<p>Well, I'm that kid that you saw in the back of the class who didn't seem to care and completely neglected just about everything that was school related. However, I made a complete change for senior year and I ended up getting accepted into three AP classes (calc, environmental sci, eng lit). I have 97+ so far in all my classes for the first marking period and I will take any necessary measures to ensure that I keep those As.</p>
<p>I have a lot of extracurriculars (don't want to go indepth) and I am a very adept writer.</p>
<p>My SAT scores were 2100 (not exact, it was twenty-one-something-hundred)</p>
<p>If you were to look at my HS record for the last three years in HS you would immediately pass me off as a complete idiot. I had very bad grades/attendance and my goal throughout high school was to pass without having to go to summer school. What is my mea culpa? Severe depression, a really detrimental mindset, and severe family problems... All of the teachers that I know in my school are willing to vouch for me and help me in any way possible, to the point of providing me with economic aid (atleast one of them). Even though I didn't care about school I always felt that I was smarter than most kids and I ALWAYS understood the subject matter, in fact I used to read a lot and was ahead of the curriculum in most of my classes (but what difference does that make?)</p>
<p>I look horrible on paper but I am a born scholar, (I have always read, studied, and loved knowledge) I am very attentive, respectful and have never had a disciplinary problem...</p>
<p>In essence - SHOULD I EVEN TRY? Should I just dismiss all my hopes and dreams of attending a regular college (not even a prestigious one, just like a regular no-name college). I really want to study Biomed engineering and was looking at PSU and Drexel but it seems like I am reaching for stars with my school record.</p>
<p>Oh, and if you're wondering what made me turn around and give a crap - it was a teacher who started crying (and made me cry at the same time) when he saw my 11th grade report card last year...</p>
<p>err, write about "
Oh, and if you're wondering what made me turn around and give a crap - it was a teacher who started crying (and made me cry at the same time) when he saw my 11th grade report card last year..." in your essay</p>
<p>2100 shows that you have promise. i think that if you can get 2 teachers + counselor to vouch for you, you have pretty good chances at mid-level schools.</p>
<p>I have no idea what percentile I am, but my GPA was 2.6 last year. I don't know what it looks like at the moment.</p>
<p>Other things to note:
Public school
I was born in Colombia
I come from a very low-income family (just my mother and I)</p>
<p>Anyhow that teacher and a trip to U of Penn (another teacher basically forced me to go) where crossroads in my life.</p>
<p>But I tell you, when I realized the hole that I dug myself into it felt like spears were passed through my entire body. I couldn't even sleep for about two nights. I felt soo incredibly low and worthless that I considered suicide for a week. However, the end result of that was renaissance for me. I am absolutely diligent about school now (even though it is entirely too late now... just thinking about it makes me feel like utter crap).</p>
<p>I wish that I could just sit with a college admission officer and explain my situation and that him/her could comprehend the reasons why I did this (even though I have no way of justifying what i did or why I did it).</p>
<p>Oh and I am friends with the most important people at my school (counselors, heads of departments, assistant principals, etc., etc.)</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for your responses! Even if I don't make it or have chances I will continue to be resolute about my studies - in the end everything that I have learned will amount to something...</p>
<p>Of course you should try! What's the worst that can happen? You don't get in. But who knows - you just might get in somewhere if you apply. You wno't get in if you don't.</p>
<p>Some schools have interviews - in that situation, you may be sitting with an admissions counselor, and you can explain all that you want to explain.</p>
<p>Read my post 0.86 GPA. I'm pretty much the exact same story, except I started getting serious in junior year. However I made up any failing marks or D's on my record through independent study and summer school, so that might change your actual possibilities.</p>
<p>I'd say go for it! I'm definately going for it myself. My teachers and counselors are supporting me all the way, because they know that I'm a smart person, I just had some issues. I had/have depression w/ an anxiety disorder and family issues too. I don't blame it on those factors, but they made succeeding considerably harder. </p>
<p>Just know that many colleges won't accept D's (or F's, of course), so try to make those up if you got any.</p>
<p>If you're looking at Drexel and PSU, take a look at Temple U. You from PA?
Temple would probably take someone like you who didnt achieve as high as you shouldve, but shows excellent potential.</p>
<p>you sound very articulate, and your SAT is very respectable; many colleges give a bump for overcoming adversity, and it certainly sounds like you are doing that. The point isn't to give a sob story, but to show what you were up against and how you are overcoming it, and what you have learned about yourself. You can write some excellent essays.
