@Sally_Rubenstone
my grades were
Marching band - A
AP Physics - B
AP Physics (extended) - C
AP Literature - C
AP Computer science - C
Honors Digital imaging - A
Honors Pre-Calc - C
@nolew96 - Well, it would be nice if your only A wasn’t in Marching Band but, given the rigor of your course load, I really don’t think that Iowa State will pull the plug on you as long as none of those C’s become D’s or F’s. However, if you could pull at least one of the C’s up to a B, it should put you on very solid footing.
@Sally_Rubenstone - thank you so much for your answers. Also, do you think it is wise to contact admissions at this time notifying them of any circumstances? Or will trying to pull my grades up suffice? as of now i and my family are going through some things and I would prefer not bringing this to their attention as my mother is going through enough at the moment. However if contacting admissions is the way to go, what must be done must be done.
@nolew96-If you are willing to explain to the admission officials what your family is going through, then I would suggest that you contact the admission office now and do so. It will put your grades in perspective. You can also point out that you are taking a very rigorous load (which they will have already noted, of course) and that you are making every effort to do better. Even if you aren’t comfortable providing details about your family situation, you can at least say that it is a very stressful time at home. But do keep in mind that admission officials are like doctors … that is, there is no personal situation that will shock them; they’ve heard it all. So if you feel at least somewhat comfortable disclosing your family problems to an admission official, that would be the route I’d advise.
This is going to sound extremely neurotic but I’ve had straight As and A-s throughout high school. I have been accepted to Wellesley and received a full scholarship to Holy Cross. My school has quarter grades. I am most likely going to get a B- at best in my physics class for the third quarter, but I had an A- and an A the past two quarters. If I can bring my final grade up to a B+ or A-, I should be ok, right? I’m sorry if this sounds really worrisome but I’m just worried because those schools are so good and my acceptance is contingent on my completion of my senior year “at the same high level of achievement” (Wellesley’s words).
@sara76-Sweat not, Sara. Even if you were to end up with a B- as your final grade in that one class (which seems unlikely since the B- is just one quarter’s grade), the admission folks will not say boo about it.
Hi,
I was recently accepted into Northwestern, UChicago. This semester I may end up with 2 C’s after applying with a 3.95. I will most likely get the C’s in AP Physics and AP Stats. Something to note is that I’m taking 5 CC classes outside of school (I’m only taking 4 classes at school, so I guess 2 of the CC classes are enrichment, and 3 are replacing subjects I didn’t take at high school for different reasons. The CC classes run two quarters in one high school semester, so 2 classes for the first half of my semester, 3 classes second half). Overall, I would probably end up with around 3.4 GPA, 2 C’s in 9 classes.
Would this get me rescinded from Chicago and Northwestern? Also, for other privates I applied to like Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, etc, would that hypothetical situation get me rescinded? I am still working hard to bring those up to B’s, but I would still really appreciate your input.
I’ve gotten accepted to every school I could ever hope to (UNC Emory Wash U Vandy Northwestern) and I’m thrilled but I’m also coming out of the worst depressive episode I’ve ever experienced to the extent I wasn’t sure if I would make it. If I explain to my admissions counselor what went on this winter and work hard to get rid of the D I have currently will and get the Cs to Bs will I still get into wherever I end up choosing?
@lose3teeth-No, the C’s will not get you rescinded given the weight of the rest of your load.
@geekchic- Congrats on your good news and sorry to hear about your difficulties. If you have not disclosed your depression to admission officials already, I recommend holding off unless it’s absolutely necessary (i.e., if a college has threatened to rescind an acceptance). Instead, explain your situation to your HIGH SCHOOL counselor. Ask him or her to send a note to the college you’ve chosen with your final transcript. If you don’t have any D’s, the note should simply say that you faced some personal problems during the semester which affected your grades but these are now in check … but the note need not provide additional details. But if you DO have a D, the counselor might want to give more information. However, it’s important that the college folks are also told that you are ready to face the challenges of college. While it would be illegal for them to pull the plug on you due to a disability (and mental health problems would count as that), they might suggest that you take a year off to get additional help before enrolling. (This can actually be very wise advice for many students, so if it’s something you were contemplating anyway, you should consider it.) Good luck, whatever you decide.
Hi i am an international student from India… I have applied, been accepted, received scholarship from competitive colleges like UIUC, Georgia Tech, Purdue, Penn state etc.
