Overheard in Committee: The Prequel
Admit It! You’re wondering whether or not your first semester grades senior year really matter. You’ve heard it’s all about the junior year; that it’s that year that is the most important to colleges. Well I’m here to tell you, and guidance counselors you can thank me for this, that your first semester grades from senior year do in fact matter. That’s why this post is called the prequel (because we gather your first semester grades before we begin Committee deliberations), well that and because Danny suggested the title in a comment on a previous post in the series.
Overhead in Committee today: “Tell me about the mid-year grades.”
So there’s your answer. They do matter. And sometimes they can help us make close-call decisions. Let’s say we’re looking at a student who had a slight dip in grades their junior year; maybe they got their first C or maybe they went from mostly As to mostly Bs. Or maybe the student has been on a steady upward trend and we want to see if that trend is continuing. Chances are their schedule only got more challenging during the senior year so looking at first semester grades can be quite telling. If we see those grades rebound, or we see the upward grade trend continue, we are reassured that the student is capable of excelling in college classrooms. If the grades decline we may be more hesitant to admit the student because we will not admit a student who we feel will be unsuccessful here academically.
Or maybe the mid-year grades tell a very different story. Maybe the student has gotten straight As and then all of a sudden senior year we see several Cs or even a D. Senioritis perhaps? Such a grade slump might turn us off from a student when we have so many other great applicants who continue to excel in the senior year.
Now, don’t think we’re unfeeling. We know senior year is tough. You’re taking hard courses, continuing your extracurricular activities, enjoying traditions like Homecoming and Prom, and applying to college (which should be a credit-bearing class in my humble opinion). That’s why we joke that you can’t spell calculus without two Cs. Or maybe you’re getting a C but it’s in a really tough course like linear algebra or organic chemistry (classes most students don’t take until college). We know that these courses are tough and that you’re under a great deal of stress and sometimes a C is acceptable. Other times there are just bad grades for seemingly no reason. So we encourage you to explain any downturn in grades that we might see at the mid-year report. We respect those who ask permission rather than forgiveness (meaning we appreciate you contacting us about your grades rather than us just discovering them with no accompanying explanation).
I could write a sequel to the prequel on second semester grades senior year and maybe I’ll do that in April. For now, that brings the Overheard in Committee blog series to a close (how appropriate as Committee is also coming to a close). Decisions will be released the week of March 28 which will bring about another installment of the Decisions Decisions blog.
Wendy Livingston ’03, M.Ed. ’09
Senior Assistant Dean of Admission
Comments are closed on posts older than one year, but we still want to hear from you. If you have a comment or question for us, please email admission@wm.edu.
Thanks for explaining the value, to the Admissions Committee, of mid year grades. I am glad that the rigor, trends and grades are considered in the decision process. As a mother I have seen the “roller coaster” of emotions that are apparently a part of Senior Year !! Thanks for the acknowledgement of the pressure that these young adults are under as they carry challenging course loads, await college decisions, and try to enjoy senior year traditions.
Joanne, despite what students probably believe, all of us on the Committee were once high school seniors too so we get what a stressful time it can be. That being said we don’t want that to become an excuse to let academic dedication fall by the wayside but we are understanding and try to put context into every decision we make
And the parents of those seniors appreciate the thoughtfulness ! THX
Well we appreciate your appreciation!
Hello and thanks again for the insights these posts have provided.
After reading today’s post I decided to follow up with my daughters’ high school to see if the first semester grades were sent to W&M. We requested that they be sent a while ago but did not recall getting a confirmation from the school that they actually sent the report. Fortunately, they were sent on February 18th.
Should I send an email to our state’s Admissions Committee representative to see if the grade reports were received or would we have received a notice from W&M if they were not received?
Wayne,
Unfortunately we do not track receipt of mid-year grades in our system. However, rest assured that if they do not arrive, and we feel they are pertinent to making a decision, we will contact your student’s counselor directly to obtain them.
Thanks you so much for writing this blog! It’s great that I have been able to keep of the progress of the application process while waiting for my decision. W&M is my number one choice, and it’s very comforting to see just how much this school considers all aspects of its applicants.
I am the mother of an applicant. Is it too late to explain a dip in grades senior year? My son is in a very difficult private school with 5 hrs of homework each night. He was working too many hours and was up until 2am each night completing homework which resulted in his first C. He finally has cut back and his grades have rebounded, but a little too late.
Thanks
Betsy, unfortunately it likely is too late as we plan to release decisions this week. However, if your son is waitlisted he could certainly send in an explanation and/or updated grades if he chooses to remain on the waitlist.
Thanks for the updates and great insights into the admissions process. My daughter anxiously awaits your decision next week. Do you know what day they will be released yet? Go Tribe!
Thanks for all your insights into the admissions process. My daughter anxiously awaits the decisions as do we. Do you know what day next week decisions go out? Go tribe!
