What is the minimum GPA needed for a top school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb, dumb question from a parent with kids still in middle school, who missed this whole issue when I was applying to colleges a hundred years ago:

What does "weighted" mean on the issue of GPA?

Thank you, and I apologize for degrading the quality of your discussion with this question!

Weighted means extra points for honors (0.5) and AP (1.0) classes.

That depends on the school district. Some, like APS, don't weight Honors/Intensified classes. Only AP's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dumb, dumb question from a parent with kids still in middle school, who missed this whole issue when I was applying to colleges a hundred years ago:

What does "weighted" mean on the issue of GPA?

Thank you, and I apologize for degrading the quality of your discussion with this question!

Good article for a parent of middle schoolers in today's NYTimes. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/01/education/edlife/what-college-admissions-wants.html?action=click&contentCollection=Politics&module=Trending&version=Full®ion=Marginalia&pgtype=article

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb, dumb question from a parent with kids still in middle school, who missed this whole issue when I was applying to colleges a hundred years ago:

What does "weighted" mean on the issue of GPA?

Thank you, and I apologize for degrading the quality of your discussion with this question!

Weighted means extra points for honors (0.5) and AP (1.0) classes.

That depends on the school district. Some, like APS, don't weight Honors/Intensified classes. Only AP's.

And it doesn't really matter at all because most colleges recalculate GPAs to work for their own purposes, and take out fluff like PE, ceramics, band, and other non-academic courses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Did you see the Naviance thread? Bethesda-Chevy Chase has a lot of data points. Here are unweighted GPAs averages and the lowest GPA (approximated) for admitted students at several top schools (including Seven Sister schools). Most want close to straight A's. The unweighted GPAs are high too:

Universities:
Brown- 3.93 average, lowest 3.8
Columbia- 3.85 average, lowest 3.35 (only outlier)
Cornell- 3.82 average, lowest 3.45
Dartmouth- 3.84 average, lowest 3.15 (only outlier)
Princeton- 3.93 average, lowest 3.81
Stanford- 3.9 average, lowest 3.55 (only outlier)
UChicago- 3.89 average, lowest 3.63
Yale- 3.94 average, lowest 3.8

SLACs:
Amherst- 3.87 average, lowest 3.73
Bowdoin- 3.9 average, lowest 3.79
Barnard- 3.9 average, lowest 3.8
Davidson- 3.86 average, lowest 3.48
Pomona- 3.89 average, lowest 3.78
Smith- 3.8 average, lowest 3.47
Swarthmore- 3.88 average, lowest 3.77
Vassar- 3.81 average, lowest 3.5 (only outlier)
Wellesley- 3.8 average, lowest 3.41
Wesleyan- 3.9 average, lowest 3.77
Williams- 3.87 average, lowest 3.65

It would be interesting to know what those outliers brought to the table. A 3.1 is pretty low.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Essentially an unweighted 3.8-4.0
I used to tell my kids that no one was perfect, and a B wouldn't tank their college dreams.

Whoops.

A single B might not. Several Bs will.

I'm telling my kid to let me know when they have below an A- in any class. Then we get to work to bring it up.

My kid is working his ass off in 7 IB classes this year and has a 3.6 unweighted and a 4.1 weighted. He's hoping all that rigor counts for something because his friends in regular classes have 4.0s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Did you see the Naviance thread? Bethesda-Chevy Chase has a lot of data points. Here are unweighted GPAs averages and the lowest GPA (approximated) for admitted students at several top schools (including Seven Sister schools). Most want close to straight A's. The unweighted GPAs are high too:

Universities:
Brown- 3.93 average, lowest 3.8
Columbia- 3.85 average, lowest 3.35 (only outlier)
Cornell- 3.82 average, lowest 3.45
Dartmouth- 3.84 average, lowest 3.15 (only outlier)
Princeton- 3.93 average, lowest 3.81
Stanford- 3.9 average, lowest 3.55 (only outlier)
UChicago- 3.89 average, lowest 3.63
Yale- 3.94 average, lowest 3.8

SLACs:
Amherst- 3.87 average, lowest 3.73
Bowdoin- 3.9 average, lowest 3.79
Barnard- 3.9 average, lowest 3.8
Davidson- 3.86 average, lowest 3.48
Pomona- 3.89 average, lowest 3.78
Smith- 3.8 average, lowest 3.47
Swarthmore- 3.88 average, lowest 3.77
Vassar- 3.81 average, lowest 3.5 (only outlier)
Wellesley- 3.8 average, lowest 3.41
Wesleyan- 3.9 average, lowest 3.77
Williams- 3.87 average, lowest 3.65

It would be interesting to know what those outliers brought to the table. A 3.1 is pretty low.

