Hi!
So my school doesn’t include freshman year in GPAs, so it’s just sophomore/junior. I’m a rising senior and my GPA is a little below a 3.8. My sophomore year I got around a 3.6 and then my junior year I got a 4.0. Will colleges look at this as “better” than if I had just gotten 3.8s both years, because of the upwards trend and the perfect year, or does that not matter?
Thanks for any help!
Colleges do look to see a rising trend for sure, but they will also see the GPAs from each year. However, an upward trend is always a good thing, and could balance out the lower sophomore year.
Will they see it as “better”? I’m not sure. They would have liked a 3.8 rather than a 3.6 in sophomore year, but they’d certainly prefer a 4.0 to a 3.8 in junior year. I don’t think it is beneficial to you to stress out over this minute detail. You’re showing an upward trend and colleges in general will see that as a good thing.
The best is when your GPA is near 4 all the time. If it is anything lower, it is better to have an upward trend. For instance, someone with 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, and 4.0 in 9th-12th grade would be a better candidate than someone with ~3.85 in all 4 years although they have identical overall GPA.
At colleges that review holistically or subjectively, an upward trend is better than a downward trend when one has a GPA lower than the highest possible.