I was wondering if you guys think I should explain bad grades in the additional info section. I don’t really want to because I think it would come across as whiny and I honestly don’t have anything to say about them (I don’t really have an excuse).
I am applying to competitive schools (Standord, Harvard). I am a URM female with a 3.81UW and a 4.1W GPA. I have 46 letter grades on my transcript. 40 are A’s (A- or just A, school doesn’t do A+). I have 1 B+ from freshman year bio honors (first semester). I have a B- in Alg 2 w/trig (first semester soph year). I got an A in this 2nd semester. Soph year I also have a C+ in Chem honors 1st semester (got a B- second semester). Then junior year, I have a C- in first semester of AP Calc AB and a B in second semester. I was working about 10-15 hours a week first semester of junior year but I don’t think that was really the reason I did poorly in Calc.
So I have 40 A’s 4 B’s and 2 C’s. I’m also full IB diploma candidate from a top 20 US news high school and I have taken 9 AP exam (6 4s and 3 5s). I even got a 5 on Calc AB (one of the classes I struggled in).
If there was one overriding reason (like a very serious illness one year etc.) then you should ask your guidance counselor to explain the specific circumstance in his/her LOR. But these grades seem to be scattered through your HS career. I think any attempt to explain each lower grade on a case by case basis will come off as making excuses and will bring attention to your lower grades… But in the end it is your application so you can do as you wish.