HS Junior Here. I have numerous ECs that are recognized at a very high level (Think ISEF, RSI, Nationally Ranked Debater, etc.) I am very confident that my passions will show through my ECs, especially at the level that I have done them at.
Here’s the thing. Ever since 8th grade (First year of COVID), I developed a rare mental condition that is essentially ADHD, Depression, Anxiety, and Insomnia all rolled into one. It’s caused me significant trouble at school and at home over the last few years, and has led to a significant drop in GPA over the last couple of years. (9th grade - 3.9, 10th grade - 3.68, 11th grade - 3.7ish). Course rigor is full IBDP, with 26 AP/IB courses done by graduation. I know that it may seem a bit tone-deaf, as I know that a 3.6 GPA is a great accomplishment, especially with this kind of course rigor, but I am FGLI, and don’t really have that many people to guide me through this confusing process. I am currently taking psychiatric medications to compensate, and it seems to be working, as I recently scored a 1530 (800M, 730W), which I am very proud of! I just wanted to know if this reason for my decline in grades would at least get my foot in the door for competitive, T30 colleges.
It won’t make up for your academics - notably your GPA - but many kids with a 3.9/4.0 and 1500 SAT can and do get shot down by a top 30.
Not sure what a top 30 is. I’m not sure US News knows but they got you hoodwinked.
So - do you have cost issues or geography issues? Is there a major you’re wanting? Do you do better in a city or rural environment? Weather…these are the types of things that matter.
You should be proud of all you’ve done - not just your test score - and heading your issues head on. You, not your school, will make you successfull.
I would not disclose the “why” of your grades - that could turn schools away from you as you’re risk averse.
Given your past issues - a rank is meaningless. You need to find the right school for you. School is stressful enough - you don’t need to add to your pas issues…so you don’t need to compete with anyone. Just be the best you at the place that is riight for you.
To answer you though - why you got the GPA you got won’t matter - but perhaps that you have so much rigor, that will help you a bit. Perhaps…
My rank is the top 2 percent of a class of ~900 people. It’s mainly due to course rigor. Why wouldn’t I disclose the reason for the grade decline if there is evidence of my recovery? (eg. taking medication and getting a good SAT score)
There is a range of opinions (of course!) but in general the view on CC is that highly rejective schools (which is what you are currently focused on) have to cut so many students (80%-90%+ of the applications an AO at one of these schools reads have to be rejected) that you don’t want to give a whisper of a reason.
And as cold or unfair as this may sound, your ADHD/anxiety/etc combo is not a patch on the serious disability stories that AOs will hear. There are many, many, many students who discover/develop an LD / anxiety / etc issue in HS: even if the exact nature of yours is ‘rare’ the category is big.
tl;dr- The trade off in pointing out that you may require extra support to get through college to ‘explain’ a 0.2 drop in GPA from Grade 9 to 11 (when many students GPAs drop anyway as the work gets harder) is generally not seen as worth it.
Top 30 schools view students holistically so everything about your application will be reviewed and considered. None of us can say how your grades will be perceived. Certainly an A- average (which is essentially what you are talking about) is a strong result - especially within the context of an IB program. That being said, lots of students with sky high gpa’s and impressive ECs are rejected from these schools every year as there are too many strong applicants and too few seats. In terms of your mental health challenges, I’d concur that it is probably not worth bringing it up - it is more likely to raise a red flag than it is to help you.
One thing that bothers me is you didn’t share a complete picture. You acted as the sky is falling but then put your 3.6 in context as top 2%. Are you in a private school ? If so seek a guidance counselor opinion ?
Top 2% is different and u have little to prove academically most likely.
That said again ECs don’t cover grades.
Given your issues, I’d be most concerned with fit. No one will care if you went to U Miami instead of UF or UNC etc.
Not sure your list - but top 30 isn’t what you think it is in outcomes.
A happy four years in the right environment of what will be a stressful situation is.
I’m a little confused. You had some issues that caused you to have less than perfect grades…but at the same time you were able to gain recognition for your ECs?
That doesn’t make sense.
You probably should take a little break from those very labor intensive ECs, and concentrate on your grades instead. My opinion.
But first and foremost…make sure your issues are well managed and that you attend a college where you can receive the necessary medical support locally if needed. That’s way more important than college anyway.
I developed a rare mental condition that is essentially ADHD, Depression, Anxiety, and Insomnia all rolled into one.
This is not rare! And how much of a factor was COVID? (Colleges understand the effects of COVID on academic performance and mood.)
Did you have accommodations at your high school?
I see nothing wrong with a short supplementary essay on the effects of COVID on your mental health, and that you have recovered (have you?). Or the guidance counselor could write a note.
Your scores are good, your grades show you are able to succeed academically. If grades meet a benchmark, EC’s do indeed make a big difference and are often more important than things like rank. Being first generation may help at certain schools.
In the meantime, just like everyone else, make a list with reaches, matches and safeties. Check out Colleges that Change Lives (website) and get to know a broad range of schools. Make sure they are affordable: financial aid is the best argument for some of the more selective schools!
One of my sons has many of the same issues as you. I think if you can maintain your gpa this year, that will go a long way to helping your application. I don’t think the SAT score shows recovery though – it’s a snapshot in time, that shows you’re smart and ready for college. The marathon that is grades will show recovery, or that your adhd/anxiety etc will be manageable in college.
