<p>So I have been reading a few posts about the chances of getting into W&M and one thing that has come up about GPA is that it's not a good general gauge because GPA's mean different things for different schools.. Is there some way to figure what a good GPA for your school is? Or is it just a gamble? Or even more specifically, do you know what a good GPA is at Orange County High School in Orange, VA? Thanks!</p>
<p>The best way to determine if you have a good GPA is to know your rank or top percent your in compared to the rest of your class.</p>
<p>Yes, CollegeGirl is correct. We use class rank rather than GPA has an indicator of how well you are doing in relation to your peers. Most of the students we admit graduate in the top 10% of their high school class.</p>
<p>GPA is very contextual to an individual high school. What a “good” GPA is depends on the grading scale, whether GPA is weighted and if so how much, what the GPA scale is (is it a 4.0 scale, a 100-point scale, etc.) and the competitiveness of your high school.</p>
<p>High GPAs are obviously preferable as we look for students to have taken challenging courses and received mostly As and Bs (hopefully more As than Bs). Whatever GPA that is at your high school that’s the GPA we’re looking for.</p>
<p>Wiredup - Check with your guidance office to see if they have the naviance information for the previous class. My daughters high school has a wonderful site through blackboard that shows Acceptance History (numbers applied/accepted/attended) for each school as well as a scattergram graph showing GPA and SAT scores for accepted/deferred/denied. All rising senior students GPA and scores are also plotted so that you can see exactly where he/she falls within her high school compared to last years class.<br>
I think this is most helpful as far as “comparing”. Of course, the application is so much more, but it should give you a sense of whether you are in the ball park :)</p>
<p>I will definitely see if my school has something like that! It sounds super helpful. And ok, thank you all. I have a weighted GPA of 4.3, on a 4.0 scale. And last I checked I was 5th in my class, so for now I’m on the right path. Hopefully I’ll stay on it for Jr and Sr year!</p>
<p>If you’re number 5 in your class you are definitely on the right track. Just continue to take strong courses and perform well and you’ll set yourself up well for applications</p>