<p>I've had B's and one C in math during my high school years. I maintained B+'s-A-'s in my science courses. I've had all honors/ap sciences, but regular math. I'm just not good at it. my major will be in the humanities and my unweighted gpa will be around 3.7.</p>
<p>those are pretty low math grades especially for nonhonors. and its kinda bad to be taking precalc as a senior. I took it as a sophomore and I think most people take it as a junior at the latest. your math sat/act score is probably pretty low too judging by your grades. unless you have a high rank and come from a good school, do a lot of EC’s, and write good essays you probably dont have a very good chance</p>
<p>Actually, I just got into ILR and I’m currently taking Precalculus as a senior. My school’s competitive and rigorous so they made me re-take Algebra I my freshmen year. That being said, I’ve been in Honors math courses and my lowest grade in math was a B in Geometry Honors. I just finished this semester in Precalc with an A. You’ll need a lot of quality ECs and quality essays to make up for the math. You can also depend on the math portion of the SAT.</p>
<p>i actually have a 31 in the math section of the act…</p>
<p>You will be at some degree of disadvantage since the majority of applicants you are competing against will have taken calculus. That being said, the rest of your profile could minimize the effect this will have.</p>
<p>ok, question. my school doesn’t do the whole dual enrollment thing, but could I secretly take calculus at a local community college?
does it help that my major won’t involve math or science/engineering?</p>
<p>Getting B’s and 1 C in math has already had a substantial impact on your chances. I would say take the hardest math you can in next year and do well in it. That way, if Cornell decides to defer you or wait for your first quarter/semester grades, you can show them improvement in math. </p>
<p>What major/college would you be applying to at Cornell?</p>
<p>upennvet</p>
<p>I don’t think the question is will it affect your chances – of course it will, you’d have a better chance anywhere if you had As.</p>
<p>However, I don’t think it will necessarily kill your chances. Take it as a given that math isn’t your strength. Notwithstanding, you’ve perservered and challenged yourself. If it’s clear from your application that you’re not planning on a math-oriented path, you’ll be one of the vast majority of candidates (and hopefully one of the vast majority of accepted candidates) who’s academic resume shows both strengths and weaknesses.</p>
<p>Are your chances dead? Absolutely not, assuming all your other grades are A’s. However, if you do have a glaring weakness in a major subject area such as math, Cornell will want to see overcoming weakness.</p>
<p>major = english literature</p>
<p>does it help that not many students at my school took calculus as seniors?</p>
<p>what about SUNY Stony Brook?</p>
<p>If you want to maximize your chances, the bottom line is that you should take the most challenging course you can and do well in it. mikeyc put it very well; you’re gonna have to demonstrate persistence and ability to excel even at things you haven’t been good at in the past. </p>
<p>Although your proposed course of study involves little or no math, you’re going to be competing against people who are strong in every subject. </p>
<p>If you got a 33 on the ACT math, then you can’t be as bad at math as you say you are. For most people it takes a lot of sustained effort to wrap their head around concepts and start seeing how to apply these concepts to solve problems. </p>
<p>If you’re serious about improving your chances, then you should spend this summer reviewing past math courses and self-studying precalc seriously (or studying under a tutor). Beefing up your math skills and doing well your senior year will reflect positively on your record. If you really make a lot of progress and think you can manage it, you should really take a hack at calculus; many students apply to Cornell having already taken or begun taking it.</p>
<p>Well if they decide that they don’t want me because I struggle in math or because I didn’t/don’t (want to) take Calculus, then I don’t want to go there. God, the Ivy admissions process is so nauseating, and I’m sick of it. I’ll aim towards state schools instead. Or at least a school that will take me for what I am rather than pushing me to be something that I’m not. I’m out. see ya and thanks for all your help!!</p>
