<p>I was talking to a friend who really wants to go to FSU. She has a 32 ACT and really good ECs, which is the good part. Her average as of now (junior year) is a 3.0 unweighted with all honors and AP classes so about a 3.6 weighted (the way FSU weights it). However, she's taking 4 AP classes this year and getting Cs in all of them. She has an A and a B in her other two classes, but this should really bring down her unweighted GPA.</p>
<p>She has, as I said, really good ECs, Girl Scout Gold Award, on the board of a local charity, did an internship at a local college (FIU) over the summer and goes to a good high school. Does she have any shot at FSU? Do they really consider ECs or is it mostly by the numbers? She's a legacy, if it matters.</p>
<p>Florida State is more concerned with GPA than test scores. My daughters test scores were around average for FSU but her GPA was over 4.0, and 3.8 not weighted. She got in for this fall. My friends daughter had ACT of 34 composite, perfect in one area and over 32 in everything. She did NOT get in. Her GPA was just over 3.0. They will tell you that GPA and rigor of courses trumps test scores. Your friend is not living up to her potential (scores) it appears.</p>
<p>She does have rigor. If she’d taken a few less AP classes, she’d have a higher unweighted GPA. She’s taking every possible AP. </p>
<p>Do you think they consider activities at all? She has a lot of activities and leadership positions. But I remember, even from my own high school days, FSU was more fixated on numbers than other schools (such as I remember people with really high grades and good activities taking and retaking the SAT to get another 10 points). They rejected another friend of my daughter’s who has a 4.5 and great activities but whose test scores were not up to snuff (25 ACT, lower than that SAT).</p>
<p>States schools in Florida have an automatic acceptance of the students on the top 10% specially from public school. That is why you see so high GPAs in the selection process. Now I do not believe all those students go to FSU (they may go to UF though). So if the rigor is there, she still might get a shot. I know a lot of kids in my son school that did not get into UF and got into top 20 schools. I think is because they give preference for public school kids. My niece got into FSU a three years ago with a 3.3 GPA from a very competitive private HS and a lower ACT than your friend. Good Luck.</p>
<p>FSU uses three main (not only three, but these three dominate the others) factors: GPA, course rigor, and test scores. GPA and course rigor are more important, as these are only one-shot items; you screw up your GPA, there’s almost no way to completely rebound. Test scores are considered the least important of the three, because you can literally retake the SAT or ACT about 20 times if you wanted, but these scores are still important.</p>
<p>I would not go so far as to say definitely in. There’s a very good chance she would be accepted. The lower GPA does hurt a bit, as does earning Cs in AP classes. One C here or there isn’t a big deal, but getting Cs in all the AP classes this year is a big red flag, and would suggest that she bit off more than she could chew in the course rigor. </p>
<p>The person rejected with a 4.5 GPA and a 25 ACT wasn’t rejected for their SAT or ACT score, unless they didn’t meet one of FSU’s minimums. In fact, 25 isn’t a horrible ACT score (it’s not stellar, but it’s not all that low for FSU). </p>
<p>While FSU gives certain aspects of the application more weight than others, each one plays a role. If you’re severely lacking in one area, then your odds of acceptance are lower.</p>
<p>The ECs play a role, as FSU wants students that will be active in the community. However, great ECs won’t make up for a poor GPA/course rigor/ACT. Just like a great ACT won’t necessarily make up for a poor GPA. </p>
<p>ddahwan- the landscape of applying to FSU has changed drastically in the last three years. That 3.3 GPA and low ACT might not get in anymore. I know that from what I have seen, friends from high school that were accepted to FSU back then probably would have been at the very least deferred.</p>
<p>The girl who was rejected last week with a 34 ACT is in the IB program. Her GPA was not up to FSU average. So rigor and test scores were there. </p>
<p>I think FSU has really become more competitive the last 3 years. Prepay and Bright Futures are keeping kids in state and FSU has made it tougher to get in. I was worried about my daughter getting in even with her higher than FSU GPA and multiple legacy. </p>
<p>Another friend of my daughters did not get in with FSU average SAT and ACT, 3.5 GPA but had one D. Was not even deferred, rejected.</p>
<p>Yeah, I’ve heard a D is fatal at FSU even with otherwise perfect grades. That said, my daughter definitely had friends who got in with Cs. In fact, my daughter got into UF with three Cs. However, she had very strong everything else including essays. I’m not sure, though, that FSU’s admissions are as holistic as UF’s.</p>
If that person’s FSU-recalculated GPA was just above a 3.0, that isn’t surprising at all to hear that they were not accepted. If you are in IB, FSU tends to offer you a bit of slack for lower GPA- I know, because it happens every year- especially if your other stats are excellent.
Even if you are in IB though, FSU isn’t going to accept you if your FSU GPA is only a 3.0. It would suggest an unweighted GPA around a 2.3-2.4, which isn’t at all good and would suggest that you are struggling to handle the higher-level courses.
