the impact of a C+?

So, pretty much I was in AP Biology this year. I used to think I wanted to be a Biology major in college (that has definitely changed since then).

This was my teacher’s first year teaching this class (it was online previously), and the results were horrific. Basically, she didn’t teach. We had worksheets and reading assignments and tests – if there were lectures, they were paraphrased sections of the book that came with the book’s CD. I got a B the first semester, which was okay. The second semester, she realized that we had only covered one third of the book, and there were only 3 full months before the AP test. After that, we doubled the speed of our coverage of chapters. (“Okay, so… this week, skim chapters 40-45, and do the worksheets. Test Tuesday. We don’t have time for you to read the whole thing.”) This was bad. Everyone in my class was a top 10% ranking student. At the end of the year, we had a final (over one month after the last time we spoke/studied for the AP test) that was one of four AP tests scanned out of the back of a book. It was rough. I think 2 or 3 out of 30 got A’s. Several got Bs, Cs, Ds.

I don’t know how to explain this in my apps, but my counselor is going to try to explain the situation for me. How bad is this going to look? I’ve never gotten below an A in science besides this class and I’m a little worried.

( A+/A in Biology 9th grade, A-/A- in Honors Chemistry 10th grade, A+ in Honors Psychology 11th grade summer)

<p>Getting your guidance counselor to explain the situation would definitely be a good idea. However, a C+ could be disasterous if you plan on applying to competitive schools. As a straight A+ student in high school, I was devastated when I got a single C+ senior year which showed up on my midyear report. After getting rejected from my early decision school, my guidance counselor called them and the admissions rep explicitely stated that I was not admitted because of the C+. However, perhaps it was because I was on track to be a borderline admit, and it pushed me over, I dunno..</p>

<p>Edit: by the way, I applied early to UPenn, which tends to be somewhat on the lenient side with their early applicants.</p>

<p>That really sucks :\ I don't know, people have told me that adcom compare your grades to the rest of your class / the rest of your school, so I was thinking that its slightly more acceptable if thats true.
What was the class you got a C+ in? Was it something that you claimed to be amazing at? I like Biology, but I intend to major in Polit. Sci or Economics. I don't know if it matters, but I still got a 3 on the AP Biology test, which isn't anything special, but its passing.</p>

<p>Talk to your teacher. Try to explain the situation. You'd be surprised sometimes how understanding your teachers can be. My friend had a C+ for one of her classes and she explained to her teacher and actually ended up being able to persuade her teacher to up her grade. I guess it depends how far away your C+ is from a B and how your teacher feels about you.</p>

<p>Adcoms certainly do consider class rank as a way of putting your high school grades into perspective. However, this probably applies more to students who have several B's attending a competitive high school. C's are pushing it, though if you have only one they might let it slide. My C+ was in government (not pertaining to my major either). Which schools are you looking to apply to?</p>

<p>I think I'm going to apply to Dartmouth Early Decision, because I love the study abroad opportunities. Besides Dartmouth, I'm looking at Tufts and Claremont McKenna, Scripps, B.U. with Whitman as my safety.</p>

<p>I know I can partially compensate for my one low grade with amazing essays/recs (and they will definitely be amazing), but I know my transcript is the first and foremost most important thing. Even with the C+, my GPA is a 4.06 weighted and I am in the top 5% of my class. There's probably no way in hell that my teacher would change my grade to a B, she literally hates me and has verbally expressed her distaste with me and my friend Laura to the entire class.</p>