<p>If you saw my other threads, I have talked about how my 1st semester junior grades are awful. VERY bad for my other grades. Before then, all my grades had been above 97's but they dropped to C's junior year.</p>
<p>The reason is I found out I was HIV positive at the begining of the semester so obviously it wrecked me and threw me for a loop for most of the semester. I couldn't focus and felt like crap! </p>
<p>I wanted to place this in the "extra-comments" section on the app but my parents read the app and they don't know i'm being anonymously treated for HIV and I don't want them to know yet. </p>
<p>Should I send a hand written (or typed) letter to the admission office of colleges I applied to explaining what happened and why they were so bad? Also maybe explain in it how I struggled, got over it and now I want to become a researcher to find treatments and cures for it? </p>
<p>What do you all think.
1)Should I send a letter like that?
2)would it help me?
3)will I just be annoying the office with it?
4) will they even read the letter or just toss it immediately?</p>
<p>Ask your guidance counselor to address it, rather than put it in your application. As long as you waive your right to see the guidance counselor’s letter, your parents will never see it.</p>
<p>A few side notes. 1. I’m sorry that you have HIV. 2. I’d bust out into a lecture, but that’d be insensitive. 3. You should tell your parents, unless you think they would kick you out, beat you, or some other major issue, because most likely they will be more hurt if you keep hiding it, than you actually having it.</p>
<p>That being said, 1) and 2) Yes, you should communicate that there is a reason for your bad grades, that’s an extremely legitimate excuse, as far as I’m concerned.</p>
<p>3) If you think it is important (And I would say it is), then it isn’t annoying them.</p>
<p>4) They will read anything the receive, they wouldn’t just toss it in the trash…</p>
<p>If your parents read your app, I would call or email and ask what to do with an extenuating circumstance that you don’t want your parents to know about. They are there to answer questions.</p>
<p>Well that’s some pretty bad news. Good news is you know you have it and you’ve started treatment early.</p>
<p>Here’s what I would do:
- Make sure your counselor references your situation in your report.
- If you’re able to submit the application without your parents reviewing it, add it in the additional comments section. You are the only one who can give a clear insight on your situation.
- Personally, I would ask your counselor and any other responsible adult on how to break it to your parents. It must be a huge burden to carry that inside (no pun intended), but you probably will need your parents support getting through this and taking the right course of action.</p>
<p>This is your life after all.</p>
<p>Good luck to you!</p>