Please chance me--low GPA, OOS

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of South Carolina
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<p>I have always been a good student, but really bombed my sophomore year of HS (3 C's & a D--ouch!). I had some personal issues going on at my old HS, and it really took a toll on my GPA. I am currently a junior, switched to a new HS, where I am doing very well, with a rigorous course load. Can someone tell me, with my current stats, if I have a chance at USC? I am OOS and would also need to qualify for some type of merit aid to attend. Thanks. </p>

<p>GPA W 3.8/UW 3.12
ACT 29 (will take again to try to get at least a 31.
Not sure where I am ranked since I transferred schools-- but am guessing top 25%.
4 AP's, 13 honors courses (have tried not to have any "fluff" classes)
Good extra curriculars--will be 4 year Varsity Athlete, 3 year intern with local minor league sports team, Staff Writer for Pro Sports Website, Sports Editor of HS Newspaper next year, Silver President's Award (lots of community service)</p>

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<p>ur in dont worry</p>

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<p>idk about merit is that gpa after u inputted ur estimated sophmore year gpa</p>

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<p>Yes, that is cumulative gpa for freshman, sophomore and junior year.</p>

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<p>I got in with a worse GPA (2.9 uw/3.4 w) and ACT (25 if I remember correctly… but 1230 SAT) score… but I’m in state and had an upward trend (although a slight GPA slump sophomore year, like you… Although mine was going from like a 3.0 with two C+'s to a 2.9 with only one C+)</p>

<p>I would think you have a pretty good shot of getting in. Apply by the October deadline and see what happens.</p>

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<p>Did you already recalculate your GPA using SC’s scale? Your ACT is high and you’ve taken a good courseload so I think you have a good shot.</p>

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<p>What is the SC scale? </p>

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<p>Here is one link to it. For Greenville schools but same state wide. It’s worth talking to admissions counselor about exactly how they calculate GPA for OOS students. <a href=“404 Error”>404 Error;

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<p>Here’s a link to the general requirements from the USC website.
<a href=“Apply Now - Office of Undergraduate Admissions | University of South Carolina”>Apply Now - Office of Undergraduate Admissions | University of South Carolina;

<p>What we were told by admissions was that they only use the classes listed here - and add 1 extra point for either honors, AP or IB course (all upper levels are treated equal). They do not figure in any other classes outside of these core classes, BUT all these classes are required. See the link for more details on the specific courses. So for example, using the 4 point scale, if you have a B in Honors Algebra II, then that is 4 points instead of 3 had it not been an honors course. Likewise, if you have a B in AP Calc AB, then it is still 4 points instead of 3 for a ‘regular’ class where a B is typically 3 points. </p>

<ul>
<li>4 English</li>
<li>4 Math</li>
<li>3 Lab Science</li>
<li>3 Social Studies</li>
<li>2 Foreign Lang (same lang.)</li>
<li>1 Fine arts</li>
<li>1 Academic elective</li>
<li>1 Physical ed</li>
</ul>

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<p>That is helpful information. I was told by admissions that they only look at core classes and wasn’t sure if that went beyond the usual English, math, Science and SS. I definitely meet the requirements listed above (have four sciences finished by Jr. year). </p>

<p>Next year I was hoping to take some business courses, since I haven’t been able to fit them in earlier and I want some exposure to that field. I dropped a fifth science class and signed up for three business courses (2 standard, 1 honors). Do you think that will hurt me and not look rigorous enough for senior year? The rest of my courses are honors level (No AP’s for senior year). </p>

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<p>I think you need others to weigh in on no AP’s for senior year. Most schools want to see rigor including senior year and USC is no exception. As long as you make decent grades in the AP classes, I think it looks better to have them than not if being compared to others who do have APs senior year. </p>

<p>That said, here’s an excerpt re: AP/IB from that link I posted above:
“We encourage all students to challenge themselves in the classroom. Taking challenging courses in high school prepares a student for the rigors of college classes and also helps develop consistent study habits. … There is no “set” number of advanced courses that we’re looking for. Rather, we want to see that the student has succeeded in their own academic environment. When a student applies, we evaluate his or her transcript solely on performance in courses that we require. We do weight honors, AP, IB, and dual enrollment courses separately.”</p>

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<p>You’re in </p>

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<p>You will get in, but you probably won’t acceptance to the more rigorous programs/majors such as IB or the Honors Program. USC is much more expensive to an OSS so here is a scholarship page to evaluate how much it will cost you. <a href=“http://www.sc.edu/financialaid/scholarships/scholarships_for_nonresidents/default.html”>http://www.sc.edu/financialaid/scholarships/scholarships_for_nonresidents/default.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>So do you know if you took 3 years of language and the third year was honors and the first two were regular if they will average in your honors? Same thing with history? Had 2 regular classes and one AP. </p>