<p>^^ I completely agree with numbers 1, 2 and 3. I have no idea about number 4, but the research is from credible sources. These days, it’s standard practice in business to do a google search on employees or prospective employees. Heck, I’ve done a google search on myself to see what comes up. I wouldn’t be surprised if Admissions Offices did a google search on students before sending them a fat envelope.</p>
<p>@MrMom62- I have many friends from JBS, but unfortunately I’m not attending JBS. I attend Priory to be specific. —
perhaps the admins will delete this post to help preserve the OP’s privacy, since we all now know his last name?</p>
<p>Having observed the admissions business for over ten years, I can guarantee you that no one except the admissions committee members know how the decisions are made. There are reasons for this, and you can see it all through this board: too many people trying to game the system. </p>
<p>What is known, and it is based on serious scholarship, is that what adcoms say is at best not the full story, at worst outright misleading. Check the literature, especially the best of the books, and you will get some idea.</p>
<p>Is there a way that I can find this profile for my high school?</p>
<p>^^ Some high schools publish their profile on-line. If your high school has a website, go to their college office or guidance section and see if it’s available. Sometimes you can find high school profiles doing a google search, which is what i did. If you cannot find your high school’s profile on-line, stop into your guidance office and ask to see a copy.</p>
<p>I think that’s what the purpose of class rank is used for, it doesn’t only just compare the GPA that you receive in school but also the rigor (which they usually take into consideration by looking at the averages, like you have mentioned) that is given during the taking of these courses.</p>
<p>^^ Rank has nothing to do with rigor. A student could have taken the easiest set of courses available to them and thereby have a high ranking, which is why colleges recalculate GPA: [Calculate</a> your high school gpa for college | PossibilityU](<a href=“http://www.possibilityu.com/how-calculate-your-“real”-high-school-gpa]Calculate”>http://www.possibilityu.com/how-calculate-your-“real”-high-school-gpa)</p>
<p>The vast majority of high schools no longer provide rankings to colleges, so Admissions cannot determine rank from a student’s transcript or it’s high school profile. But, a college can (and often does) put all applications from a high school in GPA order to determine ranking.</p>
<p>gibby wrote:</p>
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<p>Many colleges also accumulate GPA data for high schools using recent applicants from past years. Essentially adcoms not only compare an applicant’s GPA to current classmates but those from past years as well. If an applicant’s school is in the process of trying to “deflate” GPAs relative to its recent history, it is critical for this to be reported to colleges.</p>
<p>Via the lunatic NYC high school admissions process, my daughter had a choice between a gigantic, very rigorous test-in high school and a tiny school where for sure she would have been at the very top of her class. Although the small school has a unique focus and does a great job educating its students and would have made her a more interesting applicant than where she is, graduating with 1300 mostly high achieving students, I know she is getting a better education and much better preparation for the rigors of college. I think the rigor is worth losing a few points due to grade deflation.</p>
<p>Apologies for taking this slightly off topic, but I am a parent who is planning to move to a new home. (Follow me here because it has to do with college admissions). Long story short. I am deciding between two towns. One has a better school system, but the homes, though affordable, are little higher than what we would like to pay. The other town has homes more within our price range, but the schools do not have a good reputation.</p>
<p>My question is whether going to the less-respected school will hinder my child’s chance of getting into a top college (e.g. HYPS) even if she gets straight As and top SAT scores among other things? Or, like the OP, will she be fine getting into the top colleges if she goes to the “better” high school, but earning only good grades (As and Bs instead of straight As)?</p>
<p>Again, I apologize if I hijacked this thread with my question, but after reading the comments, these questions came to my mind. I’ll start another thread on the parent’s forum if I don’t get a lot of responses.</p>
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I think many highly competitive HS don’t rank any longer but the vast majority still do. And the HS profile gives enough info to approximate ranking.</p>
<p>DVader, I recommend you start your own thread.</p>
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<p>I thought so too, but I googled and found this from the College Board website:
[Class</a> Rank & College Admission](<a href=“http://professionals.collegeboard.com/guidance/applications/rank]Class”>http://professionals.collegeboard.com/guidance/applications/rank)</p>
<p>So I guess it’s not a “vast majority” either way.</p>
<p>Our college counselor says that top colleges know our school very well, but I was just worried about other applicants’ gpa’s that are applying to the same schools as I am applying to. I personally know many schools where many of their students receive skyrocketing gpa’s, and in comparison, my gpa would look horrible. Basically, I am wondering if colleges take the school’s rigor very seriously.</p>
<p>Interesting info oldmom. I wish I could find the report on the NACAC site for more explanation.</p>
<p>If you go to a competitive school that grades more harshly than the typical high school, in most cases, they will understand a lower unweighted GPA. However, they still will expect you to be in the top of your class. For example, I went to a very large and competitive public high school where the average ACT score was 27, but no one in the grade had a perfect GPA because the grading standards were very rigorous. Many students who had high test scores and whose weight GPAs put them in the top 5% or so of the class were able to get into Ivy league and other top school despite having unweighted GPAs lower that 3.7. However, there were many kids who also had very high test scores who were not in the top of the class because of their grades. Even though these students had test scores that made them competitive for top schools, they had a much harder time getting in because of their lower GPAs and class rank.</p>
<p>I hope so. IT wouldn’t be fair if they didn’t. And they want smart kids, right?</p>
<p>Yea, I hope so too :3</p>
<p>Yes-ranking is factored in so if you have a low GPA, but many in your school do, you will be ranked higher in your school. Your class rank is sent to colleges.</p>
<p>Probably not</p>