I have also applied to UC Berkeley, Carnegie Mellon etc.
I do not have any idea about the American Grading system, but I have not done well for my 12th finals. But here are my marks.
11th
English: 93/100
French: 93/100
Math A: 68/75
Math B: 68/75
Physics: 57/60
Chemistry: 54/60
Overall Percentage: 92% (approx)
According to our educational system Overall Grade: A
12th- Estimated:
English: 94/100
French: 94/100
Math A: 72/75
Math B: 56/75 - Decreased here
Physics: 52-53/60
Chemistry: 32-35/60 - And here
Estimated Overall Percentage: 84%-86%
According to our educational system expected Overall Grade( But i am really confident): A
Will such marks hurt my admission status and scholarship?
I have been accepted and confirmed admission to Miami University of Ohio. Last semester I made a C- in precalc and was accepted with full knowledge of that grade. This semester I’m taking Trig which is absolutely destroying me despite studying and seeing my teacher for extra help, I have a C- for the first six weeks and a D- for the second which ends in 3 weeks, and then I have one more 6 weeks after that. I think I can pull my grade back up but I’m worrying that I can’t and if I can’t would they rescind? I’m calling the Office of Admissions tomorrow to inquire. All of my other grades are As or very high Bs and have been maintained since first semester.
@legendarystudent- I can’t say for sure but your current grades don’t look different enough from last year’s to me to cause you any problems with the colleges.
@spiltink–the admission officials will like the fact that you are being proactive and worrying about your trig grade. You should be fine but you’re smart to call and stay on top of it.
@Sally_Rubenstone- Thank you. I hope so too. It is just i currently have my summer vacation and I am really worried, and it’s killing my vacation. I really hope nothing happens.
As you say you are not sure, in your view, how much chance do I have of being asked by the colleges?
@legendarystudent- I’m not going to specify any odds here, but I think that you have little to no chance of having your acceptances rescinded based on what you’ve told me.
@Sally_Rubenstone – I have been admitted to UC Berkeley class of 2019. After reading the condition of admission on the Berkeley admit page, I realized that I forgot to report a class change in my second semester: I had planned to take Shakespeare during the second semester of my senior year, but I changed my mind before classes began on second semester and took switch it to Yearbook. On the UC application I had filled in that I plan to take Shakespeare during the second semester, and I had completely forgot to contact them about the change until now. I emailed Berkeley today to notify the change. But is my admission likely to be rescinded?
I am really worried that my stupid carelessness has jeopardized my future…
@iamastudent1227-No, your acceptance is NOT likely to be rescinded. Yearbook will probably be viewed as a step down from Shakespeare (unless your school has a pretty impressive yearbook staff 
) but at this point it doesn’t sound like it’s enough to torpedo you admission.
@Sally_Rubenstone
Thank you for your reply. Although I feel more relieved now, I am still kind of worried because UC seem to have a reputation of rescinding acceptances. I understand that university rarely rescind acceptance, but do you know of any cases that involve acceptance being rescinded because of schedule change/dropped classes or similar circumstance like mine?
Thank you for taking your time!
@iamastudent1227–While I can’t say with total certainty that your course change will cause no problems, do keep in mind that the vast majority of acceptances that the UC schools rescind are due to grades. The UC system has a very strict policy in that regard. While many colleges will let a senior D or even an F slide by, especially if the student is taking a tough course load and clearly not slacking, the UC colleges take a hard line on low grades. So if you see stats that attest to the numbers of admitted UC students who get bounced, rest assured that it’s usually for grades and not for course changes.
Hi, I am a Canadian citizen living in the US on visa (I’ve been here for 7 years now). I was accepted to my dream school of WashU recently, but I’ve been really worried about my final semester grades. I’ve been a straight A student the first 3 years of high school . However, my last 6 weeks grades (one semester is split into 3 six weeks) had 3 Bs out of 8 classes (the other 5 were As. This six weeks, I have even more Bs. Around 5 classes may be Bs at the end of the six weeks. What im wondering is do colleges look at senior year second semester grades or do they look at senior year final grades? If I end up with 4 or so Bs at the end of my second semester (not final grade of both semesters together), how likely will I be rescinded? My grades from senior year first semester weren’t all that bad. Only 1 B and that was in the class where literally everyone gets a B, if not worse.