Currently I am a sophomore in high school and have a weighted gpa of 3.5 with honors math and ap world history, in which both I got a B. But are ap classes worth it with a lower gpa? I am planning to study architecture, and cal poly Pomona is my first choice, especially because it is only 20 min from my home. But, do they look more at your gpa, or do they also focus on the rigor of your classes?
Cal Poly Pomona like all the CSU’s will look at your CSU GPA (10-11th grades with a cap of 8 semesters of Honors points). If you do not take Approved Honors, AP/IB or DE courses, you do not get that extra 8 point bump on your GPA which can make you less competitive.
Cal Poly Pomona admits by Eligibility index and major:
(CSU GPA x800)+ (SAT Math+CR) or (CSU GPA x200) + (ACT composite x10).
You need to have the minimum a-g courses listed for the CSU’s and pass all with a C or higher.
You can make up for a lower GPA by having higher test scores, but since many majors including Architecture are impacted, to be a competitive applicant you need a competitive GPA, Test scores and HS course rigor.
EC’s are not considered and there are no essays to impact your chances.
Since the CSU GPA is capped at 8 semester of Honors points (4 year long classes 10-11th), you want to select AP classes where you think you do well to have a competitive GPA.
http://www.csumentor.edu/planning/high_school/gpa_calculator.asp
Hi - When you say “bump” in GPA, what does that mean? My D is waiting from all the CSUs and she is not sure how to calculate her chances, 3.73 ACT 29 8 semesters AP
@Suburbialife: 3.73 GPA is the CSU GPA?
The bump is the extra honors points you get for taking UC approved Honors, AP/IB or DE courses in 10-11th grade with a cap of 8 semester total.
http://www.csumentor.edu/planning/high_school/gpa_calculator.asp
CPP admits by eligibility index and major
So her EI is (3.73 x200) + (29x10)= 1036. An EI of 900+ is competitive for most majors at CPP. The impacted majors will need higher EI’s and the EI threshold can change depending upon the competitiveness of each in-coming Freshman class.
Awesome! Thank you for the clear response. This is He** waiting. CP did not do the early admissions this year, so we were all hoping that there would be some activity earlier in Feb. Here it is the 15th, and nothing from CP, SDSU or CP Pomona. Arrgh. I know I am preaching to the choir, but boy it would be great if they could get acceptances going early in the year since the app period is 10/1 to 11/30 - then changes to app by 12/31 - would seem they have all the info they need to make some decisions. Also would be great if there was some way to understand how they roll out the acceptances. Friends tell me that it is by alphabet major, or OOS first, then in-state - who knows.