<p>Seeing how most applications, including common app, specifically ask the counselor to tick off a box asking if this student has had probation, suspension etc and to explain if they answered yes, there’s no way that what exactly happened won’t come out. Whether or not it’ll be on your transcript is irrelevant; the university will know from your counselor forms and the required explanation.<br>
For example, the common app one says:
Has the applicant ever been found responsible for a disciplinary violation at your school from 9th grade (or the international equivalent) forward, whether related to academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct, that resulted in the applicant’s probation, suspension, dismissal or expulsion from your institution? </p>
<p>If you answered yes to either or both questions, please attach a separate sheet of paper or use your written recommendation to give the approximate date of each incident and explain the circumstances.</p>
<p>To be honest OP, your chances at top universities/LACs, especially private ones, are greatly diminished. It’s not impossible, but pretty close to near impossible. Say you go for an Ivy. Thousands of people get rejected every year who have hooks (legacy, URM etc). The chances aren’t looking good for someone who has a serious flaw in their application. Remember, there are people with perfect SAT scores, perfect GPAs, hundreds of hours community service/ECs, musical geniuses, nationally ranked athletes (I don’t mean the same person possessing all these qualities though). It’s not like you can cover up your flaw by getting 2300 on SAT. Maybe the adcom would give you a chance given your growth, but with thousands of other competitors who have just as good stats/ECs/etc, it’d be hard for them to pick someone who has a flawed record. I’d suggest putting your favourite top privates as reaches, and go for public as matches and safeties. Most public universities do look more at your stats, and with decent stats in-state pubics can be very accommodating.</p>
<p>By the way, you’ve never told us where you want to go. Telling us where you want to go and and your stats may give us a better idea of where you may be able to get into and alternatives for you.</p>
<p>I really don’t know where to go. Of couse I would love to attend a school that this world views as a top, prestigious school, such as Ivy League schools, but I don’t think I’ll even have a chance. So, as of right now, I’m just trying to work hard and live my high school life and hopefully learn more about my life and figure out where I would like to attend. Thanks for all your replies and I’ve decided I’m going to live my life and not look back at this mistake so much but continue to grow and make the most of my life instead of worrying so much because of one mistake that I made in the past (can’t really explain and word my true feelings on this…). We all fall and grow up from our mistakes and as long as I did grow from this experience, I gained something more valuable than not making a mistake (because I don’t think I would’ve grown this much, in this particular field, if I hadn’t made this mistake, and I know others can learn and grow without these mistakes, but we are all different and we all have different methods on how we grow and learn [not saying I only learn and grow from my mistakes]). As for now, the only thing I can do is just live my life and continue to grow and learn and hopefully the college that I would like to attend will see this and see me as who I am and not by the mistakes I made (this is my opinion and I hope this will be the right thing to do). Once again, I would like to thank everyone that contributed to my thread; thanks a lot.</p>
<p>I was suspended in high school. I got into Vanderbilt, Grinnell, and Claremont McKenna–along with waitlists at Georgetown, Duke, Colgate, WashU. Not for the same reason, but all hope is not lost I did make up for it though by doing something very good for my school (long story)</p>
<p>well i’ve never been suspended (which is a miracle honestly, seeing as at my school you can get suspended for such stupid things as leaving your shirt untucked or saying a very mild profanity word) but AFAIK at my school suspensions (as well as any other punishments, such as detentions, administrator warnings, or even excessive tardies or dress code violations) are not on the transcript itself, but on a separate “disciplinary record” that is submitted with all of your other school records. I’m not sure if they are sent with the mid-year (application) transcripts, or the guidance counselor recs, or final (end-of-year) transcripts, or at some other time. But the college does see it sometime during your senior year. AFAIK the report itself is generic (for example - “in-school suspension for inappropriate language” or “morning detention for excessive tardies”) but has room for additional comments from the teachers/administrators filing the report (for example - “use of the n-word” or “routinely attempts to skip period 2A”) and this space is almost never left blank. This is true for all public (as well as some private) schools in my area I believe. Your school MIGHT do the same, or something different. You should find out what your school’s policy is for disciplinary records and what is included in them, as well as when/how they are reported to colleges.</p>