There is a lot of good financial aid out there too. I hope you have a good counselor at school that can support you, and that all will work out for you in the end. Untreated depression is seriously debilitating; I hope you are getting some treatment, you don't want to slip back after all you've been through. hope you will keep us posted...</p>
<p>if you have a 2.6 GPA and a 2100 SAT you have an excellent shot at some pretty good mid level schools and write about what you have overcome and how you turned your life around and you have an even better chance......Good Luck!</p>
<p>Let me just throw a thought in here real quick.</p>
<p>First, the #1 reason people go to a community college is because--like you--they realized too late that they could do better than they have. They prove their dedication by showing that they truly have turned things around for two long years (not just one grading period). The #2 reason many students go to community colleges is because they need to save money, and this way the first two years of their four year college adventure is much cheaper than it would otherwise be. Because of this they get accepted to great schools--not just good schools. </p>
<p>Here in California, the top schools in the state--UC Berkeley, UCLA, and even USC (which is a private school)--all save a significant number of spaces open at their colleges in order to admit the top community college students. The states of Pennsylvania and Indiana do similar things by having "feeder" state university branches that transfer their best students to the main state university campus (University Park in Pennsylvania, Bloomington in Indiana) after two years.</p>
<p>You are the perfect candidate for a community college or to go to one of these "feeder" colleges. Here is why:</p>
<p>(1) Yes, you can go to a 4-year school now--but if you do, you will get little or no financial aid because of your low GPA. You will be away from your mom (who probably needs you--both financially and emotionally) and the cost will be much higher than at a four year school;
(2) You realize the problems you've created for yourself already--so you can start doing well in high school--then build on this in a community college and apply after either one or two years to a fantastic 4-year school--showing at least two years of improvement. This will convince those schools to allow you in, resulting in your getting into a much better four-year school than you can get into if you go to one straight out of high school with your lower GPA; and</p>
<p>(3) Generally, it will be easier to get good grades in a community college, since the level of competition is a bit less than at most 4-year schools.</p>
<p>P.S. I speak from experience here. I applied and was accepted to Brown University (an Ivy league school like the University of Pennsylvania), but for financial reasons went to a community college in California. I eventually went to a Cal State University for my four-year degree (although I considered UC Irvine where I was accepted), and then later got my MBA from UCLA. As long as you stay on track, you can save a lot, come out of school without almost no debt and do it with a degree from a great school if you do two years at a CC. The key is don't lose focus during those two years--because then you are out-of-options.</p>
<p>I am utterly overwhelmed by the amount of great responses that I recieved! </p>
<p>Calcruzer, you really did make a point there. Because of my GPA, most colleges wouldn't even think about providing me with financial aid, so I am really seeing community college as a viable option.</p>
<p>I live relatively near CCP (Community College of Philadelphia) and I could just commute there and back like I have done throughout high school with no problem.</p>
<p>I don't know why omitted Temple U from the original post, I forgot about it, haha.</p>
<p>Now, here is another Q, do you guys think that I should bust my butt and try to get an even better SAT score? How much does the SAT score you achieved during high school matter after your two first years of college anyway?</p>
<p>jkid, I can relate to your story, except that I made an attempt to pass by the most minimum requirement. In essence, my goal was to not go to summer school. I remember leaving various teachers perplexed when they realized what I was capable of versus what I actually did...</p>
<p>Anyhow, I thank you all again for your most valuable opinions! I really wish that I would have found this forum before, hehe.</p>
<p>It sounds like your family does not have mch income/money. If that is the case, you may be able to go to 4-year colleges for about the same as a CC. Just a thought - may or may not be the case, but it could open up a few more possibilities.</p>
<p>Jda, Temple is under $10K a year for us Pennsylvanians if you commute. I'm positive you would get in. If not, I know both of the deans personally and can certainly plead with them to let you in.</p>
<p>my advice - apply to 5 or 6 mid-level schools where the average gpa is 1800~1900; you want your 2100 SAT to seem more important than your gpa. make sure that those schools are ones known for giving aid. also apply to a community college.
then, at the end, see where you're in and compare prices.</p>
<p>Wow, jPoD that would be incredibly generous of you, it's really heart-warming to see a person with such empathy on the internet. I will see what my options are. I am giving the dual-admission option at CCP some serious consideration though. I could do my utmost to maintain an excellent GPA throughout my first two years then go to Drexel. Also, does Temple offer biomedial engineering? If they did then Temple would also be a college I would consider. As far as I know they offer bioengineering but not BME.</p>