Admissions,
Thank you for writing this post. I can say I belong to that group of students who dreams of attending W&M next year. One of the main reasons I am not as confident in my application is my low GPA. My school collects data of each student that has applied to a certain college. When I looked up W&M, I saw the average GPA of the accepted student was 4.21. Sitting at a 3.82, I prepared myself for the rejection.
One of the reasons I haven’t felt as competitive is the fact that my GPA is so low. Every semester, I have been improving my grades. I received a 3.6 freshman year with taking 3 honors courses. Today I am getting all As and taking 4 AP courses. I am proud of my accomplishment of taking harder courses and achieving better grades, but it really makes me wonder how I wasn’t doing so well in my freshman courses. Thank you for recognizing that it’s not necessarily all about the numbers, but about the student’s growth as well.
Tom, unfortunately we do not know the exact date yet but as soon as decisions are released we will be sure to post that on our website, blog, social media outlets, etc.
Alex, we certainly consider everything an applicant shares with us; both the good and the bad. Our blog is not intended to state that we admit every student with an upward grade trend but we definitely do take note of grade trends and try to amek the best decisions based on the information available to us provided by the applicant.
Ah, so nerve wracking. I think I come sailing in the same boat as Alex up yonder… Statistically, I am not W&M; my GPA is pretty rockin’ but my test scores are a different story (and W&M is my dream!) However, I’m more than those. I bring way more to a school than some numbers on paper: the experience of being a third culture kid, a passion for teaching, a love of random acts of kindness… Every applicant is more than what some numbers let on. We’re all more than what we could show on one given day in one given room with one number two pencil.
That being said, thank you SO much for this blog and everything it’s done! Regardless of if I’m a member of the Tribe next year like I’d love to be, I’ve been accepted to some other good schools and I’m sure I’ll bloom where I am planted.
And consider yourselves lucky! If the decisions are released in the evening/night time, I have to wait until the next day when I wake up, since I’m in Japan!
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! (Caps for emphasis… I’m really excited for anyone that gets in, even if that’s not me!)
I think Sam definitely captured the feeling that test scores are not everything. It’s not always about how well you perform on tests, as they are an indicator of one day rather than a high school career. A GPA is a good indicator, but may not explain what goes on outside school that could also affect this. I like that W&M chooses to consider every semester and though I may not be admitted, it’s nice to know a college recognizes that freshman year grades don’t always determine how successful a student is academically, and that a GPA isn’t always reflective of what a student could accomplish now.
This post is so helpful! Every time I read the blog posts, I feel like the admission board really understands and cares for the applicants 🙂 Going to W&M is my absolute dream, but one thing I’m worried about is my weakness in math [calculus especially]. Unfortunately I received my first D at the end of first semester for calculus AB, although I had A’s in all of my other classes [including APs]. Will that look really bad on my part, even though I’ve improved my other grades?
I’m anxiously waiting the decision!! No matter what happens, I’ll know in my heart that W&M is really the place for me and I’ll be happy for everyone else that gets in!
Sam, Alex and other Admit It! followers, we hope these blogs and our other have demonstrated that we value holistic review for the reasons you stated and more. We do not set any minimal objective criteria that an applicant must meet in order to be considered precisely because we believe that numbers don’t tell the full story. Don’t get me wrong, we absolutely think numbers are important and they tell part of the story but we recognize that they are far from the whole story and that’s why every application is read at least twice, so that we can consider the entire story each applicant presents.
Amy, while no one particular factor (such as mid-year grades) ever makes or breaks an admission decision by itself the Committee is wary of Ds. We do understand that there are simply classes that some students struggle with and we appreciate that students challenge themselves in areas outside their academic comfort zone but we always encourage students to pursue the most challenging curriculum in which they can be successful (meaning achieving As and Bs).
The admission blog exemplifies why William & Mary is a special place. I will admit that I desperately want this opportunity for my academically gifted son, but I understand gaining admission to a school like William & Mary has to be earned, like anything worth having in life. My hope is that my son takes away the same lesson if he is not offered admission.
Thank you members of the committee for the amount of thought and consideration you give to your applicants. I have tremendous respect for the integrity of the admissions process and your commitment to young people.
Congratulations to the class of 2015!
Deborah, we’re glad the blogs help to showcase our process and our philosophy towards what we do and we’re glad you’ve enjoyed them.
Good luck to your son and to our other applicants!
I am so glad that I finally decided to read this blog. It has helped me understand the other side of applications! I was just wondering when this week e-mail notifications will be sent out to regular decision applicants? I have been anxiously awaiting the e-mail for awhile and was just curious.
Elizabeth,
Glad you’ve enjoyed the Overheard in Committee blogs.
As soon as decisions are sent we will let people know to check their in-boxes (you can check our website, blog or social media outlets for udpates on when decisions are sent).
Well, there’s my rejection… Even though it stings, I wish those who got in tons of good luck, and I’m sure this means I’m better suited elsewhere. C:
Sam, we’re sorry the news couldn’t be better but we wish you all the best as you enroll elsewhere.