I have to write an appeal letter for my school’s scholarship and I am at a point where I don’t think it is worthy to be turned in. I spoke to my advisor and he said I should give it a shot, but I did so poorly last year that I feel like there is no point, but I also feel like there is nothing wrong with trying.
I would have given this to my advisor to review but he is out for this week and I only have a few days left until it is due. Please let me know your thoughts, also if this is too long for you to read ANY advise would help.
Thank you 
PS I think it is too long and wanted to replace some paragraphs with bullet points instead, is that okay in a letter like this?
Dear XXX Committee on Scholarship Review,
I am writing this appeal letter in hopes that you will reconsider your decision of taking away my scholarship for the 2018-2019 academic year. I understand and acknowledge the fact that the required grade point average for keeping the XXX is 3.0 and I take full responsibility for my 2.37; which is far below the required minimum requirement. I do not have a reason to why I let my GPA fall other than I was immature, and it was entirely my fault.
I under estimated how difficult college would be and that concluded my fall semester being the hardest academic semester I have undergone. I ended that semester with a 1.72 GPA and let down my friends, family, and mentors; I was very disappointed in myself and I knew I had to do much better my Spring semester.
Although these are not the ultimate excuse to why I had such poor grades fall semester, they were a part of the challenge. I was not prepared for college physically and mentally. Always being the youngest in my class from kindergarten to now, was and is always a challenge. I must ‘grow up’ to fit in with the environment I am in. I started college at age 17, from the west coast, XXX, California. I was not expecting college to be as hard as it was, I was expecting to breeze by like I did in my years of high school, but how I was wrong… I was surrounded by new freshman and sophomores, some of them were either already 18 and some were 20; it was different, but nothing I am new to. Yet, in that indifference it led to fraternity and sorority parties that “I just had to go to,” I was around people who drank and smoke, unlike my family; it was different and something I was very new to. I was placed in uncomfortable circumstances, having to be ‘the mom’ in certain situations because I always chose not to consume alcohol and that led to my ‘friends’ always relying on me to stop whatever I am doing (including studying and homework) to help them in this ‘life or death situation’.
Once the partying was over I was around people who I had helped over the past few weeks during the winter time, and being new to the east coast, winter was extremely tough for me. I was accustomed to 60° and above, but in XXX it was 30° and below. It was hard to travel to class when my feet were numb, or to study at night when all I could think about is how cold I am. And because I already knew my grades were plummeting I was too scared to see my professors because I was not sure how they would think of me. My grades were never that low in high school so when I needed help from a teacher I would just approach them, but this was different… I also did not have my family there to push me to go and talk to my professors or see my advisor which is also a reason to why my grades continued to get lower and lower. Later, in that semester I started to meet more and more people (mostly people who wanted to know what California was like) which made me focus more on my friends rather than my grades. I became irresponsible and disorganized, I started procrastinating on my homework and not studying for my exams and my grades mirrored my actions, I received 1 F, 1 D+, 2 C’s, and 1 B+.
Due to my grades being so poor my first semester I knew I had to make some changes Spring semester. It was extremely difficult and there was a time where I felt overwhelmed and needed to play catch-up. I should have already known what the best form of studying is for me, what time of day I learn the best, and who my study partners should be. I filled out a Repeat Course From and decided to retake the course I had failed in the Fall, during the Spring. Due to the fact of being on academic suspension I was required to take the online academic success course with XXX and I had gained more information about prioritizing what is most important; such as my academics, sleeping, eating, my mental and physical health. I also learned to be efficient and organized with my work; being tidy makes things much easier for myself in the future. After gaining this knowledge I was able to bring my grades up dramatically, I received B’s in 3 of my courses (including the course I repeated) and 1 C+ in Spanish 3, I participated in on-campus events such as the two job fairs during the Spring semester, club meetings, and intramural soccer.
I was fortunate enough to have my family and friends me help with my homework and when I was studying for my midterms and finals. My classmates came to my dorm to have study/homework nights and during finals week we had a potluck and a ‘economics jeopardy’. They wanted me to be better, for myself, they wanted to see me succeed. They pushed me to email my professors when I had a question and to see my advisor when I was confused with my credits. If it were not for my family and the few friends that helped me, I am not sure if I would have had the grades I did during Spring.
But next Fall will be better than the Spring Semester, I have mapped out my schedule accordingly with the help of XXX (we filled out another Repeat Course Form, to retake the class I received a D to give my GPA a boost) and I am sure I will receive over a 3.0 during the fall. In fact, I am going to aim for a 3.8 because I want to show my family as well as myself, that I am a good student and I can accomplish my goals and exceed other’s expectations. I will use what I learned my Spring semester of college and implement that towards next year and the rest of my college career.
Thank you very much for taking time out of your day to read my appeal letter.
Sincerely,
XXX