<p>I ramble a lot, and have a tendency to incorporate autobiographical elements into my questions and threads. If you don't want to read it all, you don't have to. </p>
<p>I'm a junior in high school, and my grades haven't always been the best. Looking back upon the last three years, the twists and turns my academic performance has taken can easily be compared with those of a roller coaster - some trimesters I'll get all As, some trimesters I'll get all Bs. Every here and there, there's a C or otherwise "low" grade thrown into the mix, the result of either excessive absence or excessive laziness. </p>
<p>I never cared too much about my education and my chances of getting into college until only a few weeks ago. I met a friend whose currently attending Michigan State University, and she has ambitious plans for her future. She's one of the few motivated, truly intelligent people who I've met in my life. Ever since we met, I've granted her more and more respect. One day I got to wondering: why can't I be like her? She made a lot of the same mistakes that I made in high school (in regards to being lazy), but so far as I'm aware, she now has a nearly-perfect college GPA, and will probably get accepted as a transfer student into an Ivy League institution in the not-too-distant future. </p>
<p>I guess I just needed a little bit of inspiration. These days, I'm working harder than ever to salvage the remnants of my spectacular fall from academic grace that's transpired over this last trimester. I have failing grades in a couple of classes, but there's no good reason why I can't get get those "F" marks up to Bs or even As. I feel like an idiot for even putting myself in this position to begin with, but I suppose with adolescence that's just the nature of the beast. </p>
<p>Pretty much, I'm doing everything that's possible to get myself into a state university right after graduation (I'd like to transfer to a more prestigious university later in life, if not an Ivy League school - assuming I keep a high GPA in college), as opposed to being forced to languish at a community college for a few years, then transferring to a state university. I'm going to retake my ACT (I only got a 28 composite; I got a 35 in reading and a 33 in English, but the 19 in math kind of dragged everything down. That's what I get for not studying, because I think I could have easily gotten over 30 if I had), keep perfect grades my Senior year, and demonstrate a pre-existing commitment to medicine in preparation for medical school. Which is obviously where I want to go after I get out of whichever 4-year university I manage to get into. </p>
<p>So I'm volunteering at the largest hospital in my area, and I'll be working as a transport tech or something there in the Summer. Also planning on taking a few courses through local Emergency Services to become a licensed first responder. In addition to having numerous doctors and nurses telling me that such experiences and jobs would be useful in getting into medical school, I also have a vested interest in such areas anyway. It's not as if I'm doing all of this <em>just</em> to impress whatever med school it is that I want to get into. </p>
<p>I'm considering taking classes at my local community college this summer. What I'm wondering is this - if I take several different college classes (albeit at a CC) and maintain a strong GPA, would the admissions people at a state university take that into account alongside my not-so-fantastic high school grades? Wouldn't it show both improvement and the capability to succeed at a college level? I've heard different things from different people, which is why I'm asking this. My high school counselor wasn't sure if it would make much of a difference, whereas I've had other people tell me that they'd definitely take such grades and classes into consideration. All I know is that I want to be both intellectually challenged and interested by my courses. For once. Even if this doesn't have much of a bearing on future college admissions, it's still something I'd want to do. The problem is is that I should probably only spend the money if it's going to be a factor of some relative importance. </p>
<p>If anybody can help me out here, it'd be much appreciated. I'm also open to any advice or suggestions on how to improve my chances of getting into a good 4-year school, med school, or just improving my current grades in general. </p>
<p>Once again, I apologize if I wrote too much about subjects not necessarily pertinent to the issue at hand. That's just my style, for better or for worse - I like to give people the full story, let them see the big picture before they make any judgments. If they got bored in the process... Well, that's just too bad for them. </p>
<p>Hopefully I'll get a few responses here. </p>
<p>Thanks again!</p>