School Discussion Thred 3

[Cerelan]

I got accepted into a good college, and now I'm freaking out about keeping my grades up. 6 AP's are insane , anyone have any idea how low my grades could go before a college would drop me?

[Milskidasith]

They won't. Pretty much as long as you pass, once you're accepted, you should be fine. Especially since AP courses count as more for your GPA.

[Specs112]

Especially since AP courses count as more for your GPA.

Not at my school they don't.

And by the way, I'm in all AP classes, and I'm behind the valedictorian by .01, and she's only in 4 AP classes.

I'm just a LITTLE BIT PISSED about that.

[Aloice]

Especially since AP courses count as more for your GPA.

Not at my school they don't.

And by the way, I'm in all AP classes, and I'm behind the valedictorian by .01, and she's only in 4 AP classes.

I'm just a LITTLE BIT PISSED about that.

Ouch. Good luck on becoming valedictorian!

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I'm pissed because I'm weighted ranked no. 43 and I should be ranked far higher since the counselor did not give me ANY HONORS CREDIT (5.0) FOR MY "FRESHMAN YEAR". I'm ranked below people who have made a bunch of Bs throughout their HS years while I haven't made a single B since I came to America. It's not my freaking fault that I wasn't in America that year. I made the highest Finals grades in the entire school on like 4 of the classes for God's sake and I have like the Gold Medal in Science for the entirety of Brunei but you just wouldn't give me a 5.0 for anything. Worse, you have to make me retake all those math and science classes and fall behind so that in order to take my beloved AP science classes I will have to do all three of them together during MY SENIOR YEAR.

[Cerelan]

Wow, that's rough. No credit? Jeeeez.

We don't have a ranking system where I'm from. It is Valedictorian is first, Salutatorian is next, and that's it. No one else knows a rank or anything like that.

[AnatidaeCollector]

My old school had much harsher grading than my new school. A 91 at my old school is more like a 93 or 94 here. My class rank is now mediocre at best (by my standards, at least) due to that.
At least my percentile went up significantly. I was hardly even top quarter at my old school, but now I'm solid top 10%. At my old school, the top third could realistically go Ivy, going by grades and scores.

[glub]

In many parts of China big names take precedence over what you learn.

This is so true it hurts a little.

My high school had a "pre-applications quiz" for parents and kids to take. You ranked aspects like "social atmosphere" and "teacher quality," and my Taiwanese parents both slotted "prestige" three spots higher than where I put it (at the bottom). They wouldn't let me apply to Reed or Whitman (even though I was squarely above the average accepted student score-wise) because they were "filled with hippies." So I went to UC Davis instead.

[Aloice]

In many parts of China big names take precedence over what you learn.

This is so true it hurts a little.

My high school had a "pre-applications quiz" for parents and kids to take. You ranked aspects like "social atmosphere" and "teacher quality," and my Taiwanese parents both slotted "prestige" three spots higher than where I put it (at the bottom). They wouldn't let me apply to Reed or Whitman (even though I was squarely above the average accepted student score-wise) because they were "filled with hippies." So I went to UC Davis instead.

Awwww, I'm sorry

Sometimes I think I shouldn't have applied ED to Penn but oh well. What's done is done, I better make the most out of it.

[Moondelev]

In many parts of China big names take precedence over what you learn.

This is so true it hurts a little.

My high school had a "pre-applications quiz" for parents and kids to take. You ranked aspects like "social atmosphere" and "teacher quality," and my Taiwanese parents both slotted "prestige" three spots higher than where I put it (at the bottom). They wouldn't let me apply to Reed or Whitman (even though I was squarely above the average accepted student score-wise) because they were "filled with hippies." So I went to UC Davis instead.

Awwww, I'm sorry

Sometimes I think I shouldn't have applied ED to Penn but oh well. What's done is done, I better make the most out of it.

Deferred? Come join the party, man. Top 20 school list deferral party is where it's at.

I digress, though. You took a risk because that's where you wanted to be! No risk, no reward, you know? You tried and, sadly, you fell on your face a bit - though let's be honest, that's not wholly your fault. As you said, you now need to make the most out of it. Finish up the rest of your applications. Interview like you mean it! Devote yourself to every school on your list now. Be realistic.

Also, bring some chips or something. This party is seriously lacking in snacks.

[Trek]

Done with finals at last! Now I can sort of enjoy my break until I get my wisdom teeth out on Wednesday.

[Cerelan]

Ugh, I get a break after Thursday, I am not gonna make it

[Deadly920]

Welp, I've seen this and now I might as well post.

First 25% of my GCSE's coming up straight after the Christmas holidays in the first week of Janurary. I'm going to have to study ALL HOLIDAY. Even though I probably won't.

[glub]

In many parts of China big names take precedence over what you learn.

This is so true it hurts a little.

My high school had a "pre-applications quiz" for parents and kids to take. You ranked aspects like "social atmosphere" and "teacher quality," and my Taiwanese parents both slotted "prestige" three spots higher than where I put it (at the bottom). They wouldn't let me apply to Reed or Whitman (even though I was squarely above the average accepted student score-wise) because they were "filled with hippies." So I went to UC Davis instead.

Awwww, I'm sorry

Sometimes I think I shouldn't have applied ED to Penn but oh well. What's done is done, I better make the most out of it.

Happily, I'm not sorry anymore! Davis has some incredible, knowledgeable professors who transformed my views on science and helped me focus on the elements of the subject I find fascinating. Also neither Reed nor Whitman has a marching band so I would have had a much harder time finding a niche there.

