I was admitted into UC Berkeley. I am currently writing my IB exams and my high school diploma depends on them (My IB grades are my only grades as my high school is an IB school). I might receive a 4 in two subjects. According to Berkeley’s conditions I should not get less than a C and not more than two Cs and I need an unweighted 3.0. I am having trouble understanding how my IB score will translate to GPA. I am sure I will get my diploma and the rest of my exams have went well. Is this grounds for getting rescinded?
Is a 4 considered a C. I am still extremely confused. I was predicted a 40 and might get a 32-33 (worst case scenario). This means that I will still pass and get my IB diploma. My condition of agreement stated that I must report scores less than Cs and a GPA less than 3.0 but I do not think that a 32-33 is either of those. I am extremely worried and I am having sleepless nights. I was extremely sick during two of my main exams and while this isn’t an excuse for a low score I feel it contributed to my failure. As UCB is so stringent with their conditions I do not know what to expect. UCLA clearly mentions that a student should not get less than 5s but this is not the case for UCB. Will a drop this large lead to me being rescinded.
@ghutret234 -Your two IB-exam 4’s will translate roughly to two C’s, so if your overall test average is the equivalent of a B or above, you should be okay. BUT … there is no reason to ask this question only on College Confidential. You would be wise to contact the UCB admission office and explain what you’ve said here … including the part about the illness during the exams.
Students often believe that, by asking such questions elsewhere (like on College Confidential), they won’t alert admission officials to a potential problem if they don’t have to. While this is true in SOME situations (such as with certain disciplinary screw-ups, especially when they occur outside of school), it’s NOT true when it comes to final transcripts. The college folks will see them anyway. You’re not going to sneak under their radar.
So you will have fewer sleepless nights and less stress if you contact UCB right away to find out where you stand. Again, I suspect you’ll be fine but you’ll breathe easier once you know for sure.
Thank you for the swift reply Ms. Rubenstone. I really appreciate it. As I have my IB exams still going on (they end on the 19th) I will contact the admission office as soon as my exams are done. If I do contact them is it necessary to give them my information or can it be anonymous?
@ghutret234 -You are more likely to get a reply if your information isn’t anonymous, and if you don’t provide your name, you won’t be able to explain your downturn in grades in the context of your illness during two key exams. But you can try the anonymous approach if you want … I just don’t recommend it. Remember, the college folks WILL see your test scores so there’s no point in being an ostrich. It’s not as if you’d be calling attention to information that they might otherwise overlook.
@Sally_Rubenstone Freshman year, I took a smart board remote from a teacher and got caught a few days later. The administrator gave me a day of in school suspension and its on my record as Theft level 1 (lowest level). I haven’t had any infractions since, and my senior administrator said she’d write a letter to the schools I’m applying to saying so (looking to apply to HYP and other ivies). Could this ruin any chances I have?
I have a friend whose transfer acceptances to several UCs (University of California schools) were rescinded because she got a C in ONE class after a perfect 4.0 in three of her four semesters at our junior college. Granted, it was Calculus 2, an essential class for her accounting major, but due to her grade in the class they rescinded her acceptance. So just be careful! Overall I don’t think a final exam alone could deal that big a blow, unless your grade is on the bubble and it slips into negative territory.
@Collegeboi1099 - The Ivy League colleges turn away multiple highly qualified applicants for each one they admit. So the word “theft” on your record could possibly work against you, even though it happened years ago and you have stayed out of trouble since. But admission officers are not all of the same mind. Some may regard your infraction far more seriously than others do, especially if you explain your misdeed and what you learned from it. In particular, if you took the smart-board remote as a prank, and you can say why, it will help to put this infraction in perspective. My son–now a sophomore in college–claims that taking smart-board remotes is not as weird as it seemed to me when I first read your post. I thought it sounded awfully odd … kind of like a burglar taking a TV remote but leaving the TV behind. It also sounded potentially unkind … as if you were trying to hurt or at least inconvenience the teacher. But my son insists that these remotes are handy for doing silly things like posting funny memes on the board when the teacher’s back is turned. He also said that one of his math teachers used to read her personal emails in class while the students were working on algebra problems–rather than walking around the classroom to offer help–so the savvy students figured out a way to use the “borrowed” remote to get those emails where EVERYONE could read them. (I bet that cured the teacher’s email-reading habit fast!)
So you should definitely explain the nature of the “theft” that is on your record so that the college folks won’t assume that it was far worse than it really was. And if you can put a humorous spin on it, so much the better.
I was accepted into The University of Florida for this upcoming fall. This past weekend, my entire prom bus was kicked out of prom for disturbing the event in the eyes of the faculty. Several of us, including me, were given a 5 day suspension for my last week of school. The reason for the suspension is “refusal to follow administrative direction.” I emailed the admissions office and tried to be honest about the situation, and this is the first ever disciplinary action on my record. My academics and all else should hold up to standard for the university, but I am worried about this suspension. Is it likely UF will revoke my acceptance?
Hey Sally,
I was accepted to San Francisco State University and I was looking through my application and I noticed I accidentally put an A- for Algebra 2 instead of a B+. It’s a few percentage points, but should I be worried?
