<p>How much do colleges know about which schools deflate grades? It's not exactly something the school reports, is it? At my school a B+ is an amazing average because they deflate grades, and most colleges know that because most people go to really good schools...but how do high schools go about reporting grade deflation? Will an ignorant or new AO who hasn't heard of the high school assume that I'm just not that smart because I have a B+/A- average at a great school?
I'd also love some input from anyone else at deflated schools...don't you feel like you're so inferior to all of your friends at the inflating schools, who have A+ averages and complain about A-s??!!?!</p>
<p>…</p>
<p>They won’t know straight up if a school practices grade deflation. They may be able to detect something via class rank, however. If you are ranked, say, in the top 5th percentile of your high school despite an A- average, then colleges will most likely ascertain that the grading system is relatively difficult if even the top students aren’t earning A+ averages.</p>
<p>My school doesn’t report class rank. Or GPA. Ahhhh!</p>
<p>Your high school actually has an official policy of grade deflation? I’ve never heard of anything like that. Wow!</p>
<p>No it’s not an official policy, but it’s a very rigorous private school that expects us to produce college-level work. I’ve had a B+ in English throughout high school and consider it my strongest subject, even though I’ve gotten higher grades in other subjects, because the standards are so high. But I know colleges must know something about it, because kids with B+ averages, decent ECs, and 2100-2400 SAT scores (the norm, at least for the superscores, at my school) get into Ivies and other top schools ALL the time. Even ones with Cs on their transcript (though usually those were in 9th grade).</p>
<p>private schools generally provide a profile like this:
<a href=“http://www.lakesideschool.org/ftpimages/252/download/Profile-Final%20’09’10.pdf[/url]”>http://www.lakesideschool.org/ftpimages/252/download/Profile-Final%20’09’10.pdf</a>
that accompanies transcripts sent to colleges.
ask a GC to see yours.</p>
<p>Most colleges will send something like a Secondary School Report to the guidance counselor where they explain things like course rigor and grading policies so that they can accurately determine.</p>
<p>driftwood:</p>
<p>DD’s school has significant grade deflation and does not rank. But in the annual profile it submits to colleges, it explains its philosophy regarding AP and honors classes, and has a graph which shows the grade distribution of courses taken that year by juniors. It’s pretty clear how the school grades after a minute or two looking at the profile.</p>
<p>I’m sure your school provides something similar (?) and certainly colleges that tend to get applications from your school will be up on what’s going on.</p>
<p>It’s exhausting getting report cards with comments like “you are amazing, and it is my pleasure to give you a B,” but once you have access to Naviance graphs, you can comfort yourself (a little!) with the knowledge that colleges get it.</p>
<p>Don’t worry, as others have said, the high schools have a report of their grading system.</p>