My name is Donald, and am currently completing my junior year of high-school overseas, and have been an international student all my life. As I am finishing my most vital year of the academic system, I have a couple of qualms if weather or not I would be a good fit for Clemson College based off of my current situation. I currently attend a very rigorous private high school in Cairo known as Cairo American College that of which is ranked as one of the best private schools in the middle east. I have recently taken my midterm exams for the first semester and have done very average so far and my GPA for the first semester has fell from like a 3.0 to a 2.8 (assuming). Before these finals, I had all B-'s and A’s except for one C in English due to the rigorousness of the course. The questions are that do IB courses such as SL’s count as AP credit in the college scene? I have also made the junior varsity team’s in both Football (soccer) and Basketball, and have been placed as the assistant manager for that squad. Will colleges such as Clemson University would be impressed by this, or would they like more? On the other hand, I have also worked at a very upscaled organization as my first job being at the French embassy in Cairo. However, as the year of my high-school is not yet over, there is still time to raise my GPA from a 2.8 and will do that by continuing to work harder as the year progresses in order to get a 3.6 as my final average. With that being said, as for my extra circulars, I’am apart of my schools chess team, and have been tutoring guitar to minors for almost a year. Also, I have began to Youtube and started a band. I have also just completed midterms at my school, that of which my GPA is as low as it is now. I still have time to improve my grades as well as myself. However, what I’m asking is that would a college like Clemson or Coastal look at midterms marks only and make their discussion based off of that? Cause I’m worried that I might have failed all of them, or would these be enough credentials to persuade them to accept a student like myself? Any advice tips as well as advice are appreciated.
Donald,
Clemson acceptance is generally based on 4 factors.
Rank - I am not sure if International Schools do this. Some schools in America do not even do it. It is basically the concept of ranking you based on your GPA and comparing you to the other students in your class. (I am not sure what the policy is if your school does not rank. I would assume that the other factors become more important.) But if your school does rank, a good goal is in the top 10%.
Class Rigor - basically how challenging are your classes in high school? (I would say take the most difficult classes that you can from here on, assuming that they aren’t going to drop your GPA.) From what you say about your school, you should be fine here.
(To answer your question, IB is considered basically the same thing as AP. However, AP is more popular in America, at least from what I have seen. But, Clemson accepts AP and IB, so you are good there. But my understanding is that in order to get the credit for the class, you must take the IB test and get a passing score. That’s just what I have heard from a few people taking IB classes in the Knoxville area.)
GPA - Is that GPA your weighted or unweighted GPA? (Clemson weights GPA, and if you can figure out how to calculate it, it will give you a more accurate comparison to a lot of people on this website.)
Test scores - How are you doing on the ACT, SAT, or international equivalent? A good score on one of those can make up for a lot of ground on your application. From what I read, a good score would not be out of reach for you. I believe that it is required that you take at least one.
Extracurriculars are not considered as much as many (like myself) would hope. Your extracurriculars seem very impressive (and all really cool). But, the most solid bet is to be really impressive in the previously mentioned 4 areas.
Goodluck!
Most universities in the US do not count SL classes for credit at all. HL classes are the only ones considered for college credit (at least at all the schools we have looked into).
You definitely need to work very hard to end Jr. year with the highest GPA you can earn. Junior year grades are generally the last grades seen for admissions purposes.
Have you taken the SAT or ACT? If not, you need to start NOW. You can message me and I can tell you some practice methods to raise your score.
Finally…do you and your family have finances all worked out? Even with the max scholarship Clemson is a very expensive school.