Do you have a bad grade or two on your high school transcript that you are worried about? Feeling worried about a bad grade when applying to college is a reasonable concern. After all, most colleges are looking for those students with the strongest academic records to include in their freshmen classes, so you certainly don’t want a bad grade to stand between you and being admitted to the college of your choice. Therefore, you may be wondering whether or not you should explain a bad grade when you apply to college.

For the most part, college admissions officers aren’t too concerned about hearing the story behind your sub-par grade. This is particularly true if your poor grade is really just a B+ on an otherwise straight A transcript. Similarly, admissions officers don’t want to hear you explain away a poor grade due to relationship troubles or because a teacher was “unfair” of you simply didn’t like the class or the teacher.

At the same time, there are some situations that may warrant a bit of explanation. Some situations that may call for explaining a bad grade or a bad semester include:

· You became seriously injured or ill to the point that it required a hospital stay
· You had a death in your immediate family, such as a parent, guardian or sibling
· You got stuck in the middle of an ugly divorce or other volatile domestic situation
· You moved to a different school in the middle of the academic year

If your situation falls under one of these scenarios, it is important to explain your poor grades in the appropriate manner. You should not use your essay as the venue for explaining your grades. Rather, the best way to have your situation explained to the college admissions officer is to have your high school guidance counselor do it for you. Not only will this add credibility to your story, it will also prevent you from coming across as being overly dramatic.

If your guidance counselor is unable or unwilling to speak to the college admissions officer on your behalf, writing a short, simple note to be included in the supplemental section of your application is the most appropriate route to take.

Regardless of how you communicate your situation to the admissions officer, make certain you do not dwell on your poor grade or semester. Rather, place an emphasis on your strengths so the admissions officer can fully understand why you would make a great addition to the student body at the college of your choice.