<p>Talk about it in your essays</p>
<p>Sikorsky - You forgot to add that those schools might even have a special scholarship for kids whose grandparents have died during their senior year in high school!</p>
<p>Allan - “I am thinking to applying to schools with more grade inflations, but I am not sure how to approach this matter. My only goal is to get into a university ranked somewhere among the best in the nation, then at the same time be able to get a 4.0 GPA and a high MCAT score to have the fundamentals for med schools admissions (ideally).” This, from a post on a different thread, says a lot!</p>
<p>The school admissions people do not care that your grandmother died. Stuff happens. People rise above it. </p>
<p>Check through threads in which college students ask advice about appealing academic probation and or dismissals because their grandparents died or they had a similar emotional challenge. IT DOESN’T MATTER.</p>
<p>You are responsible for doing the best that you can in school, as you will be expected in your profession. As I mentioned earlier, you certainly won’t be able to justify medical mistakes once you become a doctor… you turn off your emotions and do what you have to do.</p>
<p>But again, how badly did your grades drop? Colleges know about “senioritis” and small drops may not be a big deal for less than the elite schools. Large drops are a different matter and will definitely raise concerns.</p>
<p>It’s a cold-blooded reply, but most people in this topic are right.</p>
<p>Simply put, colleges want to see a strong, resilient candidate.</p>
<p>Allan</p>
<p>Many of your posts seem to be about trying to “game” the system. One talks about using a disability in your younger life to get a leg up on admissions, one talks about finding a college with grade inflation in order to get a perfect GPA for med school</p>
<p>I am not sure what kinds of pressures you are under, so I can’t speak to your motivations, but be aware that adcoms review applications for a living. They are on to all the tricks, deceptions, finagling and aren’t going to be swayed by your machinations.</p>
<p>Med school adcoms know which schools inflate grades, ugrad schools deal with thousands and thousands of applications ever year. They have heard your excuses thousands of times. It won’t matter.</p>
<p>Check out the tumblr <a href=“http://admissionsproblems.■■■■■■■■■■/post/36778779684#_=_[/url]”>http://admissionsproblems.■■■■■■■■■■/post/36778779684#_=_</a> and you might see just how sympathetic your adcom would be to a transparent attempt to “explain” your grades now instead of through the proper channels (original application or through the GC).</p>
<p>But again, feel free to ignore all the good advice you have received. You are probably applying to some of the same schools my son is, and your letter will only help him.</p>
<p>The significant majority of posters have given the same advice. Better to send positive updates, if you really feel the nered to contact the adcomms. So if you have positive thing to report (award, new SAT scores, etc) then report that.</p>
<p>People deal with depression and loss for all kinds of reasons. They all deal with it differently. If your grief over the loss of your grandmother was so profound to effect your grades an entire semester the schools would expect you to have sought professional help (a therapist or counselor) and for your GC to have been aware and involved with your current teachers (missed days, low grades, etc.) so certainly your GC would be able to write a letter on your behalf explaining this.</p>
<p>I would like to tack on a relevant question.</p>
<p>Throughout my 1st semester, I was dealing with my parents’ volatile divorce. It was kept private, and my GC didn’t know about it. I wrote to my colleges explaining how the tense family situation and separation affected my grades. I went from As to B+s in many classes. Was it a bad idea to send an explanation to colleges? It’s not the death of a grandparent. It’s a little more personal imo.</p>
<p>Divorce is also best avoided in college admissions, as it’s very commonly dealt with among high school students (with the divorce rate at 50% in the states, you can hardly pretend it’s a unique situation) and admissions committees usually see it as a pity play. I wouldn’t see it as a good reason to excuse a drop in grades (my parents got divorced after 3 years of fighting and I moved halfway across the world to a non-English speaking country in the same month, leaving my dad behind, so I understand what you’re going through).
I also wouldn’t argue that divorce is “more personal” than the death of a grandparent. In our society, it’s excessively common, and both of your parents are still alive. Both are incredibly hard and stressful situations, and neither have a place in a college application.
If you’ve already sent it, there’s not much you can do. It probably won’t make a difference in how they look at your grades, though I don’t think that going from As to Bs in one semester should make too much of a difference.</p>
<p>Oh, just to end this conversation, and to make things more positive:</p>
<p>I won an HiMCM award recently, and I feel the need to send info over to adcoms, I also worked as team leader for my HiMCM team that I felt that I ommitted in the original application.</p>
<p>Would this be worth sending over?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>New information is generally sent via your GC if a student has been wait listed, but I don’t think that’s what you want to hear. You appear to be chomping at the bit to contact the schools, at which time you’ll probably mention your lowered grades due to your grandparents death. Just so you’re aware, traditionally students apply and have no further contact with the schools until a decision is sent…really. But seriously, do it your way.</p>
<p>My twins, who are awaiting college decisions, lost two grandparents and their father last year. No mention of their grandparents was ever made in their applications, but they did write about their father in essays and in financial aid matters they’ve mentioned what happened to their father and a “special circumstance”… I think the loss of the parent of a teen is somewhat unique and significant to their situation. Many, many, many, many kids lose grandparents – and although tough, not “mentionable” to a school… imo.</p>
<p>Wow, Coquimom what a tough thing for your daughters (and also for you, I imagine)</p>
<p>My sympathies.</p>
<p>Thanks, Jamiecakes… yes, it’s been a very tough year. 
(their grandparents were both of my own parents and their dad was my husband and best friend of 35 yrs)</p>
<p>And now the twins off to college. That is not just when it rains, it pours… that’s hurricane force change. </p>
<p>I wish your whole family a better, happier year next year. I really do.</p>
<p>Allanyue- I agree with the responses. While I am sorry for your loss, I tend to agree that most admissions officers would probably see this as an excuse, no matter how it is conveyed. That being said, there may always be one person in an ADCOM that would give you some slack, but I bet that would be pretty unlikely.</p>
<p>I agree with the other posters. It’s obviously not what you wanted to hear, but it’s the truth. I’m sorry for your loss, but writing about it will not help you. It will only make matters worse.</p>