 2120 SAT, 36 ACT, 800. (Chem, [had a C in that class]) 780 (Math 2 got a B in that class freshman and a C sophomore year), 710 (Bio a class i was taking jr year but was absent much of got a B in that class), 800 (US History, got a B in that class in the bad sophomore year I had, and 800 (physics, i almost got an A in that class somehow after getting a 60 3rd marking period because i missed so much). I got a 5 on BC Calc and a 4 in Stat.</p>
<p>I’m certain sr year i can do as well as i did in the early part of jr year.</p>
<p>I’m taking 6 AP and 2 honors classes next year (2 honors are Multivariable and business).</p>
<p>I’m expecting to get an A in all 8 classes.</p>
<p>It would raise my UW to at least a 3.3 and pull me within the top 9% of my class</p>
<p>if i get those 2 grades rounded up i have a 3.39 and be within the top 7% of my class</p>
<p>a person w/ straight As in R level classes in my school (4.0 UW are within the bottom 25% of my class). How are they a better candidate for college than I am. Should I just not have taken as rigorous of a courseload?</p>
<p>You will not be doing yourself a favor by writing any of that in an essay. Your grades are what they are and colleges have heard, and didn’t want to, every excuse in the book. </p>
<p>Use your essay to tell them things that will make them want you on campus. And get comfortable with realistic schools, you can always transfer. </p>
<p>There are few miracles in college admissions. If your stats don’t look a lot like the ones of the kids they accepted last year, you probably are not getting in. It’s not between you and the kid in the top 10% of your class having taken easier classes. It’s between you and the huge number of highly qualified kids in the top 10% from all over the world.</p>
<p>Looking at your SATII scores and your GPA, you come across as someone who either is really smart but don’t work hard in school or attends an exceedingly competitive high school. If you have 800s in subject tests, how can you possibly have any C in class? </p>
<p>I still think you have a good chance at cornell and hopkins, based on your test scores. They are reasonable reaches. I know people who got in those schools with much less impressive SAT stats, though, admittedly, they have much better GPA. You obviously have a good mastery of your school subjects, and you probably have excellent ECs and stuff. The grading system at your high school may be different from that of the rest of the country; it’s probably better to ask your guidance councilor about your chances, not us here on CC who may have very limited understanding of your situation.</p>
<p>Lastly, I agree with hmom5. Don’t write any of this stuff in an admission essay! It’s the job of your councilor to explain your grades and the grading system, and hopefully he or she will do so adequately. If you do that yourself you’ll sound like you;re trying to make up excuses. Focus on your strenghs in the essay. Also, make sure you get good recommendation letters from your teachers, because some colleges may question your work ethic and character due to low GPA/ high test scores.</p>
<p>by the way, 550 kids in the graduating class is not unusually big. Lol, mine has about 600 as well.</p>
<p>i really did not want to say it here, but my essay was more about how spending all that time w/ ecs and no time for anything else lead to a a drug addiction. i took ecstasy for all of sophomore year. two weeks before the finals i was sent to the hospital after an overdose. it made me realize what i was doing with my life</p>
<p>Another very bad choice for writing an essay. Never, never mention a drug problem. Get some help from a trusted expert if you can for your application.</p>