What will Harvard think about me redoing my junior year? (international student)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

Basically, I started my junior year in 2014 and prepared for A Levels for a year. Then, there was a problem in my family and I really felt like I had chosen the wrong A Level subjects.

Therefore, I decided to repeat my junior year and enroll in the IB programme. My grades had slipped in my 2014/2015 junior year and I thought that I could get much better grades if I did my junior year again.

However, now I’m stressing about having redone a grade. All of the other kids in my class are really smart and have perfect grades and great extracurriculars - they’re all a year younger than me and have never repeated a whole year of school. I mean, my grades are really excellent now, but how many people at Harvard redid their junior year due to having poor grades for a year…

Harvard is the USA’s hardest college to get into - plus I’m an international student and I have so much competition in my grade. Will having redone my junior year look pretty bad in comparison to all the other smart kids?

2

I think it’s great you redid the year, and I would think colleges would too. Not so much to get better grades but to really learn the material, because the real purpose of grades is to measure learning. The system makes us forget that!

Is there a reason you didn’t do well the first time around that needs explaining?

Don’t stress about this. And especially don’t get fixed on any one school, even if your chances are great there. There are many great schools out there and I am hoping you set yourself up with several good options.