Help me get into College

I know people with < 2.0 gpa's that still got into universities. If you have good test scores you'll get in somewhere. Don't worry about it.

Thanks.

I hate to be picky given my position, but what universities did they get in to?

I heard some good advice on a college admissions podcast today: "Go where you can succeed at the top of the class; as an alternative to attending a school that would be an academic reach."

With good test scores you should be able to get into a 4-year in-state university. Check out the options and do a solid job with the school you get into.

Your life is not over at age 17, believe me. I had a rough time in high school and rebounded in my own public university experience.

You should check out a community college in Virginia. The state has a guaranteed admission program from community colleges to state universities.

Basically, if you attend a VA community college and after two years you meet certain gpa/credit requirements, you're guaranteed admission to Virginia universities. These include solid schools like UVA, William & Mary, Virginia Tech, George Mason, VCU, etc. Check out the link below for requirements. I'm sure other states have similar programs as well.

https://www.vawizard.org/vccs/TransferGAA.action

what are your SAT/ACT scores? Those are your ticket if your grades aren't good.

Many schools want to raise their average SAT score for incoming students and will overlook everything else if you have a good one.

Community service, club involvement, being on a sports team...Colleges don't care unless you are trying to get into an ultra-competitive college (Ivy). And even then, they are looking at test scores, grades first and then your application. Only if you are a recruited student that doesn't have the grades would they even consider "community service" as a way to justify letting you in.

Largely its a myth.

If you are fast enough, some schools will get you in based on sports.

Obviously oregon will let people in with exceptionally low academics if they are fast enough. Stanford is a little less lenient, but has let in some notably low achievers who were sports superstars.

At a lower level of sports achievement, chico is happy to let in low academic achievers who are at least moderately fast. Half of their distance recruits any year are in this boat. I've sent three kids there for this reason, they couldn't get in anywhere academically, but the chico coaches are happy to help them get in. They are one of the only d2 schools that willing, which is why they have such a strong team, for d2.

There are other schools too like this of course.

But you should seriously consider a cc. It will give you a transitional two years. This will allow you to figure out why you did poorly in high school and work on improving how you study and work on academics. You can find a cc with a solid team, they are out there. Look up race results from the njcaa state meets to find some candidates.

The most important piece of advice anyone can give you right now is that you only have a couple of more days to apply to colleges before their deadlines. Most are due on January 1st.

There is nothing you can do about the past. All you can do is look forward so get it together and work with what you have.

Have you finished your common application?

What is your score for the SAT? What is your GPA?

Does your XC team do anything like work a water stop at a race? That counts as community service. Embellish the XC experience in one of your common app essays.

Apply to community college as your safe school. Put your application in to the four year state school you live in. Look at some of the easier colleges and universities around that are fairly easy to get into. Google high acceptance rates for colleges / universities.

I had an athlete a few years ago that could only get into community college. He did really well there and transferred to UNLV. It's never too late.

That's Great! Keep us updated!

First things first, get all A's your spring semester. If your cognitive ability is good, that shouldn't be an issue.

Next, take the year off and do something good. Find a cause that you like and help out.

When you apply to colleges next year, tell the story of how you set a goal and got your act together, and you've got the evidence to prove it. That will sell very well to a lot of schools.

Review the college books, they will have a range for scores (25/75th percentile) and see where you fit.

the cost of college is outrageous nowadays so see what you get back in the way of financial aid packages. Being able to graduate with lesser debt is a bigger win in the long term. I see more people going to a school where they get more $ (both private and public are options as private has the ability to hand out more in aid, 50k can become 15k very quickly).

You shouldn't be perfect coming out of high school, more schools are understanding that nowadays. In college, if you go to class and have good time management skills you will be further along than those with bs statements on their essays and apps.

There should be an academic counselor at your HS who can help you make "realistic" choices about colleges to apply to (and be accepted in) given your grades, test scores, etc. If you want to run track or XC (as a walk-on), add that to your search criteria.

There is a lot to be said for going to a community college first if you are not sure about your college plans or had low grades etc. In addition to Virginia, many community colleges have transfer agreements with (nearby) 4-year schools. If you take a certain classes approved for transfer credit with a minimum GPA, then you will be admitted to the 4-year school.

Hey there!

I work as an admission counselor at a small liberal arts school in the south and have a pretty decent handle on what it takes to get in to schools in the eastern half of the country. It would help if I knew what you wanted to study, what your financial situation was and if you were looking big or small. I'll give you some ball parks below

Just broke my arms, how am I ever going to write these college applications?