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My lifelong dream has been to attend Stanford University. Unfortunately my high school gpa is not very high. My gpa this year is a 3.9 but last year it was only a 3.5. Can this make the difference between acceptance and rejection.
I'm currently a sophomore
My stats:

extracurricular
California Resident
African American
piano (10 years)
varsity softball
Published author
participant in duke university academic talent search
school newspaper (Editor next year)
I'm joining FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) next year and JAAM (Junior Association for the Advancement of Minorities)
Junior Lifeguard (I can't recieve my lifeguard certification until I'm 16)
PSAT 65 Verbal 56 Math (sophomore year. I have to take it again next year to qualify for scholarships)
I'm running for Junior Class Vice President this year and if I don't win I can still help the junior class officers next year.

By Tigeruppercut (Tigeruppercut) on Friday, May 02, 2003 - 06:02 pm: Edit

yes they are counted, but not that heavily as sophomore and up..

By Gianscolere (Gianscolere) on Friday, May 02, 2003 - 06:18 pm: Edit

A interviewer from Stanford said freshman grades are NOT counted, although the admissions office will receive a copy of it. I don't know whether this is true, but I think it is, since interviewers usually know a lot about their schools. Though, I know for a fact that freshman grades at Princeton University are NOT counted, as stated on its website!

So, just check the Stanford website and click on undergraduate admissions. It should be somewhere there...like in the FAQs section or something.

I was looking at your credentials and they seem very impressive!
May I add that I think what these elite schools are looking for is a passion for something, and STRESS that in your application. The reason for this is that they are looking for different types of students (artistic, musical, history-oriented, etc) because they don't want to have students who are just good in math or something.

Oh, and make your college application essay creative. Get college admissions guide books (i.e. "Get Into Any College: Secrets of Harvard Students" by Gen and Kelly Tanabe, Harvard graduates) to find out how you can improve your chances. And get books to help you write a good college app. essay (such as the book I just mentioned.)

Best of luck to you!

By Browninc2 (Browninc2) on Friday, May 09, 2003 - 11:07 am: Edit

should I take 3 AP's next year? I'm willing to work very hard. Is it asking for trouble?

By Gianscolere (Gianscolere) on Friday, May 09, 2003 - 10:28 pm: Edit

I think you should go for the 3 AP classes if you're highly motivated.

By Browninc2 (Browninc2) on Saturday, May 10, 2003 - 10:57 am: Edit

what about NHS? Is it really important? I didn't get on the list this year.

By Ibkid (Ibkid) on Saturday, May 10, 2003 - 12:45 pm: Edit

i ordered for the brochure regarding admission to stanford ...and it said they ONLY need reports of 10th,11th and 12th grades!