Hi, I am currently a sophomore in high school, and I am really worried about my GPA and whether universities look at/care about A minuses on transcripts. Last year as a freshman I got two A minuses second semester, and I was wondering if they will affect my GPA in any way. (Even though I received those two A minuses, will I still have a 4.0 GPA according to college admissions officers, and will it affect my chances of getting into a competitive university?) I’m really striving to get into an Ivy school, Harvard being my dream school, and I was just wondering how those A minuses will influence my chances of getting in. Thank you!
don’t worry, you still got a 4.0 and an A- and A are about the same weight
So A minuses can still give me a 4.0?
Harvard cares about so much more than GPA. Yes, it’s important, but it’s only one of many components that may lead to an acceptance or rejection. To put it in perspective, I’m pretty sure the average GPA for accepted Harvard freshman is something like a 3.85 unweighted.
You’re a sophomore, so your schedule probably isn’t really rigorous yet. But once you get into higher grade levels, you’ll see that an A- is a great grade – heck, even a B is great in certain classes. Don’t stress now, really. You’ll run yourself into the ground. You do NOT need a 4.0 to get into Harvard.
Do they use a 4.0 scale at your school or percentiles from 1-100% ? Or just letter grades?
An A- is roughly a 3.7 numerically.
@BabylonBabylon So, essentially, does it really matter which classes I got the A-minuses in? Thank you (:
@mamaedefamilia I think they just use letter grades, but I’m not entirely sure. Is there any way that I could possibly raise the 3.7 to a 4.0 or am I stuck with it? Thanks
Only your school can tell you the numerical equivalent for an A- at your school, but if it shows as an A- on your score report, it’s likely going to count as a 3.7. If that’s the case, no, you don’t have a 4.0.
Are you asking if it’s possible to raise a grade from a previous year? Not likely.
A couple A- grades are not going to make or break your chances at ANY college though.
I agree that a couple of A- grades freshman year is not really a cause for concern. The only way you could obtain an unweighted 4.0 as you move forward would be to earn a couple of A+ grades in core subjects, assuming your school gives them. Also, rigor is important so if those were honors or accelerated classes, that will be taken into account. As you move forward, AP classes also are weighted more heavily than courses taught at the average level.
It depends on the HS. At many HS’s an A- is a 3.7. At Harvard, an A- is a 3.7. Regardless, a couple of A-'s will not doom an application.