<p>I have finished my junior year of high school and my unweighted GPA is currently about a 3.73. This isn't great at most of the schools - generally highly competitive ones, including a few lower-tier Ivies - that I'm applying to, but I'm proud of it because it represents that I've taken the hardest classes offered and pulled myself up from the pits of depression and anxiety. My weighted GPA is about a 4.4. As I'm getting better control of my life and of my study habits (any teacher I've had would agree that my main problem is understanding what's being asked in assignments rather than just not being intelligent or dedicated enough), I have reason to believe that both GPAs will increase this coming year. I think if I get straight A's for my first semester this year, I'll have a 3.8; if not, I'll be very close to having one.</p>
<p>Anyway, regardless of my GPA, I am not even in the top 10% of my class (I was ~12-13% the last time I checked). I'm afraid that colleges will look at this with the idea that my high school must give out A's like Halloween candy and that, consequently, they must mean little. It is how far this is from the truth that is tearing at me. My high school is quite competitive and often sends students to top schools like the Ivies, MIT, Michigan, U of I, Virginia, and Stanford. The reason for this is that my community highly values education. Consequently, there are a lot of hardworking students (though I'm guilty of rationalizing that they have no lives) - I'd wager that the top 7-8% at my school all have unweighted 4.0s. If I get straight A's, I'll probably be in the top 10%, if for no other reason that a few people will develop senioritis.</p>
<p>I'm taking great pains not to eke out a way to let this grief of mine slip to the colleges I'm applying to. Besides making me sound like I'm whining, it'd highlight a weakness of my application (they'll be more impressed with my 34 ACT, 2230 SAT, extracurriculars, and presumably essays). I'm wondering, though - am I right that they'll think that my school practices grade inflation? If so, what, if anything, can I do about it? Conversely, will the fact that people with test scores like mine usually have higher GPAs and class ranks imply that my school teaches us well and grades hard?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t be overly concerned about whether or not you’re in the top 10%. In it is better, of course, but it isn’t a magical cutoff. A lot may hinge on how your school reports class rank. If they report both weighted and unweighted rank and your W rank is higher than your UW, that will help a lot. Also, if your counselor marks the “most rigorous courseload” box on their recommendation that will help too.</p>
<p>^unfortunately, some on CC would argue that being in vs. out of the top 10% matter significantly because of the criteria of USNWR rankings. I agree that how your school is ranking people (weighted vs. unweighted) is very important, though. Having solid scores and taking harder classes than the 4.0 students will help to make up for a low ranking.</p>
<p>Top 10% is important at the colleges you are looking at. Approximately 90% of Cornell’s incoming class will have been in the top 10% of their class. However with that being said, you should talk with your GC about this & get a sense for where past students with similiar class rank, other stats as you, have been admitted to.</p>
<p>If this is truly a feeder school to the Ivies and Stanford then being outside the top 10% is not awful. Talking to the GC and looking at Naviance would be good ideas.</p>
<p>Does your school profile provide grading distribution?</p>
<p>As other posters have already answered, if your school is a feeder for ivies/stanford then it won’t look like you practice grade inflation.</p>
<p>However, if “feeder” means that less than 5% of your grade ends up at these top private schools, then schools will certainly see that your school practices grade inflation.</p>
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<p>In short, no.</p>
<p>It sounds like your over analyzing all of this. Relax and work on improving other parts of your app (since there’s nothing you can do about GPA). In fact, most schools don’t factor in first semester senior grades in your GPA, talk to your GC and find out if your school does.</p>
<p>Wait, what? That’s a bad thing if they don’t factor in first semester senior grades! I’d rather they didn’t factor in freshman year grades (some colleges don’t).</p>
<p>Also, I have no idea what actual percentage of students end up at schools like these, but I’d guess it’s around 25% (though probably only around 7% if you only count Ivies). I don’t really have any practical way to prove that to college admissions, though, and they may just assume it’s around 5%.</p>
<p>Why does that make a difference? If I do indeed end up with straight A’s first semester, I’d rather have both my high school and my college recognize that.</p>
<p>The colleges will consider the first semester grades. Your HS will supply those. But those grades may not be part of the reported GPA (if they only calculate at the end of the year).</p>
<p>My school calculates them at the end of every semester, so I should be fine in that regard.</p>
<p>Oh, and one more thing: Most colleges don’t usually do that thing where they recalculate GPAs without art classes and electives, right? (grimace) Michigan does that, and I’ve heard anecdotal evidence that most don’t, but I can’t be too sure.</p>
<p>It depends on the school. From what I’ve read most don’t bother recalculating (too many apps). They use class rank, reported GPA, the GC evaluation of the difficulty of your schedule, and eyeball the classes.</p>
<p>That’s a relief, I guess. I mean, I will have jumped through all the typical hoops schedule-wise and my classes should look decent: honors/AP whenever offered (not the first two years of Japanese because there is no honors level until third-year); a few business classes (mostly mandates); a few art classes. I work hard, so I’m not embarrassed of not taking two AP sciences or whatever.</p>