Nervous Freshman in High School

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi Everyone, I am new to this college confidential thing, but here goes…

I just got my GPA back for freshman year, and it has made me really nervous.

Freshman GPA: 3.7 out of 4.5

I attend a magnet school in Pennslyvania, which is very competitive. My school is IB only, so they don’t offer AP courses. However, all of my courses are honors/pre-diploma. I am two years ahead in maths, so I should be taking IB Math next year in my sophomore year ( my school made an exception for me and three other students.)

I got mostly Bs with a few A’s in the mix. I know my GPA is really important for CA, so how will this factor into my total high school GPA? I am hoping to up my grades in my sophomore year and beyond. Along with my GPA, here are my ECs for freshman year:

  • FBLA Competitor(I did a presentation event and made it to the state leadership conference, I hope to make it to nationals in the next two years and be an officer after)
  • FBLA Volunteering(along with competing, I was part of the fundraising and advertising committees.
  • HOSA Competing( I was supposed to compete in the SLC, but it was canceled due to COVID. I was to participate in the testing event Pathophysiology. )
  • HOSA Volunteering ( Once again, I was part of the fundraising committee)
  • Speech and Debate ( I was a JV Competitor for Public Forum Debate, and went two 4 competitions but didn't place in any of them. I also went to an online debate competition for extemporaneous speaking, we are yet to hear the results)
  • Speedcubing( I am an avid speedcuber, I have gone to 10 competitions this year, and placed in 4 of them)
  • Traditional Indian Singing( I am a Carnatic singer, and I got more and more confident with it during Freshman year. Next year, I will be taking a few exams, along with singing in temples for a non-profit.)
  • Gift of Life Donor Program Ambassador( I am an ambassador for the gift of life donor program. I have presented at multiple libraries, offices, and schools to raise awareness for organ donation. I became an official ambassador at the end of this year.)
  • When the World Went Home Blog ( I have started a blog during this pandemic time that features people's experience in different parts of the world. So far, I have featured people living in remote villages in India, orchestra, and french teachers, along with some high school seniors. I will be getting a doctor's perspective up on the blog soon, along with people from France and Indian cities.)

Those are my ECs for Now! For your information, I am an Indian American in the middle class. I am really hoping for the following colleges:

  • UCs, particularly UCLA
  • Stanford
  • Ivies
  • Vanderbilt
  • Northeastern
  • Washington University

I hope to pursue a medical pathway, but I might major in biology to start.

PSAT/ SAT: I have not taken the ACT, SAT, or PSAT yet, but based on my practice tests for PSAT I am hoping for somewhere around 1500-1600.

And that is it!
I know my GPA is not very good, but I am going to be working very hard over the summer. Along with chances, if any of you have tips for earning good grades that will be highly appreciated. I work and study hard, I learned that I need to be more detail orientated and to study smart if I want to achieve good grades.

2

Your extracurricular activities are great, but you are interested in very competitive schools. Having toured a number of colleges with competitive admission in the past year, the colleges tell you they are really looking for As. They are looking for rigor and for you to do well in rigorous classes. Why do you think you are getting many Bs? Do you think you might be spreading yourself thin with all of your ECs? Did you not enjoy the subjects? Do you think a tutor would help? Our high school offers free peer tutoring or a number of students pay for private tutors. I know one senior was given a fee waiver to apply to Wash U and they rejected her. She is going to Barnard. Watch out for all of that marketing you will be receiving and don’t forget to apply to some safeties. Good luck.

3

GPA is king. Trust me, all the ECs won’t matter if you don’t have the grades. Focus on getting good grades. Everything else is extra.

4

You should know that UCs do not give financial aid to out of state applicants. Since you live in PA, they will cost $60k per year. Make sure your parents can afford this, or take them off your list.

The rest of your schools will expect mostly As on your transcript. A B or two is OK, but it sounds like you already have more than that. GPA is the single most important factor in admissions. It seems like you have a lot of ECs. If your ECs are getting in the way of your studying and causing you to get Bs you should cut back on them.

5

You just finished you freshman year. It is FAR too early to even think of to which colleges you should apply.

To begin with, your freshman GPA really doesn’t tell us what your GPA will be by the end of your Junior year. Your classes will get more challenging, and you really have no idea whether you will keep up, do better, or do worse. However, “mostly Bs, with a few As” will not make you competitive for any of the colleges on your list. Also, “working hard over the summer” is not the right attitude. You should be looking to do well in high school, and that means working hard all year.

On the other hand, it is only your freshman year. If your yearly GPAs over the next 2.5 years are 4.0 or close, you will have a competitive GPA for even the most selective colleges.

Your ECs are what you have after a single year. You do not know what your participation will look like at the end of Junior year. You could be excelling and receiving awards, or you could be chugging along, doing the minimum. There is no way that anybody could have predicted what my daughter’s ECs would look like after her junior year, based on what they looked like after her freshman year

The maximum PSAT/NMSQT score is 1520. There is no way that you can know what your score will be either on your PSAT or your SAT, since you as of yet lack the knowledge needed to get the scores that you predict. There is no possible way that you can predict that you will get 1500-1600 of your SAT at this point.

You should not be spending your time and energy looking at your GOA and ECs and trying to figure out which college you can attend. You should be looking at your GPA and ECs, and be thinking how you can do your best on both.

