<p>I agree with TickGray. The best example of this are those who get accepted into the professional/extension schools of the Ivies. Some of these students got there after dropping out of high school or college, and used those years off to get some solid life experience, work expertise and boost their academic prestige.</p>
<p>Letâs see⊠a 3.5 would mean an equal amount of As and Bs⊠but an unweighted GPA does not tell the whole story. A student who took 20 APs and finished high school with a 3.8 is more likely to get into an Ivy League school than someone who has a 4.0 but never took any APs or advanced courses at that same school. Or a kid with a 3.6 at a school with extreme grade deflation will likely get in before a kid with a 3.9 from an ordinary public school. Honestly, this is why schools will always post their SAT/ACT scores and less commonly post their incoming freshmen high school GPA. There is way too much variability when it comes to GPA. Did the kid take the most rigorous course-load or did he just take the bare necessaries? Is the kid from a well-known competitive magnet school or from a school where As are handed out like candy?</p>
<p>High school GPA needs to be taken in the context of your school. I went to a very competitive high school and had ~3.65. When I was applying to college, I remember going on this site and thinking that if I ever mentioned my unweighted GPA that people would tell me I had no chance at any of the schools I was applying too. I am now a junior at Penn.</p>
<p>GPA inconsistency across schools is made up for by the SAT and ACT.</p>
<p>Silly to think that people on this thread are trying to pin down acceptance into an Ivy League school down to one or a few factors</p>
<p>âholisticâ</p>
<p>nuff said.</p>
<p>Why wouldnât people with 3.5 get into ivies. There are plenty of other factors.</p>
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<p>Because if you canât ace high school, or even come near it, you probably donât deserve to be in an Ivy League school.</p>
<p>^ Thatâs a joke, right?</p>
<p>But what if I have a 2.0 taking all hard classes but 5 on like 4 AP exams and a near perfect score of 35 on the ACT? Oh did I mention I was very poor?</p>
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<p>That would probably indicate that you donât care about your classes and/or turn in your work (almost automatic reject).</p>
<p>I doubt that it would be an almost automatic rejection.</p>
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<p>Descuff⊠having a 2.0 would be an automatic rejection at every top school in the country.</p>
<p>I know some state schools where that would be an automatic rejection.</p>
<p>Wait are yaâll serious? So when college said that GPA is the lesser factor did they only meant for those 3.0 and up?</p>
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<p>LOL what top college said GPA was a lesser factor? Thatâs just not true. Youâre basically screwed with a 2.0. Thatâs a C average. Top schools are not here for that.</p>
<p>I wasnât joking about acing or NEARLY acing high school. Sure lots of people volunteer, take extra classes, work, etc. and have good GPAs (3-3.5 range). But the people who do all that and essentially ace high school? I donât know about you, but if i was an adcom those are the kids iâd be admitting.</p>
<p>itâs holistic. i donât understand whatâs so hard to understand about it. gpa is obviously a strong factor but itâs not the ONLY factor. there are so many variables that can affect an adcomâs decision to accept or reject you.</p>
<p>Wow. I was under the impression that SAT/ACT sccore, and class rigor ranked higher.</p>
<p>So youâre telling me I can get perfect score, take the hardest classes, and write the best essay and still not be accepted with a 2.0???</p>
<p>Legacy admits is hard to control for, cause their kids are often just naturally smarter, have more resources etc. They may have gotten in anyway. No one with a 3.5 belongs at a top college period when itâs admitting at a 6% or lower rate, but those types also tend to fill the purpose of âhappy bottom 1/4.â The only justification i can see is to make things easier on the other 3/4.</p>
<p>^We donât know who colleges will admit, so speculation about such a scenario is pointless.</p>
<p>However, someone with a 2.0 GPA is extremely unlikely to get a perfect score on the SAT or write the best essays, in my experience.</p>