<p>My daughter was not feeling well first semester and was just diagnosed with a thyroid problem. Her grades suffered because she was always tired. She didn't do terrible (lowest grade was a B+) but not her usual As. She wants to explain this to the schools she did not apply to yet and was wondering if she should put it on the app or send a letter to her admissions counselor at each school. Should she also send letters to the schools she already applied to? Does this make a difference to the schools?</p>
<p>I’ve been helping S find his way through the Common App and the Supplements and I recall seeing on many supplements a place to upload a document that may explain any situations that could have affected your transcript. It’s hard to imagine a B+ being seen as much of a negative though. I hope she is feeling better.</p>
<p>Let it go. It’s one semester and you’re talking about a B+</p>
<p>My son had surgery both junior and senior years which definitely affected his grades (particularly the disappointment of the second injury which affected recruiting). His guidance counselor intends to write something about it. I would offer an explanation.</p>
<p>I received a D+ my first semester because of a large emotional upheaval in my first week of school that caused a lot of problems. My counselor told me to write a letter explaining the situation, and I did. She plans to attach it to all of my midcycle grade reports, as well as my transcripts, as this D+ is a HUGE deviation from my transcript grades, none of which is below a B.</p>
<p>But a B+ is not really a big deal. Don’t worry.</p>
<p>I think if you write a story about why you got one B+ you’re going to look a little grade-obsessed. </p>
<p>And, was this one B+ a quarter grade?</p>
<p>Three B+s - she is applying for merit scholarships and this is a deviation. She does not want to look like a slacker.</p>
<p>If her guidance counselor is willing, she/he could include a sentence in her recommendation that says something like, </p>
<p>“NewJerseyDaughter is an excellent and committed student. She sets high expectations for herself and works hard to achieve them. Even when faced with health problems that significantly affected her energy levels during 1st semester, she managed a full and challenging schedule successfully, achieving a X.XX GPA - a score any student can be proud of even without the health issues.”</p>
<p>^^It also depends on the classes; were they AP classes? Are A’s easy to come by at your daughter’s school? At some schools, and A is a very rare thing indeed and a B+ is a highly regarded grade.</p>