One thing you might consider is focusing on liberal arts colleges. I see how it is hard to fall through the cracks in one, while unfortunately it is very easy to do so at a larger school.
OP says FGLI. My advise is to try Questbridge, if that is a possibility.
If anything, some schools are actively moving away from students that require special attention related to mental health.
Just to give you an example, both UNC and NCSU had multiple students commit suicides over the last year. As tragic as these were, do you think admins are excited to bring on more kids that could be a liability? Is it fair, no.
I think @Agent_Wolf is a pretty good candidate. If you can get past the prestige seeking mindset, you will have plenty of great options with those stats. My advise is to focus on that versus taking on more stress to get into one of these highly competitive/rejective schools.
Consider that you want to attend a college where you can excel, that you can afford. That mught not be a hyperselective school. You are unlikely to get into a T30, but if your essay is about how your mental health issues affected your GPA, i think that will only decrease your chances.
-Great ECs never offset a lower-than-needed GPA. There will be hundreds or even thousands of students applying to the same colleges who have 4.0 GPA and the same or even more impressive ECs.
-Disability or not, you never need to explain a 0.2 drop in GPA.
-Explaining your disability will not help and can hurt. Think of it this way: You want to convey information that will make the admissions officers want you on their campus. Will your mental health struggles entice them?
-Your biggest ace in the hole is FGLI. You will get bonus points for that. Significantly more bonus points than you would get by any possible explanation of a 0.2 drop in GPA. FGLI with a lot of rigor, top 2% in class, nice ECs, and a pretty good GPA: That’s your package.
First off… You don’t explain anything. Your counselor will in their write up. One reason you should be meeting with your counselor in Junior year so they get to know you. Talk to them about it. Just keep doing what your doing. You are compared to others mostly at your school /district. Hopefully your counselor can give you some guidance on which schools make sense for your profile. Also you can’t fix the past. Seems like things are going well now. Your senior grades will count. Getting high marks now and then shows any school your getting ready for college.
I would steer away from the mental health explanations and simply frame your GPA in the context of ranking and leave it at that. At the public colleges here in Texas as an example, ranking is more important than raw GPA number (for better or worse). That doesn’t apply everywhere of course, but your ranking + rigor + score + ECs is a great package regardless of the “lower” GPA.
Agree with others that your mental health is far more important than anything else. You should have some great options and I would suggest you focus more on your mental health and the right fit (major, size, culture, location, etc) rather than “rankings.”
You’re a great student and have achieved a lot. Your IBDP is considered rigorous and colleges will probably pay attention to your predicted IB scores.
Please don’t focus on the SAT score. It’s nice, but test scores are not indicative of much these days and have been deemphasized a lot since the pandemic. They do not make up for your grades.
You need to find the right school for you, where you can succeed and be HAPPY. That may not be HYP or anything close to it. Too many kids think the college they attend is indicative of their value as a person. Let go of that thinking. You don’t want to spend the rest of high school stressed out about getting into a top school when what you really need to focus on is personal happiness and taking care of yourself.
I see no reason to draw attention to mental health issues. Colleges can and do, unfairly or not, view mental health issues as red flags. They want students to remain in college and succeed, and they know that college can be stressful and difficult. They know that mental health issues can return and derail students. Covid affected MANY millions of students over the last few years. As horrible as your situation has been for you, similar stories are not uncommon. Millions of people have long Covid and other illnesses, and they have lost loved ones. The list of tragedies is endless.
I suspect that AOs will be inundated with supplementary essays explaining why a student had a bad year, or two years, or a bad semester due to Covid. I suspect they are not going to be moved by it if you elaborate on it. They have been hearing it for three years now.
If anyone mentions your illness, it should be the GC with a brief explanation that you have been diagnosed and are successfully being treated.
I hear you. Should probably elaborate on this. My parents put me in the mindset that I need to take as many AP/IB courses as I can. I took 4 in Freshman year, 6 in Soph, 7 Right now, and plan to take 8 next year. My rank is calculated through the weighted GPA.
If a A in an AP/IB course is a 6 on the Weighted scale, a B would be a 5
An A in an Honors/PreIB course (Which is what most of my peers took) is a 5
My B’s in a couple AP courses are counted the same as the A’s in honors courses from other kids. Thus, I’m practically on the same footing. What pushes me ahead is the A’s in the AP courses I have gotten, boosting my weighted GPA to a 5.3, which is in the top 2% of my class. Now, my school is a very well-funded IBDP public school, and is extremely competitive, but the course rigor I have taken is saving my rank.
Definitely Agree here. I have scouted a couple colleges that I believe are a great fit for me and my passions, and that I know I would do well in. I’ve never been one to be swept up in the arbitrarial rank of a college, and I’ve genuinely tried to adopt the mindset that I will only apply to colleges that I actually have a deep interest in. Unfortunately, a good amount of those colleges are in the T30, and thus, I’m looking at a sub 20% acceptance rate.
The recognition that I gained in my ECs was out of a genuine passion for them. It wasn’t labor-intesnvie for me as I loved doing them. As for my grades, the combination of a lack of wanting to focus, and family issues led to me getting lower grades. Just because I have these issues dosen’t mean I can’t succeed in other areas, like my ECs.