How much do upward trends in GPA matter?

So I’m incredibly nervous right now about getting into some top tier schools due to my low gpa. (3.6) This is largely due to my freshmen and first semester of my sophomore years. My gpa in freshmen year consisted of mainly B+'s and a few A’s then my first semester of sophomore was pretty much the same except i was taking 2 honors and 1 ap class, then my second semester i got about 4 a’s and 2 B+'s, now my first semester of my junior year had ended and I have all A’s, three of which are in AP classes. Would good colleges (Harvard, Duke, Vandy, etc.) be willing to look at my application due to my strong upward trend as well as my high sat score (2250) and pretty good EC’s? Thanks.

If you get all As for the rest of hs I think that would be a great upward trend. They’ll definitely look at your application, but it all depends on essay and ECs whether you’ll get accepted

Upward trends mean a lot but having a high GPA means just as much. Obviously they’re not just gonna toss you in the trash for having a 3.6 but it will definitely hurt. IIRC the average incoming GPA for Harvard was 3.97 and a 3.6 is very very far from that and your SAT doesn’t exactly make up for it.

bumppp