<p>Upward trend only if accompanied by stellar SAT, AP, and other test scores that suggest high intellect (or great testing ability-let’s not have the SAT debate/discussion here) along with a good reason for the bad grades in the earlier years. I think colleges like those high test scores, though they keep saying that grades are more important. All you can do is apply and make them believe you would be an asset to their university. Good luck.</p>