will checking YES when the common app asks if youve been suspended hurt my chances?

<p>self explanatory. i was suspended after my prom last year for drinking. around 30 others were suspended as well although like 25 of them were seniors then (08 grads). will that hurt me? other than that every thing has been good for me</p>

<p>Don't they give you a space below to explain if you do? I don't think drinking would hurt you as much as cheating academically.</p>

<p>wow drinking at school would get me expelled haha you're lucky you only got suspended. Obviously checking "yes" that you got suspended won't help you. How much it will hurt you depends on the context of the situation. Although i don't think it would just do nothing to your app.</p>

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will that hurt me? other than that every thing has been good for me

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<p>I don't think colleges look extra-favorably upon applicants who have been in trouble with their school. However, they do give you a chance to explain what happened, and if you own up to what you did, they'll give you credit for that.</p>

<p>If it's just drinking they probably won't mind THAT much, though it certainly won't help you.</p>

<p>The alternative is to lie about it. Since it's probably in "your permanent record," you really have to tell them the truth.</p>

<p>Behold the story of Winthrop Rutherford, lore in my community and the story we keep pinned up in hopes our kids won't drink:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/magazine/30neurosis-t.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=saint%20paul's%20bronxville%20princeton%20college&st=cse%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/30/magazine/30neurosis-t.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=saint%20paul's%20bronxville%20princeton%20college&st=cse&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Yes it will hurt you with private schools, but I think you have to tell the truth. Otherwise if they found out it could hurt more. How do they know? I think your counselor might note that in her letter. One kid in d's school had a park/hit/run kind of accident so she only got into a UC which does not require any letter of recommendation.</p>

<p>DONT LIE! they cant ask for your behavioral record per se (well at least for my school, we do NOT send out behavioral records. they will not be getting any sort of paper with your suspension on it), but obviously they can ask you to own up to your behavioral mistakes. i found that out the hard way. when you have to submit the counselor recommendation, it asks them (and your teachers, actually) the same question about your behavioral record. i guess if they dont know they will check no, but your counselor will probably look it up. and then there will be an obvious difference between your answer and your teacher/counselors. otherwise (as far as i know), they wont find out.</p>

<p>If you are caught lying, all hell will break loose.
Tell the truth, the whole truth, but in the gentlest possible way.</p>

<p>yeah i mean i;m not gonna lie. but with my school the first suspension does not count for my school record. so if i did check yes, technically they wouldn't know- i talked to the head of the upper school about it and he said that most kids who got suspended just one time don't even ask what theyre supposed to do-- they just check no. but i dont feel comfortable lying-- i mean i WAS suspended. i dont know i just hope colleges dont reject me cuz of it</p>

<p>i mean if i did check no</p>

<p>Ask your GC how to phrase it. After you got suspended, you should have been schmoozing him/her and finding out ways to get the incident covered up. Because thats how it goes - many kids with poor behavioral track records find ways to bury it for college, you just never hear about those kids, because they are crafty enough to keep their mouths shut. </p>

<p>Start working on your GC - she is the only way they will be notified about this suspension. If you sense she would never agree to drop it, talk to her about how she will phrase it, and you can both work on how to phrase it as softly as possible. </p>

<p>But yeah, unless you were a top notch candidate, this is a pretty sizable hurt.</p>

<p>It will hurt a lot less than lying would.</p>

<p>honestly, most schools really don't care, i think the extremely prestigious schools maybe the ivies and the next tier (ie: duke middlebury vandy) will though. But seriously, how many people actually apply to those schools. So you'll be fine. i hope you aren't too stressed out. I know it's tough, this college process. SO stay strong. SENIORS 09! REPRESENT!</p>

<p>This is CC and most kids are REALLY applying to those schools!</p>

<p>No, colleges love to see the outside activities the potential students take part in. I would look at it as another activity for your application. Maybe add it to your EC list?</p>

<p>Your pretty new to here aren't you?</p>

<p>i dont get it</p>

<p>and somewhere2012 or wahtever, your sarcasm thrills me to no end. thanks for the help!!!! xoxo</p>