<p>I came to the U.S. from a foreign country like about 10 or 11 years ago. The foreign country which I came from did not pay attention to cut off birth dates and putting children in the appropriate grade. So, I was put in the wrong grade, so I am ahead of everyone else (I am the youngest in my grade). My birth date is August 4, 1996, but currently, I just finished sophomore year. My friends in this grade already turned 16. I am currently 14. </p>
<p>My question is that if I tell my guidance counselor to put me in the appropriate grade based on my age, will that affect college in any way? Also, what grade should I be going into next year? 9th grade, correct?</p>
<p>Also, do colleges pay attention to birth dates, age, and stuff like that?</p>
<p>You should be going into tenth grade. I don’t think colleges pay attention to age unless you are unusually young or in your mid to late twenties, or older.</p>
<p>If you’re not struggling in your classes, why would you want to repeat a grade? You have absolutely no need to repeat a grade, and honestly, age is pretty arbitrary as long as you’re capable of doing the work. I think admissions committees would be scratching their head over your application if you randomly decided to repeat a grade.</p>
<p>Won’t the year gap/ year difference between my freshman year and my sophomore year matter if I repeat my sophomore year?</p>
<p>As caligulashorse has said, the age doesn’t matter. If you want to take a gap year, do it after you graduate from high school.</p>
<p>Am I reading the situation correctly? Are you being forced to repeat a grade?</p>
<p>No, I <em>want</em> to repeat a grade because I want to do better. I have a B average, and I want to gain a higher GPA. I want to repeat this grade in order to gain a better GPA & become involved in extracurricular activities (I am currently not involved in any). </p>
<p>I want to use this as an advantage. Will colleges look negatively if I do this? I didn’t fail. I have a B average. Will colleges ask me why and will they accept this reason? I am too young to be in the grade I am.</p>
<p>Can you even do that? Is it possible to say to your counselor, “Hey, all this time, I’ve been in the wrong grade, but I’m just now deciding that I want to be in the proper grade?” and have them simply let you retake all your classes even though you apparently passed? </p>
<p>You have the rest of your high school career to get involved in extracurricular activities and raise your GPA. It just seems a little stupid to go through your entire life knowing that you are younger than all of your classmates and then deciding you want to be placed in the right grade. Would the school seriously allow you to do this?</p>
<p>Lots of people graduate from high school at age 16 or even younger so your age isn’t as big a deal as you seem to think it is. Wwhen you moved to the US and were placed in school, you were placed not merely based on the number of years of education that you had had but also based on your mastery of certain subjects. At that point whatever grade you were placed into was the one that you were academically qualified for. Had you demonstrated that you lacked the social skills expected for students in that grade, your teachers would have held you back for social reasons. Clearly, up until now, you have been doing fine.</p>
<p>However, sometimes students do struggle with social/emotional adaptation, and don’t feel that they fit in. If you are feeling left out, or that you don’t fit well with your classmates for those reasons, then do speak with your parents and your guidance counselor so that you can come up with a plan that works for you. It is not likely at all that you would be able to repeat 10th grade at your current school. Perhaps if you were to transfer to a private school that is more selective (think prep school type institution here), maybe you would be placed back a year. Would your parents consider that option? Another alternative that might help you feel a bit more grown up before you graduate, would be to participate in a year-long student exchange program such as [AFS</a> Intercultural Programs | Connecting Lives, Sharing Cultures](<a href=“http://www.afs.org%5DAFS”>http://www.afs.org) or [Youth</a> for Understanding](<a href=“http://www.yfu.org%5DYouth”>http://www.yfu.org)</p>
<p>A B average is not bad. Trust me, repeating a year is going to look really strange under your circumstances. Just graduate on time.</p>