How does Michigan admissions weight Honors/AP courses?

I am a rising junior who would very much like to go to U of M/LSA…does anyone know how Michigan recalculates GPA for AP/Honors courses taken in high school? If I got a B+ in an AP course, would it count more than 3.5?

4 (A+, A, A-),
3 (B+, B, B -)
2 (C+,C, C-)

Pluses and minuses do not count.
No weight is given to AP, Honors, or traditional classes.
Give yourself the appropriate score for each letter grade and simply divide by the number of credits to determine your re-calculated GPA.

Thanks. Wonder why they would give no weight to AP/Honors. So is not worth taking those harder courses if you can get an A in a regular class?

@slg2017

While Michigan may not weigh your honors/AP coursework for their GPA calculation, they do consider it heavily as part of the holistic admissions process. If you check out the '16-'17 Michigan Common Data Set, you will see that course rigor (“Rigor of Secondary School Record”) is rated as being “Very Important”, which is the highest designation. It shares this level of importance with gpa (“Academic GPA”).

The admissions standards are high because they EXPECT to see AP/IB classes. Individual high schools offer varied counts of AP courses so they are looking for students who challenge themselves within their environment. Take as many, if not most, AP courses offered by your school. And do not stop at simply earning a solid grade in an AP course - you need a supporting 4 or 5 test result too. Take honors classes at the freshman and sophomore level, but AP or IB as an upperclassman to round out a solid transcript and supporting GPA.

Remember, a 4.0 without AP courses is not nearly as strong as a 3.8 with multiple.

One of the best ways to prepare yourself for the U of M admissions process is to take a campus tour the summer between sophomore and junior year. When you do, pay close attention to the two statues on the front of the Michigan Union. Ask your docent what they represent, and the secrets to a strong application will be revealed to you.

@098123Student

Wait… what?

Makes sense. Thank you for your replies

@yikesyikesyikes

Being a scholar is weighty in itself. You need to balance the scale to thrive in a holistic admissions process.

AP scores don’t matter for admissions -many of your scores won’t be available before the admissions decision. Strong scores are only good for earning AP credits.

But they will still see the ap scores you self report on the common app so as long as you get at least 4s or even 3s it shows that your exam score and class grade were consistent

You can earn a variety of AP Scholar status - a national award designation - by the summer before senior year - demonstrating rigor and success that can be incorporated into your Common Application. Your senior year AP schedule shows continuity.

https://apscore.collegeboard.org/scores/ap-awards/ap-scholar-awards/

@098123Student

I am still rather confused - are you saying it is best to be well-rounded and not just a pointed academic?

@yikesyikesyikes

Yes. Scholar and “athlete” (aka extracurriculars). Meet the academic requirements and your application gets through the admissions gate. If the pool of applicants are all GPA/SAT equivalent, what does it take to be a Victor?

When you think about it, what really is the difference between a 3.99 and 4.01 GPA? That’s what a holistic review seeks out.

I agree somewhat if you phrase it like that haha. When I say “pointed”, that does not mean just grades and ACT/SAT - that also includes substantial merit, but in a focused discipline/subject. For example, a math enthusiast having multiple math awards and maybe a published paper in mathematics (but not much extracurricular achievement outside of math). This person is not “well rounded”, but would still be competitive for admission since the adcom needs both “well-rounded” and “pointed” applicants to create a diverse class.

We agree exactly! Your example of a math enthusiast balances their scholar with math “athleticism”.