Never feel bad about taking the initiative to do something because you feel much better in the aftermath having done so than if you hadn't. No nagging "what if" speculations.
Trite? True!
Plus everything Moondelev said because it is all sound reasoning. Risk-taking minds and the people they belong to are much more interesting than the safer (sane??) ones.

[Aloice]

Okay now I feel like a douchebag because I actually got ACCEPTED into Penn. I'm regretting it a little since now my hands are tied and I'm marching into a major that doesn't have promising job prospects (I'd take biomedical science over business any day, but it's also true that BMS makes a lot less money on average). I'll be paying 57k a year to go there and oh god the money guilt.

[Specs112]

Deferred? Come join the party, man. Top 20 school list deferral party is where it's at.

I digress, though. You took a risk because that's where you wanted to be! No risk, no reward, you know? You tried and, sadly, you fell on your face a bit - though let's be honest, that's not wholly your fault. As you said, you now need to make the most out of it. Finish up the rest of your applications. Interview like you mean it! Devote yourself to every school on your list now. Be realistic.

Also, bring some chips or something. This party is seriously lacking in snacks.

school discussion thread 3: mad snacks yo

At this point I'm picking other schools to apply to based in large part on how long it will take me to do their applications.

"Already had to write their supplement essay question for something else? Yes please."

Also some guy I know got into MIT because of soccer. FFFFFFFF.

We need to party harder.

[Marbles]

I got accepted into a good college, and now I'm freaking out about keeping my grades up. 6 AP's are insane , anyone have any idea how low my grades could go before a college would drop me?

A B average and nothing lower than a C is fine for just about any school. Don't worry too much - if you managed to get accepted, you shouldn't have any trouble.

[Moondelev]

Okay now I feel like a douchebag because I actually got ACCEPTED into Penn. I'm regretting it a little since now my hands are tied and I'm marching into a major that doesn't have promising job prospects (I'd take biomedical science over business any day, but it's also true that BMS makes a lot less money on average). I'll be paying 57k a year to go there and oh god the money guilt.

Ah, well congrats! And business doesn't have promising job prospects? I doubt that. If you're good enough to get into Wharton (assuming that's where you got in, as it's the business school), you'll definitely have enough credentials to get you somewhere in life.

[Aloice]

Okay now I feel like a douchebag because I actually got ACCEPTED into Penn. I'm regretting it a little since now my hands are tied and I'm marching into a major that doesn't have promising job prospects (I'd take biomedical science over business any day, but it's also true that BMS makes a lot less money on average). I'll be paying 57k a year to go there and oh god the money guilt.

Ah, well congrats! And business doesn't have promising job prospects? I doubt that. If you're good enough to get into Wharton (assuming that's where you got in, as it's the business school), you'll definitely have enough credentials to get you somewhere in life.

No no no, I got into BMS. Although I'd take BMS over business any day (I was also accepted to UT Austin Business) BMS doesn't have promising job respects. Plus, it's nigh impossible for international students to get into Med School.

Gah my writing is getting really sloppy.

[AnatidaeCollector]

If you want to go into research, there are loads of opportunities, and they offer good money (salaries start at around 70K with just a bachelor's). I'm sure you could nab a job at some pharmaceutical company or even with some government lab depending on where you're at.

[Aloice]

If you want to go into research, there are loads of opportunities, and they offer good money (salaries start at around 70K with just a bachelor's). I'm sure you could nab a job at some pharmaceutical company or even with some government lab depending on where you're at.

Problem: international student.

Nearly every business would hire a citizen or a permanent resident over me if it has the choice. And since I'm not a citizen I'd possibly be barred from entering government jobs and whatnot.

[Moondelev]

Eek, that sucks. Man, I wish I had something better to offer than that!

[AnatidaeCollector]

If you want to go into research, there are loads of opportunities, and they offer good money (salaries start at around 70K with just a bachelor's). I'm sure you could nab a job at some pharmaceutical company or even with some government lab depending on where you're at.

Problem: international student.

Nearly every business would hire a citizen or a permanent resident over me if it has the choice. And since I'm not a citizen I'd possibly be barred from entering government jobs and whatnot.

Eek. Would dual citizenship be possible for you?

Also, maybe some international pharmaceutical companies might hire you, or you could go through one that is based in China? Getting connections to something relevant like that could be tough, though. Plus, at least with schools I've looked at, your internships give you mega-connections, and odds are that at least one of those would lead to a long-term career.

[TheBertRam]

Once again my mother is more worried about my grades than me, because she doesn't understand them. Silly parents.

[AnatidaeCollector]

Just made Stony Brook! It was another one of my safety schools, but good to know I'm officially in. No news as to whether or not I made the Honors/WISE program yet, though, as my unweighted GPA was kind of borderline in making the cut.

They didn't even wait to recieve my STARS report. Which is nice, because I didn't feel like doing an academic self-report anyway. And they accepted me into the pharmacology program, which I didn't expect- they seemed to imply that to get in, you need to apply straight into the program, get recs, etc.

[kraine]

Three semesters left of college, woop woop! Almost to the culmination of my excursion into academia. I thought about applying to get my masters, but now I'm set on working for a few years first to get a realistic idea of what fields I like. Anyone going straight to grad school? If so, what are you studying?

I'm a wildlife conservation major, thinking of working in animal enrichment or rehabilitation, or maybe working for the park service. Maybe research if I find good connections and end up with a masters. If all that just up and fails, I'm thinking.. hang gliding instructor. >:]