UChicago ED1 from private. 3.72 when he applied which was about near the middle of the class. It's a high school that is very hard to get into .. so middle of the class is still pretty strong. 1550 SAT

Very high school dependent. The info here will not be helpful to you, OP. The most helpful info will be from your high school.


My 3.77uw (end of junior year)/34 ACT selective private (nonDMV) DC is a sophomore at an Ivy (ended senior year with 3.81, I think).

Anonymous wrote:From our public in PA, an UW 3.7 will most likely go to a flagship. We are an affluent district, but few parents are willing to pay 95,000 a year so that limits options. Popular schools are Pitt, Penn State, IU (mostly Kelly), Wisconsin, Delaware, Ohio State and Miami of Ohio. Miami is the bargain if you have a UW 3.7 but a much higher weighted GPA.

Occasionally, you will get Bucknell, Lafayette, Tulane or Miami (FL).

For reference, A 3.7 UW is top 40 percent of our class. A 3.5 UW is top 60 percent.

And this is why it is really school dependent. A 3.7 is among the top 10 students at my kid's private school.

From our public in PA, an UW 3.7 will most likely go to a flagship. We are an affluent district, but few parents are willing to pay 95,000 a year so that limits options. Popular schools are Pitt, Penn State, IU (mostly Kelly), Wisconsin, Delaware, Ohio State and Miami of Ohio. Miami is the bargain if you have a UW 3.7 but a much higher weighted GPA.

Occasionally, you will get Bucknell, Lafayette, Tulane or Miami (FL).

For reference, A 3.7 UW is top 40 percent of our class. A 3.5 UW is top 60 percent.

1440 SAT - Penn State. That was DC's #1 choice.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rigorous public. Rigorous schedule. Same as oldest. Unweighted GPA but all honors classes when available. Same as sibling. It "feels" like a high GPA (As and two A-) But when I look at Scoir and I don't see any acceptances for GPAs lower than 3.9.

Everything is high school dependent. At a public high school even a rigorous one that is tough.

Maybe ED to Wake or Colgate or Davidson

Yes, totally different results from a public, even a top one, than a well-regarded private. I know a kid with a 3.8 from a strong private that got into an Ivy test optional this year. He’s not a legacy nor does he have high donor potential. Just a nice regular UMC kid who went to the right high school.

+100000
The op should be asking parents in her school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rigorous public. Rigorous schedule. Same as oldest. Unweighted GPA but all honors classes when available. Same as sibling. It "feels" like a high GPA (As and two A-) But when I look at Scoir and I don't see any acceptances for GPAs lower than 3.9.

Everything is high school dependent. At a public high school even a rigorous one that is tough.

Maybe ED to Wake or Colgate or Davidson

Yes, totally different results from a public, even a top one, than a well-regarded private. I know a kid with a 3.8 from a strong private that got into an Ivy test optional this year. He’s not a legacy nor does he have high donor potential. Just a nice regular UMC kid who went to the right high school.

Anonymous wrote:Rigorous public. Rigorous schedule. Same as oldest. Unweighted GPA but all honors classes when available. Same as sibling. It "feels" like a high GPA (As and two A-) But when I look at Scoir and I don't see any acceptances for GPAs lower than 3.9.

Everything is high school dependent. At a public high school even a rigorous one that is tough.

Maybe ED to Wake or Colgate or Davidson

This is a few cycles ago but my kid looking at LACs applied to Richmond, Villanova, Bryn Mawr, Hamilton, William and Mary as the high target/low reach and had a combination of acceptances and wait list among the list. This was coming from a DMV Catholic high school. I know people will say that demonstrated interest, essays, optional essays that aren’t really optional, and teacher recommendations (went with one STEM teacher and one humanities teacher) can be the difference maker in college admissions but I really believe that was the case. It also think intended major and not having the same list as everyone at the high school also helped. From looking at Scoir/Naviance it could have gone either way.

DC got W&M, Lehigh, Georgetown, Tulane RD, Santa Clara, Richmond, Pepperdine, SMU Cox, BC, Villanova, San Diego, USC. Merit at several. ND and Vandy waitlist.

3.75uw at a grade deflating private. Unhooked. 1580… test score must’ve helped.

I have one at UC Berkeley right now who was admitted on Ivy Day a few years ago based on a 3.72 unweighted GPA - however, his weighted GPA was 4.32 at that point (his spring grades during senior year pitched him down to probably a 3.69 and 4.28 at graduation) and the rest of his application was very strong. Ironically, the greatest card he carried (his test score) didn’t factor into it!

Also admitted elsewhere, highlighted probably by Emory and Michigan.

What state are you in?

Publics are good bets - Boulder, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, SDSU, Oregon..

Schools like Fordham, Santa Clara, Providence, Lafayette, Fairfield, Syracuse, Elon, LMU, and the zillion of SLAC like Hobart Williams, Skidmore, Ithaca, etc.

If you’re shooting for a more competitive school like Miami or Tulane, apply ED.

Lots of options! Don’t let people make you believe everything is super competitive or impossible. Schools NEED students.

Rigorous public. Rigorous schedule. Same as oldest. Unweighted GPA but all honors classes when available. Same as sibling. It "feels" like a high GPA (As and two A-) But when I look at Scoir and I don't see any acceptances for GPAs lower than 3.9.

What kind of school? Rigorous/top/feeder private, magnet/rigorous/specialized public high school, normal public/private…

We need that specific piece of information.

I have one at an ivy with a 4.0 from high school. I have one struggling to get B+ and A- in some classes and although there is junior year, I'd like to understand where the kids with around a 3.7 get in. This one has a lot of leadership and a lot of ECs that are high level and if the GPA was a 4.0, I'd think ivy. But what happens when it's lower for an unhooked UMC kid? Thanks