@MJMark - Not a big deal at all but shoot a quick email to SFSU explaining the error. If there’s a reason for it (e.g., you confused Algebra 2 with another class that you did get an A- in or if you THOUGHT you were getting an A- but then ended up with a B+), then say so. But that’s not imperative.
Hi Sally,
I was accepted into Michigan State University in November with a 3.5 GPA, 1350 SAT score, all conference athletic and academic awards in wrestling at a top 10 school in the state. As a senior I took Calculus (not officially AP Calc because exam wasn’t required, but very similar), AP Bio, and Honors Physics (not officially AP Physics because we did not cover one chapter that AP covers). This last semester I finished with all As and Bs except for Honors Physics, that class will be a low C or high D. I am super worried I will get my admission revoked because of this. This is the first time I’ve ever finished with such a low grade in a class. Could I please have your input on this? I would appreciate it greatly. Thank you so much.
@BTThompson2481- You were wise to send an explanatory letter right away, and you’ll probably be fine. But it’s hard to answer with more certainty because I’m not clear on the nature of your infraction. Did you refuse to follow the administrative direction because you were falling-down drunk? Did you swear at the principal or push or threaten a teacher? Why was the whole bus barred from prom but you were among the few students suspended? The specific nature of that suspension would shed more light on potential consequences.
@zster90 -
As I’ve said repeatedly on this thread already, colleges do not like D’s. So if you think you might get a D but you are proactive and alert the admission folks to it before they see it themselves, you are more likely to get mercy than if you stick your head in the sand. With your rigorous schedule and your A’s and B’s in other classes, I really think you’ll be okay. But you’d still be wise to show the admission officials that you’re paying attention and that you’re not happy with your physics grade. Be sure to emphasize that you’re still working hard in all your classes.
Well, to clarify, one of the members of our bus was immediately judged to be intoxicated. The rest of us received our wrist bands and some of were waiting around this girl and trying to find out what was going on in which they became impatient and grabbed all of us who were standing there. We requested to be breathalyzed because none of us were drunk, but for some reason the administration refused. Our parents were made to pick us up, and none of us thought anything would happen at school because they would not breathalyze and had no proof behind their claims. We argued against the suspension and I believe some of us are filing grievances, including me. However, my dean told me he did not agree with the suspension and did not write anything related to alcohol on my suspension. It only says that we refused to follow direction, and he told me to give UF his contact info if they ever had questions about the suspension and he would back me up. So, I gave UF all of his info, and that’s that unless my grievance in successful, in which case the suspension will be removed from my record. Can you now better access whether this will be a problem for UF?
@BThompson2481 -You should be fine, even if the suspension stays on your record. Having the Dean in your corner seems very promising, and you were smart to give UF his info right away. Good luck!
I committed to UCLA next fall and included in my conditions of admission it stated that if I receive more than one C I and/or below a 3.0 GPA I have to report it and they might reconsider my admission. My grades are not final now but I believe I will be getting 2 Cs (AP English, Honors Philosophy), 2 As (Anthropology and Wheel Throwing), and one Pass (Leadership course) which still leaves me at a 3.0. This fall I lived in Spain and attended high school there as a foreign exchange student and because of the timing differences in the school systems I returned to my home high school one month late into the second semester of senior year. My grades suffered because I was trying to complete one month of make up work and tests while also doing my regular school work. I am extremely worried about my admissions offer being rescinded. Does it sound likely that I will be unaccepted because of my 2 Cs considering the circumstances?
@emmarose98 -Your situation is a classic example of why colleges allow students to explain a downturn in grades before an acceptance is rescinded. You need to tell UCLA what you have said here, emphasizing that your semester in Spain meant taking a risk but that you valued the incredible learning opportunity that this experience provided, even though it meant a struggle to catch up on your schoolwork when you returned home a month into the spring semester. I would be VERY surprised if UCLA were to revoke your acceptance under these circumstances. Be sure to report this promptly. Don’t wait to hear from UCLA.
Let me know how it works out, and good luck.
Hi Sally,
I’m currently set on transferring to SDSU for Aerospace Engineering. I’ve gotten an A in my Diff Eq. class, a B in my Physics 2 class, but their is a possibility that i could get a d or even an f in my engineering class. I tried my absolute hardest in this class out of the 3 ironically, but literally 70~80% class will fail, due to an extremely difficult teacher. This violates their transfer requirements, but oddly my gpa goes up… I don’t want SDSU to think I’m incapable of doing engineering or rescind my admission. Is there anything you’d reccomend I should do ? I’ve sent my transcripts from the previous semesters in so far. I just need to send in my Spring transcripts.
Thanks!!
@Aeronautics19 -Definitely contact SDSU right away and explain what you’ve said here. If you can provide actual evidence that most of the class will fail engineering, then do so. By “evidence” I mean a note from a dean, a department head, your advisor or even the teacher him/herself saying that most students do poorly in this class and confirming that you weren’t slacking. Also ask SDSU what you should be doing … e.g., a summer class … to show that this class was an anomaly. Good luck!