Football

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Did you see the Naviance thread? Bethesda-Chevy Chase has a lot of data points. Here are unweighted GPAs averages and the lowest GPA (approximated) for admitted students at several top schools (including Seven Sister schools). Most want close to straight A's. The unweighted GPAs are high too:

Universities:
Brown- 3.93 average, lowest 3.8
Columbia- 3.85 average, lowest 3.35 (only outlier)
Cornell- 3.82 average, lowest 3.45
Dartmouth- 3.84 average, lowest 3.15 (only outlier)
Princeton- 3.93 average, lowest 3.81
Stanford- 3.9 average, lowest 3.55 (only outlier)
UChicago- 3.89 average, lowest 3.63
Yale- 3.94 average, lowest 3.8

SLACs:
Amherst- 3.87 average, lowest 3.73
Bowdoin- 3.9 average, lowest 3.79
Barnard- 3.9 average, lowest 3.8
Davidson- 3.86 average, lowest 3.48
Pomona- 3.89 average, lowest 3.78
Smith- 3.8 average, lowest 3.47
Swarthmore- 3.88 average, lowest 3.77
Vassar- 3.81 average, lowest 3.5 (only outlier)
Wellesley- 3.8 average, lowest 3.41
Wesleyan- 3.9 average, lowest 3.77
Williams- 3.87 average, lowest 3.65

It would be interesting to know what those outliers brought to the table. A 3.1 is pretty low.

Football

Probably Lax Bros based on that list...

[Anonymous]

I'm pretty sure an A- is weighted as 3.75. In HS too many A minuses limited my kids playing field in ways that I did not anticipate coming from a private that does not calculate (at least officially) GPA. In the end it all worked out okay - DC loves college and is doing very well, just not at a top school. DC fights for President's list (3.9) every term now because top grad schools like A's - not A minuses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm pretty sure an A- is weighted as 3.75. In HS too many A minuses limited my kids playing field in ways that I did not anticipate coming from a private that does not calculate (at least officially) GPA. In the end it all worked out okay - DC loves college and is doing very well, just not at a top school. DC fights for President's list (3.9) every term now because top grad schools like A's - not A minuses.

An A- is a 3.67, at least in LCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dumb, dumb question from a parent with kids still in middle school, who missed this whole issue when I was applying to colleges a hundred years ago:

What does "weighted" mean on the issue of GPA?

Thank you, and I apologize for degrading the quality of your discussion with this question!

You better learn to google before your kids start high school... unless you want to rely on strangers for important information.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm pretty sure an A- is weighted as 3.75. In HS too many A minuses limited my kids playing field in ways that I did not anticipate coming from a private that does not calculate (at least officially) GPA. In the end it all worked out okay - DC loves college and is doing very well, just not at a top school. DC fights for President's list (3.9) every term now because top grad schools like A's - not A minuses.

An A- is a 3.67, at least in LCPS.

And everywhere else.

[Anonymous]

No minuses in APS, only pluses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Essentially an unweighted 3.8-4.0
I used to tell my kids that no one was perfect, and a B wouldn't tank their college dreams.

Whoops.

A single B might not. Several Bs will.

I'm telling my kid to let me know when they have below an A- in any class. Then we get to work to bring it up.

And therein lies the problem. Engineered grades. Led by parents, tutors, and pushing, pushing, pushing. Kids aren't truly earning those grades. They are being worked, groomed, and forced to get those grades. What are they going to do in college without parents working you to "bring those grades up! Don't be a loser!" You realize most kids with engineered grades in schools that easily round up grades (like MCPS) have a very hard time getting in the top schools even if they don't get one A. Why not let your kids lead the way and get them in a college suitable for THEM, not you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb, dumb question from a parent with kids still in middle school, who missed this whole issue when I was applying to colleges a hundred years ago:

What does "weighted" mean on the issue of GPA?

Thank you, and I apologize for degrading the quality of your discussion with this question!

Weighted means extra points for honors (0.5) and AP (1.0) classes.

It is different for all schools. Our private only .5 for both honors and AP's and no AP's until junior year.

[Anonymous]

First of all, it depends on your ethnic background and gender. Asian females need the highest GPA. Africans from an educated and affluent family are the favored if they came over recently.