<p>Yes, going through it with my two D’s, it was frustrating that performance in subject areas which have nothing to do with the students intended major have an impact on admissions. However this is the case not only at the Ivy league level, but at schools at a lower level of competitiveness. My older D applied to 7 colleges, accepted at 6. Was not accepted at James Madison mainly becasue she did not take a 4th year of science (physics or AP Bio), which had nothing to do with her intended major (International Relations). I’ve found that Cornell is more flexable in looking at the whole application & doesn’t automatically “filter out” students because of one hole in their application. However with that being said, students who are lacking in a specific area (when in comparision to the majority of applicants), put themselves at a disadvantage…how much of a disadvantage is really impossible for any of us to measure.</p>
<p>I’m disappointed with your attitude upennvetgirl727. No matter what college you are going to, you should be seeking to push yourself and grow as an individual. Push yourself in math and you won’t regret it. Maybe your math grades even with a good, honest effort will keep you out of the Ivy League, but I don’t think you’d regret pushing yourself, and if you do, that bodes poorly no matter what college you end up at. High school level math, even through calculus, is something you should want to be good at. I am a strong believer in NOT specializing academically before college, because high school still just covers the basics. As an English major at Cornell, you would still need to take 1-2 math courses and 2-3 science courses to graduate. Cornell wants students who push themselves and that’s generally what they value the most. There is nothing about high school level math that should prevent you from getting A’s if you truly push yourself and seek proper help. Cornell won’t expect you to be top of your class in math, and it can even tolerate some struggling. But if admissions sees struggling, it wants to see you overcoming that struggle and pushing yourself to do well in math. Because the exact type of student Cornell doesn’t want is someone who is content with mediocrity in any area.</p>
<p>I don’t think you understood what I said, mikeyc. You have no idea what I’m like and how I push myself every day of my life. I just don’t want to be pushed to be something that I’m not so I can fit the whole “perfect” picturesque that the Ivy League envisages. </p>
<p>When I fell victim to that ideology, I felt the need to take Calculus…calculus calculus calculus. That’s all I thought about. I tried so many times to convince my guidance counselor to allow me to skip around by taking Algebra II over the summer or going into Honors Geometry so that I could double up, or testing out of pre-calc…anything to get me to Calculus. The answer I got? Just a flat out “no.” So I attempted to force myself to become content with his decisions. That didn’t work too well, so I bought myself the PR AP Calc AB/BC prep, and managed to get through 6 or so chapters without <em>too</em> much of a problem. Then I thought, “ya know, what’s the point in my doing this right now when I barely have any background in Algebra?” so I decided that I’m just going to wait a while and self it then. Now I’m not even sure that I want to do that at all. Hell, I don’t even know what I want to do with anything. I just know that I don’t want to go to a school that won’t accept me merely due to the fact that I struggle in math and science. I’m not perfect like half the applicants aspire to be, with their 1st place USAPhO or USACO or AIME or whatever. I’m not a math competition winning, Intel/Siemens topping, 4.0 with 15 AP Classes student. I am who I am, and well, that’s me. </p>
<p>When I push myself, I achieve amazing things, trust me.</p>
<p>I can only offer insight based on what you write. You said you didn’t want to take calculus. That’s fine but given you are on the Cornell forum asking for advice/chances for your senior year, I think you really shouldn’t avoid subjects at the high school level. You don’t necessarily NEED AP Calc, but come on, precalc? You should be able to do that. It almost sounds like you only want to hear the advice that confirms your pre-existing bias.</p>
<p>Of course I can’t claim to know what you’re like, which is why I respond to what you write about yourself. Quite honestly, especially at high school, I truly don’t think you (or anyone) should feel entitled to only take what interests you and only what you’re good at. At college, you get more of that flexibility which is where it belongs in my opinion. Colleges is where you can/should explore various subjects more in-depth, and explore the ones you know less about. Whether or not you get into Cornell, my opinion is that it will only serve you well to attempt to do well in math and push yourself to succeed. Making it through Chapter 6 is hardly a serious effort. Was it effort? Yes. But just because some effort was put in doesn’t mean you should be applauded for it.</p>
