Calculating the Academic Index - Ivys

<p>Would anyone have experience in dealing with the academic index in recruiting with Ivy's and Patriot League. It seems when your HS calculates class rank, it potentially hurts the recruit's chances. The difference between using CR and GPA is 9 points for my son. </p>

<p>Does anyone know if Ivy's are required to use Class Rank when available or can they still use GPA if it results in a higher AI result?
Thanks in advance</p>

<p>They use class rank above everything else. I was recruited by a few Ivies and after my 1st semester senior grades came out, they didn’t ask me for my new gpa but rather my new class rank.</p>

<p>Not all schools rank…my son attends a private college prep and they do not rank. Can the ACT be used instead of the SAT in the Academic Index? My son’s advisor was talking about that, but when I looked at an online index calculator, it only had a space for SAT scores, not ACT.</p>

<p>The ACT is converted to a SAT equivalent score. Consider your son lucky that his school does not rank. I think it may result in a much better AI result if you input GPA instead.</p>

<p>You are lucky your school does not rank. My daughter attends a small charter school within a large public school district. The charter school permits her to take individual classes on her own schedule. She is a junior in a class of about 200 kids, though she has never even met any of the others in her “class”. Most of these other kids are homeschooled by their parents, meaning the parents make up the curriculum, and give the grades. Most are not college bound. My daughter is an exceptional athlete in an individual sport. Like many such athletes these days, she takes distance learning classes in order to permit her the blocks of time time and the scheduling freedom she needs to pursue her sport at the highest level (she is top-ranked in the country for her age). These distance learning classes (we pick and choose among the various schools for different courses) are generally very difficult and thorough (eg Univ of Nebraska, Univ of North dakota, Univ of Missouri), and have been around since long before the influx of “internet courses”. The schools give her the grades which are then transferred to our local charter school. The problem is her transcript from our charter school lists her class rank as something like 81 out of 201, even though her GPA is about 3.9, because the other kids in the school are not only NOT on a college prep track, in many cases their curriculum is not even close to a traditional high school track. Most of the other kids among whom she is ranked are truly “home-schooled” in the sense their moms do evey aspect of the schooling (The moms I’ve met who do this alawys give their kids "A"s), where as my D is home-schooled in the sense she is doing distance learning/not in class with a bunch of other kids. She is applying to Ivies, and has good reactions from coaches (duh–she is #1). But reading about the AI, and the importance of class rank, I fear she is doomed by the company she keeps (or doesn’t) in this charter school and its ranking system… HELP!!! I posted a similar post elsewhere, maybe this thread has some thoughts too.</p>

<p>I she a gymnast?? Many home-schooled gymnasts (as you probably know!) I don’t know that many go the Ivies though because, in gymnastics, it seems the main reason for homeschooling is to make room for the necessary two a day training sessions and 36/hour week schedule of the international elite athlete, along with the monthly visits to Bela’s rance. Most of the top athletes don’t go Ivy becaue the sport is a lot weaker at that level.</p>

<p>Still, if they want her badly enough, her sport should help. I do personally know one international elite (Olympian, actually) who went Ivy with very very low stats.</p>

<p>I know a female rower going to Yale and she is not in the top 10% and I believe not even in the top 20% (small school, top 20% is Valis and Saluts). I don’t think her test scores were that great either, no National Merit status. She did take 3 AP’s before Senior year though and is taking 4 this year…although grades have been a struggle with the rowing schedule. What she does have is the perfect “rower’s body” and good erg scores. Yale told her they would teach her what they wanted her to know. I’m guessing that if they really want you, all the academic stuff isn’t their top priority. Don’t get me wrong, she is by no means a typical average student, but at a very competitive school she is no way at the top of the class. She also worked hard to get noticed starting in the summer before Junior year by making contact and letting coaches know when she would be rowing in a regatta and trying out for select programs. Like everything else, you have to work for it and then no guarantees.</p>