Hi i am a senior in high school have recently messed up my life through 9th and 10th grade i have gotten suspended in a charter school i have received a d in environmental science and i have failed a Spanish course but only because when i was in charter school i switch back to public and they tried to make me do my 9th grade year again and at first i was was then they switched me to my 10th grade classes. i have fully recovered my 11th grade year and i did great i got all a’s and b’s in my final report and i intend to in my senior year but my gpa is a 2.80 I’m hoping it will be a 3.0 by the time i graduate i haven’t taken my SAT’S yet because I’m scared but i will make them this year i don’t know how i will do but my question is from the look of things do i have a chance at going to a good college?
Well, unless u also developed a talent or have some powerful liaisons, ivies, Amherst and basically the top 50 will be strained to accept you. But u recovered strongly, and u learned from ur experiences. State unis and some small liberal arts colleges could accept u. How r ur sats or act looking?
Define a “good” college…
You should seek the “right” college for you. I know some of my son’s friends who have done far worse than you and are going to school (non-community college). It starts at what you can afford, then goes to geographic area (how far are you willing to go), and then you can start looking at schools that are good choices with your stats and background that fit those criteria.
@thehazelone, do you know what you want to study? Any career ideas? Don’t be afraid to go to a community college or your local state school – you can see how it works out from there without spending a lot. You can always get into SOMETHING.
It seems like for lots of kids who didn’t realize the race was on during high school - that community college is a great place for a re-set. Here in CA you can go transfer to one of several great UC’s if you do well at the CC and you save a ton of money in the process. If you get your diploma from Berkeley no one asks “were you a transfer student”?
Exactly @patertrium - once you are out in the workforce, Berkeley grads who transferred from a CC are indistinguishable from those who went for 4 years (and I know many of each). The parchment still says UC Berkeley.
Improving grades mean a lot to many schools. Your junior year gpa is particularly important. Do not dwell on the bad first two years. It sounds like you did a lot of maturing and dug yourself out a hole to be able to perform well now. Part of growing up is changing- you have done well to turn yourself around. With good grades now you should be able to do well enough on the SAT (prepare for it of course) to be eligible for good colleges.
As above- the definition of “good” is so subjective. There are hundreds of good colleges, just as there are thousands of good students who attend them. A place or person does not have to be at or near the top to be good.
btw- consider the image you present to the public. Your CC avatar may not be the best one to show your academic side instead of other facets of yourself. Remember to not reveal information about yourself on public forums- either in words or pictures.
plan on first attending a community college. College is a LOT harder than HS, and with your record you will have to prove to 4 year colleges that you can go college level work .
If you are successful there you should have no problems being able to transfer.
As others have said, you have two options (assuming you can afford them): You can go to community college for two years and then transfer into a school with some level of selectivity and name recognition outside of the immediate area. Or you can start right away at a good school that may not be known outside of your community but can nevertheless provide you with a fine education and get you started in the right direction. Which way you go depends on your finances, your professional aims, the educational resources in your area (the reputation of the CC for example, the quality of the local state college, etc…
And good job on the academic ‘reorienting.’ Keep up the good work. Don’t forget to practice before you take your standardized tests and get to know some teachers so they can write you strong letters of recommendation. If the school is on the fence about whether you can really sustain the momentum you’ve developed academically, and whether you are really ready to cope with college level work, the comments of your teachers can carry a lot of weight.
You can go to college. Don’t be like me and forego a college education because you think your grades weren’t good enough. I went straight to the military out of high school because nobody (parents, guidance counselors) talked to me at all about college. They offered no guidance and, I guess, I just naturally assumed that college was out of the question. It wasn’t. Remember to apply for scholarships. There are scholarships for everybody! Most importantly,
keep up the good work!
What state are you in? You can try applying to your state U or branches of your State U and then transfer to the Flagship branch at some point. You can go to a smaller school. You could start at CC and then go to a 4 year. There are many colleges out there! Start studying for the SAT …e.g. https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/sat
Good SAT scores plus good Junior grades will be very helpful.
Start intensive prepping for the SAT or ACT. There are a lot of free online prep sites. Also take the free practice tests from Kaplan and Princeton Review. But a prep book for the test you will take (note test formats are changing soon…will you take the old format or new format).
Buddy up with two teachers and make sure they can testify that you have improved, are intellectually curious, and have certain string academic skills. Needed for letters of recommendation.
Do everything possible to attain the highest grades you can in college prep courses. Check what courses you need to complete in high school to be a competitive applicant at your target colleges. Use collegedata.com to research schools. Look for schools where your test scores (use practice test scores for now) place you in the upper quarter of students offered admissions last year.
Do some career interest assessments to find careers and majors that might be good for you. Also, get involved with a club or organization where you can highlight some of your strengths and interests. This will add to your activities list.
Learn how to write a personal narrative essay suitable for the Common Application. Tell a story about an incident that reveals your inner grit/qualities.
Run the Net Price Calculator to find out how much money your family is expected to pay each year for cost of attendance. You might want to also read Debt-Free U. Stay out of student debt as much as possible.
Go forth and have an awesome college experience. You’ll be able to earn a college degree one way or the other. Really.
Because you’re a senior now, seriously considered working for a year while you prepare your college apps and study for your tests to get the highest scores possible, aiming to start college in fall 2017. Try to be an strong freshman applicant. However, if you decide to first do two years at community college, then it’s fine to start in fall 2016.