Can i get into college despite of having terrible grades from 9th and 10th grade?

Question

I'm a student who has just moved to the states to attend HS and my old grades were transfered to my new school here in USA from Hungary (my home country). Now the problem is that my grades from 9th+10th grade really suck from there, like almost all Ds and Cs.. is there a chance for me to be able to attend American university/college? Apparently they look at all grades from 9-12th gr. I will probably apply to Montgomery college.
Please write THX in advance!

Answer 1

ABSOLUTELY you can get into school. Let's take it step by step...

First, academics:

Basically, do your best in your classes and don't worry about your past performances. If you need help studying, take a study skills class or talk to your school guidance counselor. Of course you must study and do your homework on a consistent basis.

If you need more help, talk to your teachers and attend extra help as much as you can.

Since this is your junior year, ask your guidance counselor about taking the SATs and ACTs which are important tests for applying to college.

Next, activities:

Participating in activities are VERY important when applying to colleges. But don't just sign up for every activity or club available. Find a few you like and stick to them. These can include community service, sports, clubs, and organizations - not just in your school but outside your school as well

As far as applying to colleges:

Be sure to apply to many different colleges - look especially at community colleges if you're worried about getting accepted. Don't worry...you can do well in your community college and then transfer to a better college.

Overall, be sure to focus on your current classes, join some activities, and look into important college tests like the SATs and ACTs

Answer 2

When you write your college essay make sure you mention the transfer, learning a new language and despite those challenges that you have improved your grades. Yes they look at your grades but if they see a marked improvement and indications of maturity and growth that means more than a few bad grades. One way to state it is this. Although my cumalitive GPA may be a 2.75 (or whatever it is) My GPA for the last two years has been a 3.5 (or whatever it is). You will be forgiven for being a little immatture when you were 14 and 15.

Answer 3

I agree with the above, you definitely have a chance.

First, you want to make sure that you improve on your grades so you can show that you do much better in an American context.

Second, you will definitely want to emphasize that that one was a very different system. If you could get some documentation showing how much harder Hungarian high schools our compared to many American high schools, that may help. For one thing, you could talk about specific things you studied in classes like Math and Physics to show how advanced it was.

Instead of using up your main essay(s) on this, you may want to consider submitting an additional form with your application. Often application forms ask whether there is anything in your record that may require explanation and you can take them up on that offer.

One more thing you may want to consider is applying to more than one college. You can do that in the U.S. and it should improve your chances of getting accepted somewhere.

Answer 4

Sorry I don't know anything about Montgomery College. But if it;s a community collage, it shouldn't be a problem. If it's not, then you may need to go to a community college first, and then transfer to Montgomery.

Answer 5

i'm not sure. But from what i heard about people areound me 11th grade is the most important, then 10th grade. Some schools don't look at ninth grade.