Hello, all.
I’ve taken the transition to 9th grade quite roughly (took on 4 AP classes and managed time terribly) - it is now the end of first quarter and my grades are just wonderfully splashed across the spectrum: a few As, Bs, and Cs. I am a straight-A student, so this has come across as a shock. I know I still have 3 quarters left to go, but I know that even with my best efforts, I will not be able to raise my Cs anywhere over a B.
It might seem ridiculous to hold myself back a grade, but my dreams soar high - maybe I did need this reality check, but I feel like I can do much better with a prepared start.
I skipped two previous grades (elementary year 2 and 6th grade), so the year’s setback isn’t much of an issue. I also have 6 HS credits from middle school, so I can graduate early if needed.
I would like to know if repeating a year would hurt my chances at higher ranking schools such as Caltech, UC Berkeley (I do know UC doesn’t count freshmen GPA), Duke, UT, etc.
This extra year would be beneficial for me as well - I am an aspiring programmer and need the extra time to learn as many more languages as I can - I am not just focused on academics, I want to hone my skills for the future using this time.
I believe I could apply for a repeat, but what are its setbacks? Would it hurt my chances?
Thank you so much for all those that went through the effort to read this post and to answer it.
I’m guessing different school districts treat grade repetition differently. If you were to repeat 9th grade, what would appear on your transcript? Only the classes from the second time around, or both the classes from this year and the ones from next year?
How much do you think you would be able to improve your grades if you repeated 9th grade? What are you aiming for? What are you planning on doing differently? Will your course load be different - if so, how?
I plan on dropping an AP class (biology), so I would be lightening my course load. I know I can do considerably better as the class was dragging the rest of my classes’ grades down.
I would be transferring schools, so any advice for a good public high school would be absolutely amazing, thank you.
I believe most high schools will request records from your previous school. I guess you could lie and say that you haven’t been to high school yet, but that will come back to haunt you.
So, you’re 12 (13?) and taking 4 Ap’s while teaching yourself new languages - no wonder you’re overwhelmed. Keep in mind that, while being at a slower pace, AP’s are college-level classes mean for 18 year olds.
If you’re changing high schools, ask to “start fresh” in 9th grade at your new high school. Even if the “first high school” appears on your transcript, it’ll be easy to explain you were just 12 and wanted to be with a peer group rather than be in chronological jetlag compared to older adolescents.
We can’t recommend high schools, we have no idea where you live - BTW while you can indicate the region or the city, don’t provide more than that on a public forum.
Like most others have said, your course load seems to be really overwhelming (especially for a Freshman). What is your current GPA? If I were you, I would make your decision by thinking about it like this:
My GPA this year is probably going to be _. Will I be able to bring it to _ with ____ amount of years? If you can realistically get it to where you want without repeating, don’t repeat. However, if it seems too difficult to do, repeat. Keep in mind that your GPA becomes harder to adjust as you continue through high school (more numbers are in your average).
I had somewhere around a 2.9/4.0 GPA Freshman year because I simply wasn’t ready and didn’t realize the importance of my grades. I’m now a senior applying to colleges, and had a 3.4 as a Sophomore and a 3.8 as a Junior but was only able to bring my cumulative to a 3.31. So yeah, as you can see, once you mess up your GPA Freshman Year, it’s really difficult to fix.
Slow down before you crash and burn. Drop a couple of the APs. You are obviously intelligent, but socially, you are not ready for high school and you are overwhelming yourself with all these AP classes and learning new languages too. There will be no prize for taking the most APs. It will not help you get into CalTech. Colleges want to see students do well with rigorous courses, not an insane work load for a 9th grader. I am amazed you were allowed to take four APs in the ninth grade. It’s fine to be ambitious, but not at the expense of good grades. And remember, colleges like Cal Tech are interested in what you do outside of school work. Being an academic drone won’t score you points in college admissions.
You can’t lie and say you didn’t go to high school. That is ridiculous. It will be discovered immediately and might jeopardize you. IMO, you have an easy out. I am not sure what your parents feel on the issue, but surely as a 12 year old, you only need to say you don’t feel emotionally ready for high school. No one can argue with that. I strongly urge you to go back to middle school and try 9th grade again next school year.
Thank you so much for your answers. @Lindagaf, do you know how I can return to middle school? During my few months of high school, I’ve learned an immense amount of time management, how school works (my ap biology teacher is a realist), etcetera etcetera. @Spinny99, my current weighted GPA ranges around 4.5 (ap weight = 6, pre-ap weight 5), and my unweighted gpa is in the low 3s. I know for sure that with more time to study for my precalculus class, I will do much better. I find myself trying to complete biology homework at 1 a.m. even if I am not a procrastinator. @MYOS1634, I live in the North Texas area, near Plano ISD (Plano West 11-12 is an academic monster), but my parents are flexible with anywhere near this general area.
@tricky2 , have you sat down with your parents and the guidance counselor at school yet? Your parents need to be involved with this, right now. You can’t make these decisions on your own. Any other school you are thinking of attending will not do a single thing without getting your records from your current school. Please arrange a meeting with your parents and counselor, asap.
Doing homework at 1 am, at your age, is unhealthy. I don’t want to worry you, but I will be blunt-- you will make yourself ill if you carry on like this. I am wondering why you haven’t mentioned your parents. Are they putting pressure on you to do this? If so, please have them read this, because they need to understand how they could be contributing to your failure as a high school student.
I edited my response, read it please. Call and email your guidance counselor immediately. Now. Why aren’t your parents doing this? I feel something is missing in your story.
And btw, no, your chances will still be the same if you go to middle school this year. In fact, if anything, you will be a better applicant for taking a step back and slowing down a little. Remember, the most essential part of an application is good grades.
My mom did try to prevent me from taking too much AP courses, but I was foolish and wanted to take as many as I could.
I’m not the guidance counselor’s favorite and I’m afraid she might not let me take a step back. (She might think I am doing this purely for grades.)
You email the principal and the superintendent, as well as the counselor, all in the same email. They are not going to prevent you from returning to middle school. If necessary, you contact your state’s Dept of Education. Believe me, they will,be happy to help a 12 year old. But, I seriously don’t think your counselor has it in for you. What would be the incentive? High schools want their students to succeed. And a 12 year old graduating at the age of 15 or 16 might make for unwelcome headlines. Please do as I suggested, right away. You need to go back to middle school now.
Also, why do you need to go out of district? Wouldn’t it be better to be with kids you already know?. I will give you the benefit of the doubt, but I do feel like something is a bit off about this story.
No, because the superintendent will immediately contact your guidacne counselor. Your guidance counselor needs to be involved in this. Now fess up and explain why you don’t want to inolve the counselor. I really hope this isn’t a big waste of time.
I visited her multiple times throughout the year because of stress and my math grades (I had never missed a 100 in a math report card), but she probably grew tired of me seeing that she refused to see me the last few times I visited her.