<p>Hello all -</p>
<p>The question of whether or not excellent extracurriculars can make up for GPA has been bothering me quite a bit lately.</p>
<p>Say as a Freshman I got a B- in Geometry Honors and that as a Sophomore I got a B+ In Algebra 2 Honors.</p>
<p>Can I make up for these poor grades by doing awesome extracurriculars and getting good SAT scores?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>I think if you were going to apply to MIT, then you would be relatively good at math. But you can possibly make this up by getting high SAT scores,specifically in math and taking SAT MATH 2</p>
<p>Depends on how good the ECs/SATs are. I would hazard a guess (you there MITChris?) that a student could be admitted to MIT with a 1.0 high school GPA if they cured cancer or built a working time machine, but neither discovery is likely.</p>
<p>Let’s say, internship with professional company, research at local university, and Intel Science Fair, multiple patents? Too generic?</p>
<p>You need to show MIT that you are 1) academically qualified to take classes here (aka, you’ll be able to survive your classes here); 2) passionate about math and science (aka, you won’t be miserable spending most of your time tooling, and <em>then</em> would be passionate enough to spend your remaining free time taking advantage of MIT’s many opportunities–more tooling); 3) the kind of curious, kind, open-minded person who would fit in here socially. You need to show MIT that in these three ways, you are more qualified than other applicants.</p>
<p>It is more than possible to do this without a perfect GPA. I had Bs in Zoology, PreCalc, gym, and, in eleventh grade, AP Physics C, Spanish 4, and I think probably something else. The year I got most of those Bs I also took 12 AP exams, most of which were self-studied, and got 4s and 5s on 10 of them, and the next year I left high school to do research and take college classes full time. I didn’t get into any Ivy League schools. I think MIT took me because I like taking risks, and MIT not only understands that risks sometimes lead to failure but also believes that risks are important for success in science and entrepreneurship.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, no one can tell you how you measure up until you finally get your admission decision. Try to do things you enjoy, do your best, and challenge yourself. As hard as it is, don’t worry about college. Even people who are absolutely amazing academically or in their ECs are sometimes rejected by MIT because they don’t align with MIT’s mission or wouldn’t fit in socially. If you do amazing things you’ll get much more out of them than an admission decision. If MIT doesn’t take you, someone else will. And you will continue doing amazing things, no matter where you are.</p>
<p>snipersas </p>
<p>Probably an IMO medal is sufficient, and this is discovered every year</p>
<p>^ I doubt an IMO medal would get someone in with a 1.0 GPA - I know people that were rejected with 3.0 GPAs and high scores on the USAMO, so I doubt that combo would work.</p>
<p>You can make it up by having a great interview and writing really good essays. Assuming you are a junior, just spend a lot of time late summer/early fall working on your application and put a lot of personality into the essays. Write about something different (ie. I wrote about snowglobes for one essay 
). Make yourself stand out! Have someone do a practice interview with you and make sure when you have your interview they get to see your awesome personality! This is exactly what I did and I got in My GPA is low (in terms of people applying for MIT) so don’t worry!</p>
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<p>No, we wouldn’t admit such a student. </p>
<p>1) Because why? If they are that smart in those areas what more is MIT going to give them in those areas?
2) If they have a 1.0 GPA, then they clearly don’t like doing school, so why bring them to school? </p>
<p>To answer the more relevant question from the OP: </p>
<p>SAT scores do not “make up for” GPA. Nor is the converse true. Generally speaking, competitive applicants to MIT have good grades AND good scores. Now, if an applicant is particularly compelling, and there is some discrepancy between SAT/GPA that does not weaken our certainty of their academic preparation, we would likely overlook it, because we still think they are prepared. However, the case would have to be even more compelling to overlook the lack of bulletproof academic preparation.</p>
<p>Does MIT consider class rank?</p>
<p>I am in one of the most competitive counties in Virginia (my junior class is 675) and our classes, especially AP Language and AP US History, are especially challenging.</p>
<p>Would MIT consider an A- instead of an A if an A- is top of the class in the context of my school?</p>
<p>^ If you (or your counselor) give MIT the context, MIT will consider it.</p>