<p>How important is class rank? Is rank 4 out of 300, okay for IVY standards?</p>
<p>That's the top 1 percent of your class. Don't even pretend that isn't good.</p>
<p>well...i've always heard that you need to be the valedictorian or salutatorian.</p>
<p>You definitely don't need to, although a good number of those who are admitted tend to be either one or the other. Your rank is fine. </p>
<p>Me on the other hand...I have no idea.</p>
<p>shut up, you've never heard that.</p>
<p>^^ Ouch, maybe?</p>
<p>what exactly is class rank? what is it based on? how do you find out where you are? thanks so much, this has been confusing me for quite a while!</p>
<p>Class rank is used by colleges to see how you match up against individuals from your own school.
Every high school calculates it differently (some might not have ranks at all) so the only way to get a definite answer is to ask the counselor at your school, they should be able to tell you your rank and how exactly the process works at your school specifically.</p>
<p>Class rank is pretty important, because it gives a reference point for a 4.0. The same sort of thing works in all other areas of life: if you didn't know about computers, how can you decide about the quality of a processor? Is 1.0 GHz good? Rank shows how you compare with other students, just as knowing that 1.0 GHz is pitiful with newer processors that measure in at 3.8 GHz. Even then, though, a 1.8 sometimes is better than a 2.4 (which is why flops are more easily compared, but that's another story altogether). Similarly, your courseload is factored in, too. Thus GPA, rank, and courseload all go hand-in-hand.</p>
<p>4/300 is very good.</p>
<p>Tyler09: I've heard the same. In fact, I'd say it's a general misconception that you need to be val to get into Harvard, etc. (just as it's a misconception that you need a 4.0 no matter what, to get in to the top schools).</p>
<p>What school are you in? Are you in a school with a low graduation rate or in a school with 20 National Merit finalists? Harvard knows which schools are good and which are not.</p>
<p>no i'm in a well-known competetive public school. 11 people of 300 went to harvard in the graduating class of 2006.</p>
<p>you are very well off then</p>
<p>^^ you don't happen to live in New Jersey, do you?</p>
<p>
[quote]
well...i've always heard that you need to be the valedictorian or salutatorian.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Absolute falsehood. My class’s valedictorian was rejected by all the elites he applied to. I bet almost no one thought that the student *who took AP Calculus in tenth grade<a href="c.f.%20valedictorian%20and%20salutatorian%20took%20the%20course%20in%20twelfth%20grade">/i</a> and was state-ranked in his athletic discipline would end up having the best success. This student was accepted by every single elite university he applied to. His class rank was Top 10.</p>
<p>Is being a valedictorian a sufficient condition for admission to an Ivy League? No. </p>
<p>Is being a valedictorian a necessary condition for admission to an Ivy League? No.</p>
<p>haha my ratio is about the same. 4/300 = 2/150 no?</p>
<p>but ye, it's fine. Don't worry about it.</p>
<p>What if my school doesn't rank? Do you think that hurts me?</p>
<p>obviously not. There's nothing you can do about that. They'll probably just use your unweighted GPA as gauge</p>
<p>I actually know that I got 2/80 because they announce 1st and 2nd in each grade at graduation. Is there any way that I can show that on the application?</p>
<p>hey is 45/702 bad? its like top 6 percent tho</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure anything over top 10% is considered good</p>