<p>I realize that schools use different grading and reporting systems but it seems to me that you are better off if they simply report A, B, C. </p>
<p>Using the "-" could put an applicant at a disadvantage particularly if the school does not rank. </p>
<p>For those of you who have been successful getting into the Top 10, has anyone had a transcript with a fair amount of A-s?</p>
<p>Most colleges understand the different grading and reporting systems like you said, and will just consider the letter grade. Ranking and GPA is also important. A few A-s will not kill you in the applicant process.</p>
<p>BUMP! I need to know too!</p>
<p>Like everything, the answer is “it depends.” While adcoms from top colleges have repeatedly iterated that a B+ or an A- here or there is nothing to worry about, grading standards differ by school. In my shoddy public high school, no one has ever been accepted to an Ivy (because at my school, there are Ivies and the local state university, nothing in between) without a 4.0. But some schools are more rigorous, and some students are “lopsided,” with deficiencies in one subject but incredible aptitude in another. Remember that for the top applicants, it is not an A- instead of an A that will determine an acceptance or rejejction but whether a student fills role within the school. A college may be willing to accept a student with a smattering of A-'s if they are interested in an obscure subject over the 4.0 aspiring doctor.</p>