High school is not a race, in which the “winner” gets to go to a “prestigious” college, and the “losers” go to “lesser” colleges. It is a period in which you obtain knowledge and critical thinking skills, explore your interests, passions, strengths, and weaknesses. Based on these, you can select the colleges which will A, help you achieve your post-college goals, and B, will be a good fit for you, socially, academically, and personality-wise. After freshman year in highschool, it is too early to make those decisions.

Do not waste your high school years obsessing over which colleges you will attend. These are four years you will not get back - enjoy them and take advantage of them!

Take care, and enjoy your summer!

6

If I raise my gpa next year, do I still have a chance at some of the schools I wish to attend?

7

Ivies, Stanford and other top colleges are difficult for everyone. And moreso for Indians. Having an interest in biology/pre-med doesn’t help either. You will unfortunately be lumped into a category which is way oversubscribed.

Keeping this in mind, the biggest thing you can do to help your case is focus on GPA. Sounds to me as if you are spending too much time on ECs. Spend more time focusing on what interests you instead of what would look good to a college admissions director.

8

Congrats on finishing your freshman year! From a senior, here are a few things to keep in mind:

-If it’s anything like my school, your freshman year GPA is 1/3 of the GPA that will go to colleges. Meaning sophomore year AND junior year still has to factor in. Plenty of time to continue your hard work and meet your goals.

  • ECs are great. But remember, colleges like to see the passion in your ECs. Don’t think you need to do everything. Pick a few activities and go deep within those. By doing this, it will clearly depict your passions. And only do things you enjoy, life is too short to stick something through for the heck of it.
  • Don’t stress about your college list too much now. Really take this time to focus on academics, expanding within your passions, and discover yourself as a learner.

Happy summer! Keep up the good work :slight_smile:

9

UC only uses grades from your sophomore and junior years to calculate GPA, although UCLA will evaluate your entire transcript. Also, all UCs will be test blind for fall 2023 and fall 2024. Go on the UC and UCLA website and start reading about their admission process.

10

Thanks for the help everyone!

11

Word of advice if you plan on pursuing Pre-Med and the UC’s.

  1. As an OOS student for the UC’s, they offer little to no financial aid so expect to pay full fees at $65K/year (currently). Add this to the cost of Medical school, this makes no financial sense.

  2. Only a few Medical schools care where you go for Undergrad and your best chance at an acceptance is within your home state.

  3. You want to attend a school where you have the best chance for a High GPA in the Medical school pre-req courses, access to medically related EC’s and a school with good Pre-Med advising. You also want to keep undergrad costs at a minimum. In general you need a place where you can thrive as student–academically, socially and personally. Medical schools are looking for students who are not just top students academically, but also interesting, well rounded individuals with specific social competencies and leadership skills.

  4. California is a highly competitive environment for “pre-med” students. Too many qualified applicants for the few seats available so most will end up going OOS if they are lucky enough to be accepted to Medical school.

  5. Mom advice: continue to work your hardest but also enjoy your time in HS. Do not worry about college yet, plenty of time for that in the coming years. This is the time to explore your interests.

Best of luck.

12

OP, you have had a lot of advice along the lines of:

to which you have responded:

Indicating that you have not actually heard the advice- which is mostly coming from some very experienced & respected CC’ers. If you won’t take their advice, perhaps you will take advice from MIT- which is pretty much the same:

https://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/applying_sideways/

Finally, don’t underestimate how much you will change over the next 2 years.

13

I completely agree with @Gumbymom regarding pre-med. Find a college where you can be at the top of the pack. Big fish, little pond theory. If medical school is your ultimate goal then getting a high GPA (> 3.8) along with a top MCAT (>515) should be your two primary targets.

A lot of pre-meds are going the 5 year route, and taking a gap year after college, or during. As part of the gap year, many will work in a research lab and shadow. This helps since many med schools are so competitive. Going to a prestigious college does help, but as long as your GPA is high. Someone with a 3.2 from Harvard College is still going to have a difficult time.

Your best bet would be to find a smaller liberal arts college with low total cost. Especially one where you will be able to get a high GPA.

14

@collegemom3717

Yes, I understand. Thanks for the guidance!

15

I think after seeing my GPA, I was overly obsessive about researching for college. I understand that I cannot predict much in Freshman year, and I still have 4 more years of high school to look forward to.

I truly am grateful to have access to a platform such as CC, where I can get a much larger perspective of this whole crazy process. I think I will focus on doing my best and enjoying high school, before worrying too much about colleges.

Thanks for the help again!

16

Hey, I was a nervous freshman before too. Some things I wish I knew when I was in my starting high school years:

  • Do the things you’re passionate about, and do them as much as you can and as well as you can. Don’t have a laundry list of things and clubs you’ve joined just to add to your resume.
    -Colleges want well rounded classes, not necessarily well rounded students. Having a “spike” will really make you stand out at competitive schools. Colleges want students that are awesome at what they do. For example, if your spike and main interest is in medicine, it will not be the end of the world to get a B or 2 in English.
  • Freshman year is not the final decision maker for who you will be for the next three years. Take the time to grow and learn as a person and as a scholar. You will find your passions, your place, and your future. Good luck.
17

@emmahuang

Thanks for the advice!