<li><p>Is having a low GPA with a high SAT better?
GPA: 3.5 SAT:2200</p>
<pre><code> OR
</code></pre></li>
<li><p>Is having a pretty high GPA with a low SAT better?
GPA: 4.3~4.5 SAT:1800</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I think the 1st person is a lazy, smart person. The second person is probably a hardworking, normal (?) person. In terms of the UC’s… and Ivy League colleges… which option would be more benefitial?</p>
<p>3.5 and 4.3 on what scale?</p>
<p>1800 is normal. 1800 is considered a good score.</p>
<p>People on CC want to go to some of the most elite schools in the country, which is why 1800 seems to be cast as a below average, or "normal" score. Its really not though, its quite a good score, not excellent, but good.</p>
<p>well personally I doubt the person with the 3.5 would be lazy...if they go to a decent school a 3.5 is hardly a "lazy person's" GPA</p>
<p>they might be running at half throttle and not really "reaching" their potential, whatever that means in a high school curriculum</p>
<p>In that particular situation I think person 1 would stand a better chance just because of the SAT score, especially with a good essay. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems to me that the SAT score below 1950 would be a stretch for an Ivy regardless of GPA. Now if the situation was a 3.5 with a 2400 and few ec's vs. a 4.0 with a ~2000-2200 and lots of ec's and awards then things might be different. I think if you go around and ask at colleges most all will say that GPA is more important for admissions. However for some really elite schools you might need a certain SAT score to "get in the admissions door" so to speak.</p>
<p>Yeah, if you brought that GPA down a little to about 3.0 that would fairly closely mirror the situation that a friend of mine are in. He has SAT scores around 2300 with a GPA at about 3.0, while my GPA is 4.0 with an SAT score of 1920 (to be fair, I didn't do any studying).</p>
<p>At elite schools neither. Colleges don't like lazy kids nor do they like overachievers...that said, a 3.5 is in no way horrible. For that reason, the 3.5 2200 would have a much better chance.</p>
<p>people here dont like SAT scores under 2100 (IMO) because 2100=~90th percentile of the population and the top 10% of people make all the money here in America</p>
<p>*i def will bring my horrible 1950 up to at LEAST 2100</p>
<p>Anything under 2250 is kind of low in my opinion.</p>
<p>yeah, the only decent score is a 2400!</p>
<p>lmao tennisisfun1234 you use the worst logic i've ever heard, using the SAT to determine future financial success lol</p>
<p>also a 2100+ is more like 97th percentile not 90th percentile... you can score quite a bit lower than 2100+ and still be in top 10% of all test takers</p>
<p>you wouldn't get a 2400 every time if you took it multiple times. Don't get too cocky. ;-)</p>
<p>Congrats, though, anyway, karkaputto</p>
<p>I think it would depend on class rank and course selection (how many honor's and APs).</p>
<p>It also depends on the college.</p>
<p>i didn't get a 2400...</p>