UMD, Vtech profile

[Anonymous]

My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

There isn’t much you can do to control the situation and stressing about it this early isn’t going to help. Either your child is trying their best and you let the chips fall where they may or you move them down from AP or Honors if they are doing really bad. Talk to your kid’s guidance counselor to get their thoughts.

[Anonymous]

Your child should do their best without burning out, and they will be admitted somewhere designed to serve students like yours.

[Anonymous]

Parent of a kid who didn't get into VA Tech and one who did. The one who didn't get in is the older one. Perfect grades but didn't take the AP class for their intended major until senior year. Put all their effort into their Common App essay which I don't think Tech reads, and wrote something about art in their Tech essay when the intended major was in STEM.
The other kid had good but not perfect grades but they steadily improved. Took the AP class for their intended (same as the other kid) major. Focused on the Tech essay.
Same sports/activities.
I think your kid has time and I also think first gen is something Tech will take into account.
Just be there for your child and encourage them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

Do either you or your spouse have college degrees?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parent of a kid who didn't get into VA Tech and one who did. The one who didn't get in is the older one. Perfect grades but didn't take the AP class for their intended major until senior year. Put all their effort into their Common App essay which I don't think Tech reads, and wrote something about art in their Tech essay when the intended major was in STEM.
The other kid had good but not perfect grades but they steadily improved. Took the AP class for their intended (same as the other kid) major. Focused on the Tech essay.
Same sports/activities.
I think your kid has time and I also think first gen is something Tech will take into account.
Just be there for your child and encourage them.

honestly, I think it varies year to year. Your older one could've gotten in with that same essay in a different year. It just depends on the applicant pool that year.

College admissions is vague and opaque. The secret sauce varies from year to year.

[Anonymous]

What state do you live in? Anecdotally, UMD will probably admit OOS with lower grades than in state, especially from MCPS. Just too many smart kids from MCPS applying.

If MCPS, and especially CS major, your kid might be sol. UMD has limited direct admit to 600, and 100 transfer - both within and out of UMD - for CS major.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parent of a kid who didn't get into VA Tech and one who did. The one who didn't get in is the older one. Perfect grades but didn't take the AP class for their intended major until senior year. Put all their effort into their Common App essay which I don't think Tech reads, and wrote something about art in their Tech essay when the intended major was in STEM.
The other kid had good but not perfect grades but they steadily improved. Took the AP class for their intended (same as the other kid) major. Focused on the Tech essay.
Same sports/activities.
I think your kid has time and I also think first gen is something Tech will take into account.
Just be there for your child and encourage them.

This is very helpful and encouraging. For obvious reasons, grades are not much discussed with other fellow high school parents during any social gatherings. I have no idea what kind of students get into schools like UMD, University of Florida, Vtech, Carnegie. Kids who are getting into these colleges seemed to me very bright students. All i know is they have to aim for all As. So it’s very intimidating when your child’s grade starts to decline. Thank you very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

Do either you or your spouse have college degrees?

We have masters from the US. Navigating high school for the first time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parent of a kid who didn't get into VA Tech and one who did. The one who didn't get in is the older one. Perfect grades but didn't take the AP class for their intended major until senior year. Put all their effort into their Common App essay which I don't think Tech reads, and wrote something about art in their Tech essay when the intended major was in STEM.
The other kid had good but not perfect grades but they steadily improved. Took the AP class for their intended (same as the other kid) major. Focused on the Tech essay.
Same sports/activities.
I think your kid has time and I also think first gen is something Tech will take into account.
Just be there for your child and encourage them.

This is very helpful and encouraging. For obvious reasons, grades are not much discussed with other fellow high school parents during any social gatherings. I have no idea what kind of students get into schools like UMD, University of Florida, Vtech, Carnegie. Kids who are getting into these colleges seemed to me very bright students. All i know is they have to aim for all As. So it’s very intimidating when your child’s grade starts to decline. Thank you very much.

I can only speak to UMD and CMU.

CMU - forget it. Even with a 1580 SAT, 4.0 uwgpa, 4.92 wgpa, my DS was rejected to CMU for CS.

For UMD, it's not as hard as CMU, but it's not easy, either, especially if you live in MoCo. I know of some high stats kids who were not admitted to UMD CS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

Don't worry about it. There are many programs at both schools where a C might work out. Without knowing the full picture (weighted/unweighted GPA, SAT, rigor) it's hard to provide specific advice. I'd say focus on grades, don't push your kid too much (e.g. No reason to skip Calc AB and jump into Calc BC).

[Anonymous]

No one calls Virginia Tech “Vtech”.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

Do either you or your spouse have college degrees?

We have masters from the US. Navigating high school for the first time.

So, I'm confused. If you and your spouse both have college degrees - from any country - your child is not first generation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My high schooler is a sophomore student Bright and passionate about STEM however getting overwhelmed with the course rigour this year with some grades downfall. DC morale is going down and never imagined that high school will be so much to do with almost no downtime. We are first generation parents and have shallow knowledge of good students’ profile. Is UMD or Vtech accepts student with either b or c grade? DC is trying hard to bring the grades up.

Do either you or your spouse have college degrees?

We have masters from the US. Navigating high school for the first time.

So, I'm confused. If you and your spouse both have college degrees - from any country - your child is not first generation.

I think OP means first generation in the U.S. My advice if they want to go to VT is to do their best in high school and put a lot of heart and effort into their VT application essay, not the Common App essay, which they don’t read. They are looking for an emphasis on the values of “Ut Prosim” (Google it). My DS had good grades and we are OOS, but he is convinced his essay is what got him in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parent of a kid who didn't get into VA Tech and one who did. The one who didn't get in is the older one. Perfect grades but didn't take the AP class for their intended major until senior year. Put all their effort into their Common App essay which I don't think Tech reads, and wrote something about art in their Tech essay when the intended major was in STEM.
The other kid had good but not perfect grades but they steadily improved. Took the AP class for their intended (same as the other kid) major. Focused on the Tech essay.
Same sports/activities.
I think your kid has time and I also think first gen is something Tech will take into account.
Just be there for your child and encourage them.

This is very helpful and encouraging. For obvious reasons, grades are not much discussed with other fellow high school parents during any social gatherings. I have no idea what kind of students get into schools like UMD, University of Florida, Vtech, Carnegie. Kids who are getting into these colleges seemed to me very bright students. All i know is they have to aim for all As. So it’s very intimidating when your child’s grade starts to decline. Thank you very much.

Your kid needs to do the best they can in classes they can master.

I'd recommend against a track where your kid is getting B's and C's.

A few B's can be o.k. for some high-ranked schools.

C's are disqualifying for top-ranked schools.

Look at where your high school sends its grads. Talk to the counselors if you have concerns.