Will Colleges Think This is Suspicious?

Applying to College
1

I got my first B ever in IB Chem SL during my junior yr. The teacher didn’t teach one bit, and though we took the issue all the way to the district, no action was taken. So, I dropped out after that semester and switched to psych to escape the torture and another blow to my transcript.

I’m thinking of telling colleges that I planned on taking chemistry and psych for one semester each. I was naive and didn’t realize that dropping out of a class I got my first B in would make me look like I can’t handle tough courses (I can, I just can’t handle a course that barely is a course).

Should I mention it in my application at all? I know adcoms only spend ~10 mins per app, so the less I emphasize this obstruction in my transcript the less they’ll remember it. But on the other hand, it looks bad if I don’t address it because it’s a huge red flag in my transcript. The main problem is, will they think I’m not capable of taking a B?

The rest of my application is good (grades/involvement). However, I’m worried that this situation, which looks rather sketchy on the surface, will ruin any chance I have in admissions.

How should I deal with this?

2

If you want to write about it write only about your reaction to the grade. Do not blame the teacher in any way because the can be interpreted as blaming the teacher or excusing bad performance on someone else.

3

@KKmama Thank you for the advice. It will be visible on my transcript, but should I mention this at all in essays and such?

4

I wouldn’t worry about it at all. There are LOTs of reasons to try something different. You are not expected in high school to have already planned out your life, and if you had planned it out in high school a willingness to change courses is a plus.

5

I had a similar problem with a teacher so I dropped out after 1 semester and talked to my counselor about this. I’m going to mention the change in the additional information section as a scheduling conflict.

6

Don’t lie.