Also, if her GPA was that low, odds are good that multiple Cs some semesters or a semester grade of a D were on her transcripts, which is a huge red flag to FSU.</p>
<p>
I wouldn’t say that Bright Futures is keeping people in state. With how much Bright Futures has been cut back year after year, it’s no longer a significant factor. What’s much more likely is that the costs of college are skyrocketing, and in-state is often what a student can afford, and the Bright Futures offers just make it a bit more alluring than the out-of-state bill.
It’s also more competitive because FSU had to cut back on their entering freshman class a couple years ago (although I seem to recall reading somewhere that they ended this cut, although I’m not 100%). The number of applicants continues to grow, while FSU unfortunately can’t increase their acceptance rate very much. Any blemish on your record could spell disaster for your application.</p>
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Also not surprising to me, actually. In the last year or two, FSU has cracked down significantly on grades below a C. They might forgive one if the rest of your application is stellar, but more often than not, you don’t get accepted if you have a D on your transcripts. I was surprised that there weren’t all that many cases this year of people asking why they got rejected, and then they bring up that they had a D on their transcripts.</p>
<p>Keep in mind too that GPA, course rigor, and test scores are not all that FSU considers. They are simply the three most important factors. There’s a number of things FSU considers. For all we know, someone’s essay could be the make-or-break section of their application. Or they didn’t meet one of FSU’s requirements and didn’t realize it.</p>
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It’s not 100%, but in many cases, a D is all it takes for FSU to deny you admission. There’s been a number of people in the last couple of years that have posted here and, assuming they weren’t leaving out critical details about their application, it’s easy to see that the only blemish on their profile was a D- some going as far back as their 9th grade year.
It’s not one C that is killer for FSU either. It’s a continual pattern of them, or in some cases, multiple Cs in a semester or in multiple semesters that can kill an otherwise great application.</p>
<p>Pascal, I was replying to the op whose friend has a similar(3.0 ish unweighted) and ACT (34) that GPA is very important as this girl did not get in. She didn’t perform to her potential. I think high GPA like my daughter and average test scores have a better chance of getting in than the reverse. It was a follow up to an earlier post of mine. I agree with you, GPA is very important to FSU.</p>
<p>In my county, and I’m sure many others, students can retake a class in which a D is received for great forgiveness. This is through Florida virtual school, and it is easy. A student can even retake just one semester of the class if their grade in the other semester was okay. My daughter retook one semester of algebra two, raising her D to a B by getting an A in the one semester. It just has to be the identical class. For example, if a student got a D in honors, they could not retake regular. Virtual school gives you chances to do and redo assignments until you get the grade you want. Therefore, it would be stupid to let a D stand. However, they do not let the student retake a class in which a C was received unless that was before they entered high school, such as algebra in 8th grade.</p>
<p>You’re right, NoleandNoleMom. FSU values GPA much more than test scores, although they tend to give you a bit of a break if your GPA is slightly lower but earned in harder classes, than if it was earned in all regular classes. </p>
<p>It’s because you only get one shot at your GPA, whereas you can retake the SAT or ACT a number of times.</p>
<p>I do not understand why students take AP classes if they are going to just end up with a bunch of C’s on there transcript. I come from an era where AP classes were not nearly as popular. (or maybe I was just too simple-minded to be eligible to take them).</p>
<p>I don’t think they intend to get a C, Rhandiebrew. They do well in one class, and then, they think they can take a bunch of them. Or they do well in, say, Honors Chemistry, but then, that AP Chem is a killer (My daughter knows two people who FLUNKED AP chem after getting an A in 10th grade honors). I do know one girl who took 11 APs with all A’s, but she is a special girl (and she only got into UF).</p>
<p>But I do agree with you, and I encouraged my own daughter not to bite off more than she could chew. 4 AP classes at a time is a lot. Moreover, the way Bright Futures is calculated, one is way better off getting an A in an honors or even regular class than a B in an AP. BF adds half a point for either honors or AP. Therefore, if a kid gets an A in honors, he gets a 4.5, whereas if a kid gets a B in AP, he gets a 3.5. Even an A in regular would result in a 4.0. My daughter is only getting the full Bright Futures because she took honors American History instead of AP. She has gotten a B in every AP class she took, but the honors AH was easy. AND she took the AP exam and passed! We had to pay for it, because she wasn’t in the AP class, but it was worth it.</p>
<p>Also, what my daughter found out this year (senior year) is that if one takes the AP Government/AP Economics combo (Govt/Econ is required of every 12th grader in Florida) one is almost guaranteed to fail the AP exams because there is too much material to cover two AP classes in a single period in a single year. She took the AP Government/Honors Econ class, which enables the teacher to spend extra time on Government so students will pass the exam.</p>
<p>So that’s my 2 cents. When we did the UF tour last month, however, they stated that students who only took 4 APs probably wouldn’t get in. Still, 5 APs could be spread out over 4 years, say none in 9th grade, one in 10th and 2 each in 11th and 12th (which is exactly what my daughter has taken, and she did get into UF).</p>
I agree with you, GPA is very important to FSU.</p>