@lookingforward : the British scale is not the same as the American scale, which h is why a B at TJ is an American B whereas a British A Level B is an American A-.
In the same way, for us colleges GPA matters if us schools, if UK schools gcse+Alevels replace GPA (sorta). Or, no us University cares what your predicted AP result might be, whereas American universities dealing with UK applicants pay close attention to the predicted combination. Or, us applicants are expected to have 5 core subjects, whereas UK applicants are expected to have 3.
Universities have developed 'equivalencies ', similarities that help compare and process.
I don’t quite understand dropping As levels. (that is, I don’t understand M.Gove’s reasoning.) They provided useful information to universities and allowed students to have 4 subjects for one year, and potentially 4 for a second year. It was good for students and universities, and didn’t detract from rigour.
I agree that scores are an important measure. And the predicted final numbers. What can happen with predicted can depend on the student pattern to-date. And the adcoms’ knowledge of the school and reliability of their predictions.
As for B’s, where there’s tough competition- and OP mentioned Ivies- in general, kids with all A’s will stand ahead. England is an example of a country offering many highly attractive, top performer applicants, including those who got A’s and needed no “equivalent to…”
More often, where I’ve seen some leeway is smaller and poorer schools in low SES nations, but where the high school is known to be more rigorous than others there.
I don’t think we disagree that much on this, MYOS. Just different angles.
It is interesting to see all the opinions here. I think that there are minimum requirements in both oxbridge and Ivy applications. The grades are a hurdle, the rest is subjective in different ways. For oxbridge, it is focused commitment to the chosen subject, a mix of excellence and personal passion that can be expressed in a way that make admissions officers want to work with the applicant.
It is more complex for the Ivies - they require a “rounded individual”, but the rest is pretty much luck in accordance with the bizarre and recondite criteria that happen to be in the quotas (affirmative action, subjects, whatever) the admissions officers are instructed to seek. Then there are the un/controllable categories thrown in - if you are a “legacy” (parents went there), are rich enough for your parents to make multi-million dollar “donations” that are “noticed”, or those kinds of things. Of course, truly original excellence is one of the things that the Ivies notice, but it is usually a combination of all of this.