Effect of one junior year C?

[Anonymous]

My DD is a junior and has been doing pretty well in a competitive public school until this year - 3.9 UW GPA with several honors/AP classes (school doesn't release weighted GPA). Somewhat inexplicably (she's had As in math until this year), she has hit a wall in her precalc class and currently has a C. I am honestly not sure why she is struggling so much; there is no obvious cause she could cite on a college application. I suspect in part it's because her previous math teachers were easy graders and she maybe didn't learn as much as I thought she had. In any case, though, she is trying but having a really difficult time mastering the material. She has a sort of borderline ADHD diagnosis and has taken meds off and on (she is on them now), but last year I questioned whether the diagnosis was even accurate because she didn't seem to be having trouble managing deadlines and assignments even without meds.

She does decently on standardized tests and I think can probably swing an SAT in the 1450-1500 range. Extracurriculars are not exceptional but solid. She is not interested in STEM majors - strengths are in writing and art. She has no ambitions to go to an elite school, but prior to this year I thought she'd have a reasonable shot at somewhat-competitive liberal arts colleges in the Macalaster/Oberlin/Mount Holyoke range. She is trying to get her precalc grade up, but she's not being very successful at it and the effort is taking a toll both on her performance in other classes and her mental health. I am therefore wondering how much to prioritize this class versus other things. How much do you think one C on a transcript with otherwise mostly As will affect her chances at the sort of school she's looking at?

[Anonymous]

She should be totally fine for those schools (I mean not a given but all are possible and that level of school is totally reasonable.)

They will read her entire application and admit/deny on the total package--not a single grade. Smaller schools like this have time to actually read applications.

[Anonymous]

I think she'll be fine!

My kids also struggled with pre-calc. In one case, there was a horrid, misogynistic teacher. In the other, we never quite pinpointed the problem and he muscled his way to a B, but it was not a good year.

[Anonymous]

Get a tutor.

[Anonymous]

Get a good tutor.

[Anonymous]

honors or regular? i would switch down if in honors/ap, yo have one more week to do so

[Anonymous]

My son had 2 C’s and got into multiple colleges at that level, some with merit. Did not seem to be a problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son had 2 C’s and got into multiple colleges at that level, some with merit. Did not seem to be a problem.

+ 1

[Anonymous]

My anecdote of dubious current utility is that I went to Macalester in the 90's after a high-school career that included two F's my freshman year. Things were turned around later in HS, but like mentioned, a school like Macalester can look beyond GPA. They did alright letting me in as I ended up graduating magna cum laude.

[Anonymous]

Is it possible to thrive at Macalester if you're not woke and lean more conservative?

[Anonymous]

We’re barely into the school year. She could easily end up with higher than a C. Quarter grades don’t matter, final only.

[Anonymous]

This should not hurt her. She will still have lots of choices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it possible to thrive at Macalester if you're not woke and lean more conservative?

Sure, but be prepared to be challenged. Those who enjoy a good debate will have endless opportunities to engage. It is not a place to find your conservative bubble where you can take comfort in being surrounded by like-minded folks, though.

[Anonymous]

There's always community college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DD is a junior and has been doing pretty well in a competitive public school until this year - 3.9 UW GPA with several honors/AP classes (school doesn't release weighted GPA). Somewhat inexplicably (she's had As in math until this year), she has hit a wall in her precalc class and currently has a C. I am honestly not sure why she is struggling so much; there is no obvious cause she could cite on a college application. I suspect in part it's because her previous math teachers were easy graders and she maybe didn't learn as much as I thought she had. In any case, though, she is trying but having a really difficult time mastering the material. She has a sort of borderline ADHD diagnosis and has taken meds off and on (she is on them now), but last year I questioned whether the diagnosis was even accurate because she didn't seem to be having trouble managing deadlines and assignments even without meds.

She does decently on standardized tests and I think can probably swing an SAT in the 1450-1500 range. Extracurriculars are not exceptional but solid. She is not interested in STEM majors - strengths are in writing and art. She has no ambitions to go to an elite school, but prior to this year I thought she'd have a reasonable shot at somewhat-competitive liberal arts colleges in the Macalaster/Oberlin/Mount Holyoke range. She is trying to get her precalc grade up, but she's not being very successful at it and the effort is taking a toll both on her performance in other classes and her mental health. I am therefore wondering how much to prioritize this class versus other things. How much do you think one C on a transcript with otherwise mostly As will affect her chances at the sort of school she's looking at?

She will walk into these schools with that profile. Those schools are not that highly ranked. Aim higher. I'd recommend a tutors to ensure her grade doesn't slip further and to ensure the best SAT score possible.

My DC (2024) had a much lower GPA (3.3 UW) at the end of jr. year and got into Denison (the only LAC they applied to). Similar borderline ADHD issues and many B- and a couple of Cs but had a relatively high SAT (1530) and 5s in AP Calc. Ended up going to a large public since they were targeting STEM.