Sophomore year I ended up with 3 C’s by taking some of the hardest classes my school offered (Honors Precalc + AP Chem) and a few B’s, which really affected my GPA (3.8-> 3.5 UW). I want to know whether I still have a chance at good colleges and how to improve junior year.
For one, I have problems completing my homework, even though I start at a reasonable time. (8-9 pm) Also, I feel like I need more sleep compared to my peers, so I get more- about 5-6 hours per night plus a nap after school, which really affects my studying schedule. Either I need to learn how to function with less sleep, like most people at my school, or I need to improve my study skills. One thing that affected my performance really badly is that whenever I feel depressed, I tend to procrastinate and do really poorly on assignments and tests.
I know most people here will say that academics is far important than social life, but being grounded for months because of my grades makes me even more depressed and unable to focus on school, and the fact that I’m not really close to anyone and everyone is really high-achieving at my school means that some people don’t think of me that highly because of my grades. The fact that with a 3.6 wgpa, I’m probably one of the lowest-performing students in my school doesn’t help with my self-esteem either. Also, my parents resent me for not meeting their expectations despite their efforts, which led to a lot of conflict.
How do I survive junior year with 4 APs (APUSH, Bio, Lang, Calc) and a sport?
Perhaps you could shift the volunteering to the weekends instead. I would start homework as soon after school as you can. Then, if you finish earlier in the evening, you can go to bed at a more normal time, possibly eliminating the need for the naps.
EC’s are important, but not getting C’s is probably more so.
Edit: Not that your current grades are the end of the world – a 3.5 UW is still good. You’ll just have more options if you can maintain or improve that GPA instead of having it go down.
My first advice is to not take the toughest classes when you are not prepared for them. I see this often on CC…you aretaking a college class as a sophomore (AP Chem) and didn’t do well. Not surprising, really. Did you take honors chem? Most people take it before AP chem. Most people take AP chem as a junior or senior. Also Precalc is usually a junior class if you are on the honors track. Did you take Alg 1, Alg 2 and Geometry before?
My son really turned around junior year by only taking honors and AP classes in his favorite subjects. He took the math and science classes offered for non-math and science kids, got A’s, and rebooted his confidence (not to mention his gpa). No shame in embracing your strengths and minimizing your weaknesses.
Get a planner/notebook where you can write all of the things you need to do that day and prioritize them (hint: finish hw in the hardest classes first!!). For me at least, it’s satisfying to check off the boxes as I finish assignments so I can see my progress. Put your phone and any other electronics AWAY. Also change up where you go to study. Your room or current place may be too easy to get distracted in now, so try a cafe/library/other quiet working place when you can.
The hardest part for me was getting started. If I had a ton of homework piled up, I’d over stress and end up not starting till 8-9 at night, and I’d be staying up till 12-1 depending on my energy left. Use the 30 minute rule and work straight for that amt of time; then take a 5 min break or keep working depending on how you’re feeling.
Also projects! are a huge pain if you’re a procrastinator. I know it’s hard but try to at least brainstorm as soon as you get the project. And keep working on it whenever you get the chance.
@bopper Quite a good number of people at my school take honors precalc as a sophomore.
I took chemistry over the summer of my sophomore year (school doesn’t offer honors) and took algebra 1, geometry, and algebra 2 before, as well as bio freshman year.
But yeah, I regret taking AP Chemistry now
