I was transferred from Asia a while ago, and started my junior year here in the US just last fall. I did bad on my placement test when I came in so now I’m forced to take geometry as a junior, instead of Algebra II. Back home, we didn’t have GPAs or anything like that. We took IGCSE’s. I wasn’t a straight A student either. Whenever I got a B, I was already glad. Not until a few days ago I realize how low my GPA was during freshman and sophomore year - 1.8. I got a 2.0 on the first semester of my junior year, mainly Bs. I also didn’t realize the importance of AP classes until just now. I cannot take AP classes yet since there’s a lot of required classes that filled up my schedule - health, history, government… Even if I have the time for them, I didn’t have enough credits for them. I planned to take summer classes, but it was $400, and one year’s tuition could be cheaper than that.
So, should I repeat my senior year? The pros of it is that I can take more AP classes and I could have a chance to raise my GPA. Do colleges frown upon repeaters? If I didn’t repeat, I’m afriad that my chances of going to good colleges would be lower since I’d still be taking Junior classes - Algebra II, US hist… (These are the classes I’ll graduate with.) And I’d only have 2 AP classes to graduate with.
I really want to take AP classes like government and calculus so I’d have a better chance for better schools, but I won’t be able to do this if I hadn’t repeat.
It makes little sense for you to repeat senior year. I’m not sure what your notion is of a “good” college. With your GPA, whether or not you redo senior year, your acceptance options to a 4-year college are at best limited.
You don’t provide state of residence information. Assuming that there is a 2-year community college open to you, I recommend that you pursue that. To extent that you have the will, diligence and ability to turn your academics around do so in the community college environment. Then focus on following up the 2-year community college program with junior and senior years in a 4-year college.
How could you get a 2.0 your first semester of junior year if you got mostly Bs? A B average would be 3.0. Even with a few Cs, it would still be higher than 2.0.
Second if you are in a public school, you don’t have the option of repeating your senior year. You repeat only if you fail. That isn’t going to happen with a B average. If you are in a private school, repeating with all Bs would still be very unusual.
Colleges will take into account the fact that you are moving here from Asia and therefore didn’t have sufficient preparation/opportunity to take the same number of AP classes as others who have grown up in this system. That is exactly why admission to college is not just about your grades and test scores.
If you are disappointed in your grades - and it sounds like you have legitimate reasons for a slow start given that you are coming from Asia - you may want to attend community college for two years, get good grades, and then transfer to your State U to finish your degree. Many smart students take this path and make a success of their college careers.
You may have mostly B’s but that 2.0 means enough grades sunk below C. Right? GPA reflects the work and care you put into your classes. Adding APs won’t convince adcoms you’re a focused student and can get results. “Good” colleges need “good” students. Get serious and you will still have opportunities. If it ends up only comm college, you continue the new pattern of working your butt off and later transfer.
My mistake. I had a 3.0 in the first semester of junior year. My cumulative GPA was 2.0.
And I also took the PSAT, which I got ~1400. I know it’s pretty bad, I just didn’t know what to expect. Now I’m practicing everyday for the next one. I’m probably stupid for this, but I’m aiming for top tier-ish school Boston University. Is community college really a good choice? It seems like it would take up quite a bit of time and it also seems that quite a handful of people drop out of it…
Community college would give you the opportunity to show that you can handle college level classes. You could take the math classes that you missed and after a certain number of credits your gpa from CC would be considered only, not your high school grades.
Being accepted to a university with a less than 3 gpa might be tough, but transferring with credits earned and higher gpa from CC should be easier.
I meant that it’d be cheaper to repeat my senior year in highschool than to take summer classes. But since public schools don’t usually let you repeat purposely, I’m guessing that I won’t be repeating after all
Typically, it’s recommended students who arrive from overseas spend a bit more time at the high school level, getting used to the language and the culture, getting not just the minimum credits but the COLLEGE PREPARATORY CREDITS (those aren’t the same in the US, unlike in other countries), and are generally eligible to stay on until they reach a better level in both English fluency and test scores.
In your case, it’d make sense to stay on as a 5th year senior, especially if you’re still enrolled in ELL classes.
Are you in ELL classes? Have you taken the TOEFL? Do your parents speak English? Do they understand how high schools work in the US?
Is that 2.0 from before an estimation or is it accurate (ie., in some countries, 2/4 is a decent grade, whereas in the US it’s really not.)
Ask your guidance counselor. Not all states have this option. Your age will also matter, ie., if you’re 19 and older, or not.
In most public school districts, you can stay in high school until the end of the year in which you turn 21 if you have not yet met their graduation requirements. Many students who arrive from outside the US graduate later than their US-born classmates. It really is no big deal.
What you need to do is sit down with your guidance counselor and go through your academic records very carefully. You might not be ready to graduate “on time” because of the way the credits are recorded. If that is the case, it shouldn’t be hard at all to take an extra year (or more). Usually guidance counselors do their best to make the most generous interpretation possible for international transcripts, if both you and your counselor believe that a less generous interpretation would result in a better long-range result for you, perhaps your transcript can be re-evaluated in a way that gives you the time you need.
And it’d indeed be good if you could get the time you need, as happymomof1 is saying, since it’d give you time to improve your English and to accrue more important classes leading to college. Don’t try to “rush” things. Spread them out for maximum results. They can"t “make” you graduate if you’ve not taken requirements, and if taking classes over the summer is too expensive, don’t take them then. Take these requirements along with Honors classes and APs of your choice, next year, and other final requirements your “super senior” year along with more Honors and APs. The goal shouldn’t be to go fast - if it leads nowhere. The goal should be to go where you need to go, even if it takes a bit longer. After all, what will you do with all your time if you graduate high school “on time” and can’t go to college?