Hello all! I’m currently a junior in my high school who has a bit of a problem. I have always been a straight A student through my rigorous class schedule freshman and sophomore year. However, everything changed this year when I decided to take a dual enrollment pre-calculus class. I started the year with a C- and was able to slowly work my way back up to a B+. I thought I learned my lesson, but it’s halfway through a semester and I’m sitting on a C. I hope to get it back up, but I know this will really hurt my GPA and maybe effect my class rank. However, most importantly will this have a very big effect on my college admissions process? Just so you know, I plan to apply to Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Case Western, Purdue, IU, Loyola Chicago, and SLU.
No, I don’t think a single B would be a problem. Most colleges use a holistic approach. It depends on which major you are applying to but my DD got into Purdue with few Bs.
Probably not, but then that makes it more important to get good scores on SAT/ACT math and/or SAT II Math 2 tests.
No, one B won’t shut you out. Getting a C in a class related to your major would be a red flag, but if it isn’t related to your major, your GPA is in range of the college’s averages, and everything else looks good, they won’t reject you solely because of one grade.
IMHO you should be more focused as a junior on identifying why the grades you’re getting aren’t up to your typical standard than worrying about college admission.
Math and science classes are often the canary in the coal mine for students. A smart kid can read the history or civics book once or twice, then use their verbal skills to write essays and their memory to answer multiple-choice. In math and science this doesn’t work so well. As classes get progressively harder in HS and college the grades start to slide for some kids and often it is due to things they can change.
Are you spending sufficent time on the class? Are you studying effectively?
With regards to the latter, do you do things like re-read the chapter before the test? Copy your notes over? Put in some extra time the weekend before a test or in the day or two before it? These are common yet are some of the least effective methods. There is a book you should read called “Make it Stick” that talks about what is known about learning, with plenty of tips for HS and college students.