<p>As for how it will affect you in college apps, I definitely don’t think all hope is lost It should help you that the suspension was during freshman year and not junior or senior year. You can definitely use opportunities in your application to compensate for the problem. How specific the report is about your suspension might play into how you deal with it. If it specifically states racial slurs (or worse, refers to the n-word as what you used) as the reason for suspension, you might try to show what you’ve learned from it and how you’ve embraced diversity (culture club? minority outreach program? the diversity essay, if your college apps require/allow it?) If the description of your mistake is a little more generic, maybe “inappropriate language” for example, you could step away from the race idea and stick to something about your increased maturity since that time (perhaps in your personal growth essay?). But if it’s REALLY broad (just “suspension”, for example) it might help to clarify that it was a relatively minor offense (no need to be specific here) and not something major like bringing drugs to school, or else colleges may think otherwise!</p>
<p>In any case, please don’t give up hope! Discipline issues (especially such minor ones) are only a tiny part of what adcoms consider in evaluating your app. Just give it your best shot in presenting yourself in a good light. And even if your top choice school rejects you, there will always be another option available for you to consider. In any case, your life is NOT ruined by any definition, and you still have a strong chance of a good future. Good luck! :)</p>
<p>"If the description of your mistake is a little more generic, maybe “inappropriate language” for example, you could step away from the race idea and stick to something about your increased maturity since that time (perhaps in your personal growth essay?). "</p>
<p>Realize that if top colleges are interested in you, they would be likely to call your GC and find out details about your suspension. For instance, before admitting a student at my S’s high school, the H admissions officer called the student’s GC and talked for 40 minutes getting detailed info about the student – particularly about the student’s character. The admissions officer did this for a student who – to my knowledge – had never been suspended. Imagine what an admissions officer would do with a student who had been suspended. Admissions officers at top schools also are experienced enough to know that it’s wise to get specifics about suspensions and similar things by calling GCs, not by just seeing what’s on the app, which may be written deliberately vaguely due to parental or other pressure on the GC.</p>
<p>More reason for you to not try to cover up the reason why you were suspended. Being honest about what happened, and about how it has affected your behavior, probably will be more helpful to your chances than trying to hide why you were suspended.</p>
<p>I concur that you should just be honest about it. Again, whether or not it will be on your transcript, the counselor form that all universities asks about suspensions. Your counselor needs to provide another sheet to explain it or include it in their original recommendation, explaining the circumstances. It’s not just going to be a single “inappropriate language”. Trying to cover it up or be vague about it (whether it’s in your explanation or essay) just make it worse as it shows that you haven’t grown at all and you don’t want to deal with the consequences of your action. If you are honest about it, at least universities can see that you have grown, and that you are honest and courageous.</p>
<p>From the beginning (and before I knew this site) I have always intended to tell the colleges about it before they ask me and I never had the plan to cover it up and hope the colleges won’t ask me about it. I want to be honest about it and I want to make sure they get to know about this incident. Besides the fact that I think it’s just the right thing to do, I think it’s the better choice (I think it’ll show a lot of things about me to the colleges… hopefully).</p>
<p>^ Seriously? I live in TX, and although at my school the n word is thrown around quite a bit (2000 students, 9-10), it is usually in hallways where believe me teachers have a hard time hearing/controlling everything. If one heard a student saying that, I can easily believe that the student could get suspended. At a smaller school, where there aren’t as many kids and problems, it’s even easier to believe.</p>
<p>Yes, and its thrown around quite a bit at my school too. But, the people saying it do not say it maliciously, the people who are ‘receiving’ it do not take offense in the least, no one listening ever takes offense at what is being said, and I have never heard of someone getting suspended because they said it.</p>
I did make up for it though by doing something very good for my school (long story)</p>