Northwesten is the perfect school for me, that I’m completely confident in. It’s a good distance from where I live, it specializes in Journalism (what I plan on majoring in), it’s a beautiful campus, and there is nowhere I’d rather go. However, the issue is actually getting in. Their expectations for SAT scores are fairly realistic for me, given I put in some work, but the issue is with GPA. I consistently get mid to high Bs in almost every class, no matter the difficulty. I get the occasional A and I’ve had two Cs so far, but my weighted GPA typically hovers between 3.2-3.5. I’m on my school’s Speech Team, have had a job since I turned 15, and participate in a few other extracurricular classes like Art Club. I’m currently about to begin the second semester of my Sophomore year in high school. I will be taking AP Language/Composition, AP Psychology, AP Government/Politics, and AP French 4 and 5. My GPA will likely go up later this year and possibly during Junior and Senior year, but it is unlikely that it will end up above a 3.5 by the end of my Senior year. I plan to apply to Northwestern with early decision, and I will likely try to talk with an admissions officer as well at some point. My essay and SAT scores will almost certainly be up to par for the school, possibly above average, but I want to know if a 3.3-3.5 weighted GPA can be ignored, or at least overshadowed by the rest of my application.
It is obviously possible but extremely difficult and unlikely. The good news is that you are still really young, and you have enough time to bring your GPA up. Talk to a counselor or your teacher on tips to improve studying techniques or test taking. The admissions process is holistic so having a good GPA isn’t everything, but you have to remember that Northwestern’s acceptance rate is around 10%. Unless other aspects of your application are truly incredible, it will be extremely difficult to get into Northwestern with a sub 3.5 GPA.
Thanks a lot for your reply. I once went to a college tour at Northwestern, and the people there said that they don’t require that people put their GPA on the application (and that if you do put it there, they don’t look at it). If that’s true, it could boost my chances, unless the class rank more or less takes its place. They didn’t explain it very well, so I’m not exactly sure what they meant by it. Are there are other schools that have a similar system, or could you provide some insight on this? Also, what would be a good GPA to aim for that would give me a better chance? A 4.0 is pretty much out of the picture, but is there a realistic number I could aim for that would significantly help my chances?
All colleges will know your GPA because your high school sends a copy of your transcript to every college you apply to. Northwestern is an extremely competitive school. More than 35,000 students apply per year. You know how many are accepted? About 3,700. Most admitted students have a 4.0 GPA. 91% of those admitted are in the top 10% of their HS graduating class.70% of admitted student have an SAT critical reading score of 700 or higher. 80% have a math score of 700 or higher.
That’s what you’re up against.
I can’t imagine that GPA reporting is optional. The common data set for Northwestern ranks GPA as a “very important” factor during the application process.
You can certainly try, but I wouldn’t put my hope and dreams on it. The best college is the one that loves you back. Don’t stress over over it. There are literally thousands of universities to choose from. I’m a working professional, and you will be utterly shocked at how much university name DOESN’T matter. I know a lot of people people in well paid jobs who went to regional state schools, including myself, my dad and 2 of my brothers. What’s really important is the degree and the major.
I’ve been confused for a while about what they meant by what they said about not requiring GPA. Everything else online (data from websites and people I’ve talked to here) have all pointed otherwise, but I am completely sure I did hear them say there that GPA does not matter to them, simply because of how much it varies between different schools. I would have absolutely no difficulty believing that I just misinterpreted what they said, but I would like to hear that from someone who has heard of this system or others like it, rather than just assuming I was imagining it.
Of course, I’m also applying early decision. I don’t have exact numbers, but I did the exact math a little while ago and the stats on that are basically this: There were around 37,000 applicants last year, and about 4,000 applied early decision. They accepted just about 2,000 people total, and half of them were early decision. That makes a 3% acceptance rate (sounds wrong to me, but that’s how the numbers worked out. If anyone has better numbers, let me know) of regular applicants and closer to 25% acceptance for early decision. I know that applying early decision won’t affect my chances with exactly those numbers, because of the statistical differences between people who apply regularly as opposed to early decision. Would anyone know, based either upon real knowledge or just logic, how much the early decision and regular application pools differ, and also which one consists of people stronger academically? The way I see it, the regular application pool should consist mainly of people that don’t believe they need early decision to have a good shot of getting in (say, people that are also shooting for Ivy League), but Early decision is mostly made up of people that feel they need that extra boost, like myself. Will early decision significantly boost my chances, and am I correct in thinking that the early decision application pool is less competitive, in addition to having a higher percentage of it admitted into the school?
Izzyfizz96 - I do not think you are correct in your thinking. It might help you to read the profiles of students who applied ED this year and last year. There is a whole thread on it.
My son (just one example) applied (and was accepted) ED. He has a 4.0 and 99th percentile test scores. If he didn’t get in, he would have then applied to MIT, Columbia, Brown and some other great schools. NU ED is not for kids who can’t get into Ivies, its for all students who really want NU as their top choice.
@Izzyfizz96 Perhaps they were talking about holistic grading- grades aren’t everything, etc.? The holistic applications pitch is very normal for top-tier schools like Northwestern IMO- that doesn’t mean GPA isn’t important.
@Izzyfizz96 You misheard or you misunderstood. Perhaps someone said you don’t have to reveal your GPA ON THE APPLICATION. But that does not mean it is not considered. Maybe you don’t have to WRITE (type) your GPA on the application because your GPA is provided to them on your high school transcript. You have to totally get out of your mind this idea that GPA is irrelevant to Northwestern. It’s very relevant, and unless you are a recruited athlete you will need an UNWEIGHTED GPA that hovers around 4.0.
I will be frank with you. If, as you said, your GPA is unlikely to be above a 3.5 by senior year, you have no chance of being admitted to NU. None. It is a waste of your time, energy, and money to apply there.
You’re interested in journalism? I’m a journalist. Let me say this: You need to be very grounded in facts to be a good journalist. Let this be your first lesson. Don’t chase a source that has zero chance of panning out. Don’t remain “stuck” on one path. Explore and chase down different scenarios.
Also, your numbers are completely off. Make sure your conclusions are factual.
If you want to be a journalist, forget about majoring in journalism. It’s completely unnecessary. To be a good journalist you have to be an excellent critical thinker, have a global world view, and know how to get information and understand it quickly. Study political science, psychology, economics, history, English literature, or a foreign language, for example.
The number-one most important thing you need to do to prepare for a career in journalism is to go to any college that has a DAILY, student-run, independent newspaper. Walk into the newspaper office on your first day on campus and sign up for the training program. Stick with it all four years and rise in the ranks.
If you don’t know what I mean by “independent” newspaper, let me know.
You chances are extremely low and if you can’t pull off all As or close to all As in high school, you would most likely struggle at NU
I know the thread is older but my guess is they meant weighted gpa isn’t important. It isn’t a big factor at so many colleges. But of course your high school academic performance matters. NU is a rigorous college and they need kids who come in max prepared. The competition will have mostly A grades.