OP here. Thanks to those who have shared far. I was getting concerned bc Princeton's common data set says 68% of the freshman class had a 4.0 in HS.

I don't think our high school counselor will have any advice for us. We are checking naviance (which isn't completely accurate), and keeping notes on where the senior class is headed this year.

yes, it depends greatly on the school district.

with the retakes, etc. in public you should be able to get straight As. Or at least many kids do and you will be compared to them.

If you attend private school where there isn't a single kid with a 4.0 (like some years at the DC Big3 private schools) then even the Ivies give grace for a few Bs.

Yale and Stanford - none.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

If your child was accepted into a highly selective college, how many Bs did they have?
If you don't mind, could you name the school?

I know this is a silly question as admissions is holistic, but trying to gauge which schools we should target early decision/early action. There are differing opinions in our family!

Zero (A- in 7th grade algebra and Spanish 4-FCPS)
Waitlisted at UVA and NEU
Denied H and Penn
Accepted at BU, CWRU, Lehigh, UMD, WM, Pitt, Ohio St and UMN

thats what im seeing in nova

3 B's (English x 2, intro to computer science)
36 ACT
Multiple Ivy admits.
Attended private school where certain teachers just don't give As.

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

If your child was accepted into a highly selective college, how many Bs did they have?
If you don't mind, could you name the school?

I know this is a silly question as admissions is holistic, but trying to gauge which schools we should target early decision/early action. There are differing opinions in our family!

Zero (A- in 7th grade algebra and Spanish 4-FCPS)
Waitlisted at UVA and NEU
Denied H and Penn
Accepted at BU, CWRU, Lehigh, UMD, WM, Pitt, Ohio St and UMN

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:one B in AP Calc
Brown, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern

how?

kid is highly intelligent. Likely showed in his essays. But I am biased so take it with a grain of salt.
His SAT scores were sufficient - in the 50th-75th percentile of those schools. Recommendations were really reflective of who he was (grateful to his recommenders).
But I honestly think the essays and the recommenders carried it through. The essay topics were pretty benign... no rising from the ashes story... the kid lives an average american life... kind of hard to tell hardship stories from that. But he was genuine and the essays made me laugh (i hope they made they AO's laugh too). Also, not one adult touched the essays. Not even his AP Lit teacher that edited it. He submitted his original. So the voice probably carried.

This is really going to depend on your school. You should ask your HS counselor.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:one B in AP Calc
Brown, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern

how?

how what?

You can't crowdsource this question here. I'd talk with your school counselor or hire a consultant.

I think desired course of study in an important variable here? Want to study engineering or CS? Better have near perfect stats to get into a top school. With humanities, I think you may have a bit more leeway, as those degrees have a bit less demand at the moment.

3 B's. Two freshman (Covid) year and one in an AP language course junior year. In at a non-HYP Ivy, an Ivy+, a WASP, and a couple other T10 LACs. But DC had exceptional rigor, top test scores, and good everything else. Public high school and no obvious hooks.

Anonymous wrote:one B in AP Calc
Brown, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern

how?

one B in AP Calc
Brown, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern

Hello,

If your child was accepted into a highly selective college, how many Bs did they have?
If you don't mind, could you name the school?

I know this is a silly question as admissions is holistic, but trying to gauge which schools we should target early decision/early action. There are differing opinions in our family!