General

Don't worry! The fact that you were able to improve like that is impressive to colleges! What you do in your Junior year is what's most important anyway.

[quote=djmaxaaron]If you get a decent sat/act score 2000+/32+ then maybe you can go to a mid tier UC along with a kickass personal statement that shows growth. Maintaining your grades is obvious as well.[/quote]

This right here. Grades will only go so far; if everyone has the same GPA, then there has to be something else to look at.

That's where personal statements and all the other fun essays come into play. If you write a good essay that shows your improvement through high school and your willingness to seek a better education, I'm sure things will turn out well.

And make sure to take SAT and/or ACT as soon as possible. That way, if you don't score as well as you'd hoped, you can always retake it before sending the scores in.

[quote=DarkOdor]i go to stony brook university, which has an average hs gpa of 3.6 at the time. i had a 2.9 gpa in hs with wrestling, track, and christian club on my ec activities. my sat was 2030, which was most likely the reason why i got in. i'd say work on your gpa, and showing that you improve over the years in terms of gpa is a huge plus too[/quote]

Stony Brook

Yasssss

people have to know that getting into a bad college does not mean the end of life.

if you put that you changed from a 3.0 student to a 4.0 student in your essay im sure UCs will accept you

Just strive for all As for the rest of your high school career.
Get at least a 2000 SAT and/or a 30 ACT and you'll still be able to make it to mid-tier UC schools. If you end up scoring even higher, UCLA as well.
UCB is probably out of the question unless you do something remarkable.

I got into a university with a 3.67...you'll be fine

[quote=0kevqn]Since when did the grades go passed 4.0?[/quote]
not sure when but at my high school, the GPA goes past 4.0 if your in all honors, 4.0 if not honors

It depends on your Junior and Senior year. UCs don't count freshman year and they mostly take cumulative A-G course GPA. You have pretty good extracurriculars so if you do maintain your grades, you can probably make it into a UC. What's your sophmore year GPA, not cumulative from soph and fresh. If you add that and what you think you'll get from junior and senior year and divide by 3, that's your cumulative. If it's ~3.7+, I'd say you have a good chance. Colleges really look at how many APs you take and if you challenge yourself.

Also, it doesn't hurt to do even more community service or find an internship. You probably need 2000+ on SAT or 33+ on ACT to make up for your GPA if it's a bit low.
Start preparing for that early so you can retake it multiple times. Annnnnd when you do apply, make sure to write 2 kickass personal statements

Edit: Forgot to add that you can definitely make it into a CSU with your grades IF you keep it up like you said.

i go to stony brook university, which has an average hs gpa of 3.6 at the time. i had a 2.9 gpa in hs with wrestling, track, and christian club on my ec activities. my sat was 2030, which was most likely the reason why i got in. i'd say work on your gpa, and showing that you improve over the years in terms of gpa is a huge plus too

The only problem is overcoming your low overall gpa. Others in this post said that colleges will acknowledge that you got your stuff together and that it looks good, but theres gotta be some downside to it. Students who actually do well throughout cant be at the disadvantage for doing well the whole time.

I'm pretty sure the UC system doesn't even count your freshman year

My friend made it to Cal in 2012 with a very low GPA. He was accepted because he had a nice resume from robotics. Your community service + extra curricular will get you pretty far if you keep up your grades.

[quote=Blackest]@UAPaladin: I'll be doing them this year. I've taken the PSAT which I got a 1700 on.[/quote]

Ok, make sure you do well on them then. Most people start taking them junior year because you can take them multiple times so you can get the best score possible. Just make sure you do well on it and you should be able to get into a decent school still.

If you get a decent sat/act score 2000+/32+ then maybe you can go to a mid tier UC along with a kickass personal statement that shows growth. Maintaining your grades is obvious as well.

If you don't make similar marks this year, schools will like seeing that you really improved your grades.
I'm on the east coast so I don't know much about the UCs, so I honestly can't say. Probably one of the lower UCs would likely take you if you continue your trend.

@UAPaladin: I'll be doing them this year. I've taken the PSAT which I got a 1700 on.

