Transfer Applicant

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1

Hi, so since I don’t want to give away who I am, I just wanted to ask, as a transfer applicant to MIT, how much of the app should I use to explain bad high school grades? I missed something like half of junior year, some parts of senior year; my HS gpa is very terrible.

Now that I’m in college (currently a sophomore), I’m taking graduate courses in math/CS etc., and have had some olympiad awards back in high school. It doesn’t make sense intuitively that HS grades should be seen carefully for someone doing well in college, but I feel like this is a huge, huge mark on me, and I’m not sure what the transfer admissions committee will think of this.

Can someone please advise?

2

If you feel you can assemble a strong application based on what you did between high school and now, then yes, do apply.

3

Thanks for your response; I will apply anyways, but I’m just wondering how much of it I need to use to explain bad things that happened in high school; life was harsh back then due to varying circumstances.

4

I believe it’s good to convey why it happened. For example, enough to show that you were not slacking off. But don’t dwell on it or have it look like you’re making excuses. Show how you’ve grown from it and what you’ve done with your life since then.