Even though it asks I write to them, is this a very high chance that I will be rejected instantly? I chose Comp Sci as a major and my other grades are mainly B’s and A’s through all of high school.
If I still have a chance of being accepted or you know of people who have still gotten accepted with a D, how did they do it? I expect they would want an explanation for the dropped grade. Also, the wording on the page is confusing me, I have applied so would that consider me as “prior to admission” or “after admission”?
I can see no gain if you let them know about the D before they accept you. Also, you still have a chance to raise the grade in the second semester and if that’s the case would the UC colleges even see the D+? My daughter’s AP calc class is a year long class and there will just be one grade posted on her transcript.
If you are admitted you might be able to ask them if it’s ok that you withdraw from the class, stating that it’s a class you would rather take in college with a college professor. I’ve heard of admissions allowing this for other students - not from UC schools but from other schools.
As you have stated above, you are suppose to inform UC admissions about the D or F. Waiting until you are admitted in March, will reflect badly on your situation and may be a guarantee that you will be rescinded. Giving the UC’s a heads up on your D now, will allow you to work with admissions to see if the semester can be repeated or admissions may require you to get a passing grade 2nd semester and all will be fine. No one is perfect and I am sure UC admissions is aware of this. It is better to know now what kind of options you may have then later, when there may be no options.
I will definitely follow this advice, thank you. In written do they expect a letter delivered to the UC offices or call? And should this letter be drawn out and elaborate?
Most high schools give grades by semester. If the OP does not inform the UCs (and other colleges) of the D grade before the admission decisions are made, the OP will likely get admission offers whose conditions (e.g. “no D or F grades in previously reported in-progress courses”) s/he cannot fulfill, and therefore is likely to have the admission offer rescinded when the college sees the final high school transcript.
Maybe the grading system is different in California. In my D high school AP Calculus is a full year course and although she gets a grade for each marking period, at the end of the year only 1 final grade will show on her transcript.
loosely read it seems there are 2 options. Let them know before acceptance or after. Could you maybe talk to your teacher and explain the situation/ Maybe there is some bonus work you can do. The difference between a D+ and C- isn’t much but for you it makes the difference between having to explain a bad grade or not having to explain.
Is your AP calculus only a semester long course? Do you not take AP calculus during the 2nd semester? If you take the class both semesters then I would argue that your actual AP calculus grade will be the average of the 2 semester grades even if those grades end up showing individually on the final transcript.
Anyway, this is copied from the UC website regarding F or D grades:
Prior to admission: the student must immediately write to the UC Application center at ucinfo@applyUCsupport.net. The correspondence will be made available to all campuses to which the student applied
After admission: the student must contact the admissions office at the campus from which they received an admission offer to determine if the grade will negatively impact the offer. It is helpful if the student informs the campus of final grades received in all courses to show a balanced perspective of the academic accomplishments for the each term of the senior year.
@amy989 most schools are require students to send mid-year reports as soon as they are available so the schools will see the D+ grade if the report is sent
I know but the UC schools are the exception to that rule. They only see transcripts after you’ve been accepted which is why I’m thinking the OP might not want to report that D+ at this point.
I saw an admissions officer from UC Davis speak and she urged students to contact them sooner than later if there were problems with second semester grades. I’m not sure if this applies to first semester, but I would assume so.
I plan to take AP Calculus AB during 2nd semester, as apparently the UCs are big on improvement and dedication, where I plan to improve next semester. I also feel like taking early initiative to let them know I messed up and my plans for improving, which is why I think letting them know before acceptance is the better option. My school grades by 2 semesters, a mark for 1st semester on the transcript and then a mark for 2nd semester (which starts next week).
I plan on sending that letter before the end of this month, do you guys have any tips on writing the letter and what I should definitely include to increase my chances for acceptance?
Which UCs did you apply to? Did you pick different majors for different UCs? When you could, did you pick a second choice that is not so math dependent? They will be making a decision on the grade made, not the one you hope to get, but you can try a persuasive letter. If the website says to report it, which it does, then you should.
I applied to all the UCs except for Berkeley and UCLA, and Comp Sci was chosen all around and Business Econ/Administration was chosen for alternate.
And also this may seem like a dumb question, but are they asking for a mailed, handwritten or typed letter or another form? If it is a mailed letter, how do I make sure all the UCs I apply to get that letter?