Low High school GPA, CC or India

[TheKracken]

I have an extreemly low High school GPA (1.9) and I could be wrong but I do not think there is anyway they will accept me to a university with these grades even if I have pretty good SAT scores (720 math and 580 reading I belive). So how should I go about studing physics to eventually get my P.h.D? I really want the cultural experience and would love to go to India to study for my B.S.c and I am not sure if they care if you had low grades or not? Or should I go to a community college and transfer to a university? Either way I would like to do my masters at the university of Amsterdam where they offer a masters in mathematical physics (I am getting ahead of my self now) So what would you guys recommend me doing? I would feel like a failure going to a CC but I guess that would be something I would have to get over. Thank you for your time.

EDIT: I should add I am currently going into senior year and I am a U.S student.

 

[Aero51]

Before going to collegeyou should identify and assess the reasons why you did not do well in hs. If you do not fix those problems you will fail in college.

 

[TheKracken]

Before going to collegeyou should identify and assess the reasons why you did not do well in hs. If you do not fix those problems you will fail in college.

Family Death, abuse, depression. While these can all be considered excuses it did push me to the point of not being able to do any homework. The abuse problem has been taken care of and I now have the time of the world to study and do well senior year...which is now to late as applications are going to be due this year and I already have the low GPA.

 

[AnTiFreeze3]

You have one year left in HS to bump your GPA up. I would make the most of it if I were you.

 

[TheKracken]

You have one year left in HS to bump your GPA up. I would make the most of it if I were you.

Will this last year of grades be included in my GPA when appling to schools? As most applications are due before first semnester ends not sure how this will work. Also I believe I have the potential to do well in physics at university level. I have taken AP physics B and got a 4 on the exam.

 

[WannabeNewton]

Will this last year of grades be included in my GPA when appling to schools? As most applications are due before first semnester ends not sure how this will work. Also I believe I have the potential to do well in physics at university level. I have taken AP physics B and got a 4 on the exam.

They look at your first semester grades but not second if you do regular decision. They only look at your first 3 years if you do early decision and ask for your first semester grades later even if you've been accepted.

 

[Jorriss]

1.9 GPA eh. I completely failed out of High school and stopped going. I went to CC and now I am going to a PhD program. No shame in going to community college.

 

[HallsofIvy]

I'm kind of wondering why you have such a low opinion of India! If, with a GPA of 1.9, you could not get into a college in the U.S.A, why do you think you could get into one in India? I would agree with Joriss- start at a community college and try to do well there.

 

[leright]

I'm kind of wondering why you have such a low opinion of India! If, with a GPA of 1.9, you could not get into a college in the U.S.A, why do you think you could get into one in India? I would agree with Joriss- start at a community college and try to do well there.

I could be wrong (I am not indian) but I think admissions in India is determined by entrance exam scores and not gpa.

 

[Vanadium 50]

Will this last year of grades be included in my GPA when appling to schools?

Wrong attitude. You need to develop the attitude that you will learn irrespective of whether external folks will "count" it or not. Otherwise I am afraid you won't go anywhere.

 

[VantagePoint72]

Wrong attitude. You need to develop the attitude that you will learn irrespective of whether external folks will "count" it or not. Otherwise I am afraid you won't go anywhere.

I think TheKracken was just asking that since others had implied he or she might still be able to get into university with an extra push this year. If final year grades don't count, then that's not a viable option and so other entry plans would need to be considered. It wasn't, "Do I need to try harder this year?", it was, "Will that be enough by itself?" In short, it was a perfectly valid question and I think that was an overly harsh response.

 

[TheKracken]

I think TheKracken was just asking that since others had implied he or she might still be able to get into university with an extra push this year. If final year grades don't count, then that's not a viable option and so other entry plans would need to be considered. It wasn't, "Do I need to try harder this year?", it was, "Will that be enough by itself?" In short, it was a perfectly valid question and I think that was an overly harsh response.

Thank you, that was exacly my question. I do plan to try hard this year regardless. Though as another member said India accepts students via entrance exam and my time may be better spent studying for a exam rather then a 4.0 GPA. Ofcourse regardless I would like to do well this year to prove to myself that I can do well in High School and my low grades were not due to a lack of intelligents. If anyone could answer the question regarding if it is "enough" to get me into a University that would be very nice. Also if any member has more information regarding addmisons to India schools that would also be helpfull.

