Hello, I was wondering how much GPA would affect an application. I do know that it plays a significant role in the app as a whole but if I happen to have a below average GPA, would it make a difference between accepted/not accepted?
For the first three semesters, I have a 3.65 UW/4.0 W (I know it’s on the low end) at a high school where it isn’t too hard to get a good gpa. My test scores are projected to be a bit higher (ACT will likely be 34-36, from recent practice tests)
I do have a ton of extracurriculars, but in a field that is completely unrelated to what I’m going for. Awards from competitions, honor bands, just misc. things with some club/leadership thrown in there and a bucketful of semiprofessional music things. Not sure I can list if that helps, I also still don’t know if I can get into a major without having any extracurriculars related to it? In the end I’ll have anywhere from 5-10 APs (depending on how many I take senior year)
My parents are pretty adamant on my getting into a ‘good’ college, so as you can imagine I’m very stressed lately (especially because of the GPA). Any idea whether these colleges would overlook a mediocre GPA if test scores/extracurriculars are good enough? should I try to apply as a music major (for the colleges that allow it)?
These are the colleges my parents think are good:
Northwestern
Notre Dame
UCLA
Berkeley
WashU
Purdue
UMich
Johns Hopkins
I really don’t know what to do, I’ve been stressing too much about this. Is there anything more I can do to increase my chances? I don’t want to disappoint people but lately it feels like my chances are lessening by the day
I will only address UCLA/UCB but UC’s tend to be very GPA focused, however your whole application will be evaluated which includes UC GPA, test scores, essays, EC’s and LOR’s (if requested from UCB).
The UC’s also have their own GPA calculation using grades only from 10-11th and for the a-g course requirements. 9th grades are reported on the application but not used in the GPA calculation. Senior grades are not used in their admission decisions, but you need to do well to maintain your provisional admission.
Are you in-state CA or OOS? This makes a difference on your GPA calculation also since OOS honors courses are not recognized by the UC’s for the extra honors points in the UC GPA calculation.
Here is the calculator and post your UW UC GPA, Capped Weighted UC GPA and Fully Weighted UC GPA: https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
Intended major will also have a huge impact on your chances especially in the STEM majors.
Are finances an issue? If you are an OOS applicant, the UC’s give little to no financial aid, so your family should expect to pay around $65K/year if you are lucky to be accepted.
Until you have actual test scores, there is no way to give you an idea of where you stand. I will post some statistical data based on UC capped weighted GPA and not major specific.
Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 3.80-4.19:
UCB: 12.6%
UCLA: 11.7%
Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 4.20 or above:
UCB: 42.7%
UCLA: 47.2%
25th - 75th percentiles for ACT:
UCB: 30-34
UCLA: 30-34
If you do well on the ACT, then I would add USC to your list since USC leans toward high test scores vs the UC’s.
UCLA and UCB gives no need based aid to OOS students and minimal merit aid.
Northwestern, Notre Dame, WashU and Johns Hopkins are reaches.
UCB, UCLA and UMich are reached if you are OOS.
Purdue is your only match school. You need more matched and a safety or two.
Intended major is important for Purdue. If it’s a popular major, the GPA may be problem there as well.
Except Purdue, the schools your parents consider “good” are reaches for the vast majority of applicants. I am sorry to hear of your stress over your GPA. Do you have a good reason for your less than stellar GPA? Do your teachers know you well and think very highly of you? If you can explain your GPA, then that would help. I also think your parents should form a more realistic perspective of the “good” schools to lessen the stress they place on you.