Does an improving GPA trend make up for a mediocre first two years?
A. Maybe. Many “numbers-oriented” colleges, particularly large state universities, do not take the time to make minute discernment at the “first cut”. Now, even the most impersonal admissions office will look at trends, essays, and letters of recommendation for the candidates who made the first cut and are “on the bubble”. But making the first cut there may be difficult if a poor freshman year has slapped the kid’s GPA well below the school’s median. The best solution for kids in the medium-but-rising category is to get a second recommender to call attention to the strength of the last few semesters. An extra recommendation can never hurt.