 

[oddjobmj]

Community college is a fantastic stepping stone.

As noted, I agree, use the last year at HS to repair that GPA and really hone in on your core education.

Apply to your local CC. If you grab an associates from the CC and transfer to university they will very likely not even request your high-school transcript in this case. There are also often a lot of transfer programs between community colleges and local universities that the CC advising office can help you with.

Also, don't just get a good GPA at CC... catch up and dig in! You have likely missed a lot in high-school that is necessary to continue on with your education. CC is a great way for you to catch up on the skills you are probably behind on before university.

EDIT: Regarding India- While this might be an option in the future it is definitely not the first step I would recommend. You have many options here available to you. I highly recommend CC first. There is no reason you would not get into CC and if you do well at CC you can get into a public university without a hitch.

Moving is stressful and expensive. You will also experience culture shock, have no bearing on your surroundings, etc. etc.

EDIT 2: Regarding your question about whether or not it is 'enough' I am assuming you mean to ask if doing well in your last year of HS will get you into university.

1) I agree that this is the wrong question to ask. You have to have an interest in learning to move on. If you're not willing to do well in HS then why move on to college? I understand it is still an objectively important question to ask but I wanted to make sure you are moving on for the right reasons.

2) I don't know how much it will improve your overall GPA. It might improve it a lot and it might not.

3) I don't know what schools you will be applying to and whether or not that will be enough. It is really hard to say but I would not count on it.

Usually a 3.0 is a good benchmark. If you don't hit that mark on average you'll likely need to write a really good paper and show that you were involved extensively in extracurricular or volunteer work. On the other hand, hell, maybe they look at improvement and you going from 1.9 cumulative to 4.0 in your final year would do the trick. Hard to say.

Lastly, even if you have decent grades I still recommend CC before university. The courses and degrees transfer and it is much much cheaper.

 

[AnTiFreeze3]

*exactly
*Of course
*intelligence
*admissions
*helpful
*applying
*semester
*too
*believe
*experience
*recommend

Those are all errors that spell check plainly points out. I would at the very least recommend that you take some form of an English class your senior year to improve on your writing and grammatical skills.

 

[johnqwertyful]

Screw your senior year, just screw around honestly. You're not getting into a good college. Go to a CC, they don't care if you even HAVE a HS diploma, but I'd make sure to graduate. There's no way to get into a uni with your GPA. Go to a CC for a few years, transfer. Get your head on straight.

 

[oddjobmj]

Screw your senior year, just screw around honestly. You're not getting into a good college. Go to a CC, they don't care if you even HAVE a HS diploma, but I'd make sure to graduate. There's no way to get into a uni with your GPA. Go to a CC for a few years, transfer. Get your head on straight.

I completely disagree. While you may not want to worry about your GPA I suggest focusing on learning the skills you are behind on. Highschool is free so take advantage of those free classes while you can.

 

[AnTiFreeze3]

Screw your senior year, just screw around honestly. You're not getting into a good college. Go to a CC, they don't care if you even HAVE a HS diploma, but I'd make sure to graduate. There's no way to get into a uni with your GPA. Go to a CC for a few years, transfer. Get your head on straight.

I recommend that you take a close look at your last sentence and consider applying that piece of advice to yourself.

 

[smashbrohamme]

Here is some things you need to hear.

1. Yes there were excuses that you listed; and only excuses. Don't bring them up when you are trying to explain your GPA situation.

2. You are embarrassed to go to a community college but you have a 1.9 GPA in high school? A community college is a perfect stepping stone for university's. There is many 2+2 programs that are offered at my local community college, maybe you should check into yours when you become down to Earth and realize community colleges are not for failures.

3. Drop the whole India thing. You need to learn how to do well in school in the comfort of your own home town first.

4. Go to community college. Find a 2+2 program that is designed to transfer to the university you would like to attend. You may even find a nice 2 year associates program that sparks your interest. No one said you had to get a 4 year degree to get into a lucrative career. There is plenty of two year degrees that can get you started in the real world.

5. Learn to cross the road without getting hit by a car..then we can work on getting you to land on Mars :)

P.S.

It is never too late to bounce back; you just need to let go of the wall first.