[quote=Blackest]I don't have any internships/research facility hours. Perhaps I'll look into that.
In mock trial, I'm activities director and a prosecution witness.

I haven't done the SAT/ACT.
I'll graduate with 6 AP classes (AP Physics B this year, AP Psychology self study this year, AP Government, AP Physics C, AP Stats, AP English next year (not sure which one yet).[/quote]

Why haven't you taken an SAT/ACT yet?

First off 200 hours at a hospital is really really amazing. Wow. Many schools will see than you changed and your grades reflect that. Don't slack off now maintain your 4.1 for this year and have a strong first quarter and semester senior year. Some colleges see first quarter grades; colleges will definitely notice a change from a 2.8-> 4+. 2.8x2+4.1=3.2 gpa ish assuming you took the same amount of classes every single year.

So many types of GPA scales...

We use a 4.0 scale in our uni

[quote=LastRegrets]How many AP/IB classes will you graduate with? What are you SAT/ACT scores? Have you taken SAT II Subject tests? Do you have any leadership position in clubs? Do you have any internships / research facility hours?[/quote]
I don't have any internships/research facility hours. Perhaps I'll look into that.
In mock trial, I'm activities director and a prosecution witness.

I haven't done the SAT/ACT.
I'll graduate with 6 AP classes (AP Physics B this year, AP Psychology self study this year, AP Government, AP Physics C, AP Stats, AP English next year (not sure which one yet).

Regular Classes: A >> 4.0, B >> 3.0
Advanced Placement Classes (college level classes): A >> 5.0, B >> 4.0
If you count your AP classes with that system, you get your "weighted GPA". Otherwise, if you treat all your A's the same, you get your "unweighted GPA".
Your GPA should be 3.23 (weighted) by the end of junior year, which is enough to get into most CSUs and maybe the bottom 3 UCs. Some private schools too, if you're into that stuff.
UCs and CSUs don't look at your freshman grades, so assuming you got a 2.8 in freshman year and 2.8 in sophomore year, you will have a 3.45 "UC GPA", which is competitive enough for mid-tier UCs. You can apply to UCB and UCLA on the off chance that they take you, but truth be told, don't be too expectant.

Start your college apps early! Your college apps are going to require essays (well, maybe not CSUs. But UCs and privates definitely). Get them done early, and do them well! They'll make a large impact on what the admissions officer thinks of you. Also, Senior year is going to suck if you're still stressing over this stuff. It's also going to ask for other misc information, so be ready with that stuff beforehand.

Apply to UCs: [url=] https://admissions.universityofcalifornia.edu/applicant/login.htm;jsessionid=TPAnPZCBb10nbukn67ef4zsK.appucapp04p-node1? [/url]
Apply to CSUs: [url=] https://secure.csumentor.edu/admissionapp/ [/url]

I don't know how to post links on Basil...

@0kevqn: Either 4 or 5.

Dang, you sure changed.

[quote=0kevqn]What does it go to? 5?[/quote]

someone in florida got a 10.0 GPA
http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/05/20/high-school-caledictorian-earned-1003-gpa

How many AP/IB classes will you graduate with? What are you SAT/ACT scores? Have you taken SAT II Subject tests? Do you have any leadership position in clubs? Do you have any internships / research facility hours?

[quote=Blackest]4.0 is all A's in regular / CP classes.
Getting an A in AP or Honors classes gives a boost above 4.0.

Depends how many AP classes you take.[/quote]

Well, I'm not sure how it works where you are, but they mostly look at Junior year. But if you take your grades(2.8+ 4.1 + 4.3) and divide it by 3 (getting the average) that's a 3.7, which is very good

[quote=0kevqn]Since when did the grades go passed 4.0?[/quote]
4.0 is all A's in regular / CP classes.
Getting an A in AP or Honors classes gives a boost above 4.0.

Depends how many AP classes you take.

[quote=tsubasa128]Since the existence of different schools with different gradings.[/quote]

What does it go to? 5?

[quote=0kevqn]Since when did the grades go passed 4.0?[/quote]

Since the existence of different schools with different gradings.

Since when did the grades go passed 4.0?

Good job on the community stuff.