<p>They aren't bad at all, but applicants to top schools who don't have specific hooks (recruited athletes, URMs, meaningful legacies) usually have averages in at least the 3.7 range UW (that is, solid A-), and for the super-tops even higher. Chances are impossible to calculate in any case because there are so many variables.</p>
<p>I agree with mattmom. Also, when the SAT is as high as 1450, one wonders why the grades and class rank aren't in the upper range. If the student has put a lot of his energy into meaningful extracurriculars, he should make that clear to Admissions.</p>
<p>i dont think you should worry about the 3.4 so much...colleges all have their own weighting system, and they will factor in your ap's and honors somehow...you have a good shot at davidson, don't worry about it so much...</p>
<p>Around here a 3.4 would be a B+ and would be the low 90's. A 3.77 would be an A- and that would be in the mid 90's.</p>
<p>"Hismom" mentions her two kids -- one at Emory, the other at Davidson. I would like to hear more on her comparison of these two schools. What are the major differences beyond the obvious geographical?</p>
<p>Remedy, you are in Atlanta, are you at Emory? Davidson is significantly smaller, and further out of the city. I would not call it rural, it is in a small cute town, and is a short drive away from extensive shopping. It is also located near the shore of a large lake (like Lake Lanier) with very upscale housing lakeside. I would say atmosphere wise, the school is slightly more conservative than Emory, with fewer students from out of region, but is liberal for a Southern school (more so than W&L or Vandy). It seemed to my daughter to be very academically rigorous, and academically focussed. It is most comparable to Williams or Dartmouth, but in a "better" location. Athletics are big, but not quite as big as Williams.</p>
<p>Remedy - I can't be too specific about the differences between Davidson and Emory. My daughter is a soph. at Davidson but my son was just accepted to Emory - he is still in high school. My daughter loves Davidson, but she has always liked small classes and getting to know her instructors. She likes walking across the beautiful campus and greeting people she knows. My son prefers a large school in a city - he would get bored at Davidson. Academically, I think Davidson is tougher to get into, and it is academically demanding. Grade inflation doesn't exist there and A's aren't freely given out. The dorms and the food are better at Emory, but at Davidson your laundry is done for you free of charge! I hope my son is as happy at Emory as my daughter is at Davidson.</p>
<p>Thanks to cangel and hismom for the feedback. I have apps in to both and have visited both. I was simply looking for subtleties in quality of life and learning environment. Free laundry is cool. So is good food.</p>
<p>You bring regional diversity. I can't imagine Davidson would turn down a national merit semifinalist. Most of their applicants come form the south and southeast. I say you are in.</p>
<p>Just to reply to hismom:
"I agree with mattmom. Also, when the SAT is as high as 1450, one wonders why the grades and class rank aren't in the upper range. If the student has put a lot of his energy into meaningful extracurriculars, he should make that clear to Admissions."</p>
<p>My sat score last year was 1480. At my school I have a 90 avg and I bust my butt off everyday. I sleep at 2 - 3 everyday, wake up at 5:30 - 6 and I barely get by. I do play sports and I do have a steady job that I absolutely cannot give up which probably accounts for my rough sleeping schedule. Also it takes me 70 - 85 minutes to get to school so that's more extra time taken off my day. However, the reason my average is so "low" is not becauase of those above factors, but rather because my school is TOUGH. For college placement: WSJ ranked it 9th this year, and worth magazine ranked it 1st among public schools, 25th overall, in 2003. I know students with 91 averages getting into Dartmouth, and some students with 89 averages getting into Northwestern (albeit this isnt a very good sample size). The point I'm trying to make is, just because one's gpa is "low" doesn't mean that person is automatically out of the running at a school like Davidson because that person's hs may be very very difficult and competitive.</p>
<p>I'd be happy as hell to have an 89 average. I know a kid with an 81.25 that got into Princeton, 1210 SAT score. GPA and SAT scores are not everything.</p>
<p>On a related note, who got in EDII?</p>
<p>Drop65, that is where the school profile comes into play. I would think that Davidson, being a smaller school would scrutinize every app and weight the school load and difficulty when assessing the gpa as most schools do. I have seen kids at S's school get into some top schools with a 3.3, 3.4 average, but when it gets lower than that, there had better be some hook for the student to get in. URMs who get some break on the SAT scores do not seem to get much of a break on the gpa. The only category I see with the breaks on the grades are very good athletes who are being recruited. Because Davidson is not as commonly subscribed to by northeasterners as some schools, it is difficult to see where a student from S's school would stand under their assesment. Not enough numbers to determine. I do know that UVA turned down a kid this year with slightly under a 3.5, legacy, very high SATs-near perfect. They have their formulas and stick to them. Michigan, too , is pretty strict with gpas and NYU as well, even from prep schools. So if the highschool is one on Davidson's radar screen or they do take note on the difficulty of the school, a 3.4 or a 90 average is not going to sink a desireable student. Borderline might be a whole different story. It also will depend on the pool of applicants they have in a particular admissions cycle.</p>
<p>They are down to about a 25 percent admit rate, so although geographical diversity may still be a factor in some borderline cases for out-of-region applicants, it may be getting less so.</p>
<p>Drop65, in your post to me you say you average 3-4 hours of sleep at night because your daily commute to school takes 2-3 hours, you play sports, have a steady job, but feel you "just barely get by." As a parent of 2 teenagers, I'm concerned. You're obviously very bright and motivated. If you were my son I would urge you to do whatever is necessary to start getting 8-9 hours of sleep most nights. Take a break from sports, quit your job, go to a school closer to home, whatever. I'm sure you'll get into good college.</p>
<p>you go to bellevue... you guys must've been psyched when you beat de la salle last year.</p>
<p>hismom:
I definately agree that I need to lighten up. But there is so much pressure from my parents, my relatives, from everyone for me to attend one of the best universities/colleges in the world that loosening up my workload is not an option at this point. At the school level, what's really frightening is that many students work just as hard as I do, some even harder. It's hard to imagine, but the environment at my school is uber-competitive and at any given idle moment, you feel like you have to do something productive or risk falling behind the pack.</p>
<p>yeah it was pretty sweet de la salle lost their next game though, lol, so its a good thing we beat them first. but it was tight being the 8th best football team in the country and the only school in WA to win four straight football championships</p>
<p>I have questions regarding GPA at Davidson. Does Davidson only look at unweighted GPA? Do they look at weighted GPA as well? Also, which GPA does Davidson use? Do they use the GPA from grades 9-12 or that from grades 10-12? Well, as for myself, I am currently a junior and I rank in the top 1% of my class (I'm guessing that I'm about 5/about 550). I'm not too sure about my unweighted GPAs, but I currently have a total weighted GPA of 4.18, and so far have an academic weighted 10-12 GPA of 4.32. I'm taking the SAT I next Saturday, but am expecting anywhere from 1950 to 2200 on the New SAT, due to my inconsistency. I have interest in Davidson, and I just wanted to know a few things regarding GPA. Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>I don't have the answers to your GPA questions, Powerabe. You can call Davidson Admissions and ask them. 1-800-768-0380. If you're in the top 1% of your class, I'd say you have a very good chance of acceptance. Hopefully you're taking AP classes and can write some good essays. Good luck!</p>