<p>There are very few people who get into Cornell who are the “perfect” Ivy League candidate. B’s and C’s in math in high school is a glaring weakness for someone pushing themselves to apply to top schools. I commend you for trying and as I said before, if everything else is solid in your academic record, you have a chance of getting in. </p>
<p>It’s better to have tried and failed than to have not tried at all. From what you’ve said, it sounds like you tried, but not all that hard. At least not as hard as I would expect from someone who is seeking to go to a top school. You think even those “perfect” Ivy candidates breezed through everything? Most do not and that’s why I’m a believer that anyone who gets into Cornell has proven themselves to be a superior individual when it comes to academic pursuits. Because most people that get accepted pushed hard to earn top grades. Not “merely” doing well in math/science is not a small thing. Those are 2 MAJOR areas for a foundation in education before advancing to more advanced levels. If you want to be an English major at Cornell, it doesn’t mean you have to have been an all-star in math/science, but you should have seen success in those subjects and done whatever it took. Many of Cornell’s Engineers struggled through English classes to get at least B+'s/A-'s to qualify for a Cornell education. And it’s important that they did that, even if it has little to do with what their particular academic interests are. </p>
<p>Not to toot my own horn, but English was always a subject I didn’t like at all. I struggled with the reading and never liked my essays. But, I still got all A’s in high school because I did the work, no matter how much I hated it. And guess what? At the collegiate level I managed to get through three literature courses and they were not easy. I worked harder than many of my peers in those classes, only to get lower grades. My college GPA suffered for it, but I have no regrets. I grew as a person for having pushed myself in those classes, and I am proud to say I have a new appreciation for literature. Maybe you won’t have a similar experience in math/science, but you gotta give yourself a chance by doing what you can, especially in high school.</p>
<p>If you are happy with the effort you’ve put in to your studies, that’s great. Personally, I don’t see your effort at being at a high level, but then again, to you, I’m some random guy on the internet. If when you push yourself you achieve amazing things, fantastic. If I thought otherwise based on what you said, I probably wouldn’t be writing paragraphs encouraging you to take pre-calc. I’m encouraging you to push yourself not only in the areas you have a strong interest in, but also those you do not.</p>
<p>UPennvet</p>
<p>To be honest – I don’t think that you are going to find the answers you are looking for in this forum.</p>
<p>You seem to be saying that math (calculus) proficiency is not relevant to your future. Fair enough. The question then is whether the rest of your coursework/sats/ECs/essays, etc. are strong enough to make you a credible candidate at Cornell (or other similar institutions). I’ll be honest, I don’t know, though I think lack of math proficiency is generally a minus. – also, I don’t think that many on this forum really know either. Your guidance counsellor might. Definitely discuss this with him or her.</p>
<p>The next question comes down to fit – Let’s say your GC says that s/he thinks it really important for you to take these courses for a Cornell-type school. If so, then is it worth the struggle, or is it possible that a Cornell just isn’t a fit. And I don’t mean this negatively. (I’m an alum – and both my children decided to go to other schools (one didn’t even apply, and the other turned down Cornell – the school wasn’t right for them and I’m proud of their accomplishments and their choices). Now, I’m not saying it isn’t a fit – just raising the question.</p>
<p>My point – you seem to have excellent credentials. Do not measure your success by whether you get into Cornell or any other school. Try to find a school that is a fit for your academic accomplishments and goals and that will nurture your ability.</p>
<p>Well if you’re wondering:</p>
<p>Freshman:
Honors Bio: B/B
Honors Spanish I: A/A
Honors U.S History: A/A
Honors English I: A/A
Algebra I: B/B</p>
<p>Sophomore:
Honors Chem: B/B
Honors Spanish II: A/A
Honors World History: A/A
Honors English II: A/A
Psychology (elective): A
Religion (required): A/A
Geometry: C/B</p>
<p>Junior:
AP Biology/Hon. Anatomy and Physiology: A/A
Honors Spanish III: A/A
AP European History: A/A
Honors English III: A/A
AP Art History: A/A
Algebra II: A/B</p>
<p>Senior
AP Enviro/Physics
AP Spanish Lang
AP U.S Gov
AP English Literature
Honors Pre-Calculus</p>
<p>It is really strange that you have religion as a required class</p>