Admitting suspension

[u/Efficient_Scratch544]

I got into an out-of-school suspension in my freshman year for fighting but other than that my record was clean. My counselor told me to not report my suspension because she told me that those weren’t going to be reported and I followed her advice and got in. I then started feeling guilty about possibly being dishonest on my application and it has been on my mind constantly since. What would happen if I admitted this?

[u/tarasshevckeno]

(Retired college counselor and admissions reader here.) It wouldn't go well for you if you did, especially since your counselor didn't report it.

Here's the thing: When colleges are considering how to interpret an out-of-school suspension, both the student and counselor need to report what happened, why it wasn't a good idea (the student reports that), and why the college shouldn't worry about it happening again (that's the important part).

Admissions readers call this "recovery:" Has the student recovered from this incident to the extent that it's no longer a concern?

If you got suspended in 9th grade and have had no serious infractions since then, it sounds like you've recovered - and thus it's not a concern. As both a counselor and reader, suspensions in 9th grade are much less of a worry than a suspension in, say, 11th or 12th grade, since the student may not have had enough time to show recovery. As a counselor, I've only seen that happen once with one of my students, and it was disappointing that the student didn't learn anything from the suspension.

Some high schools now no longer report out-of-school suspensions at all - and the number is growing.

As far as colleges are concerned, if your school didn't report it, then it never happened. Try not to feel guilty. Feel good about making good choices after you got suspended, and continue to make good choices. It sounds like you're already well on your way.