<p>on collegeboard .. it says that princeton "considers" standarized test scores and gpa .. and thinks that personal qualities and such are "very important " </p>
<p>is this true?</p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>However, it's important to note that up there with personal qualities, "rigor of courseload" is listed. Basically, they're trying to say that taking lots of hard classes with a slightly lower GPA looks better than a lot of easy classes with a higher GPA. But that's true in the case of any college's admissions.</p>
<p>Princeton ranks you along at least two and probably now three dimensions. Academic, extra-curricular, and (I believe) personal. Your entirely application is used holistically to assign a numerical rating to you along those dimensions. Above all else, Princeton is looking for candidates who show enormous and special strength in any one particular area. They are also looking for people who will be able to translate their strengths into actual success and results.</p>
<p>Your personal qualities are therefore extremely important because they facilitate success. You can be absolutely brilliant but if you cannot translate that mental ability into accomplishment, it is effectively worthless. Those applicants who possess both great potential and the ability to make use of it are most highly valued.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, a strong character alone will do nothing for you if there is nothing for it to facilitate.</p>
<p>[See [url=<a href="http://www.sas.upenn.edu/%7Educkwort/images/PsychologicalScienceDec2005.pdf%5Dhere%5B/url">http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~duckwort/images/PsychologicalScienceDec2005.pdf]here[/url</a>] and [url=<a href="http://www.6seconds.org/sei/eq_success.php%5Dhere%5B/url">http://www.6seconds.org/sei/eq_success.php]here[/url</a>] for some supporting evidence.]</p>