<p>This whole nerd discussion made me laugh.
Its not as if there is specific criteria for nerdiness. Its not usually meant to mean someone who indulges in their passions, its generally a word used to describe people who focus on academics and as a result have decreased social skills. So I think lr2010’s statement about EC’s makes sense.</p>
<p>And just to add to the actual topic of this thread, my school uses the naviance website that displays the GPA’s and SATs of all students who applied to different schools and shows the average GPA of accepted applicants from my school. The average unweighted GPA accepted at Brown from my school was quite low at below a 3.5. Granted, I’m sure most people have taken 4 APs per year and have good weighted GPA’s, but Brown obviously does not seek out straight A+'s. This is a good thing I think because honestly, getting all 800s and having a 4.0 means nothing in the real world. (But obviously you have to be a very impressive applicant to be selected)</p>
<p>No, you do not have to be perfect. Sure, colleges always take someone who is super perfect, but often that person doesn’t have the depth that some other applicants have. They take people much less than perfect because they are interesting or have specific talents. Brown took 4 people ED from my school. None had above a 3.85.</p>
<p>
Precisely. Of course Brown accepts people with less than 4.0 GPAs. All colleges do. </p>
<p>What that doesn’t mean, however, is that lower grades won’t hurt your application. Could your other factors compensate? Could you get in anyway? Perhaps. Still, your application is not as strong as it would have been had your grades actually been perfect. </p>
<p>Brown’s regular decision acceptance rate last year was 10%. For every accepted applicant with a 3.5, how many were rejected? 7? 8? 15? </p>
<p>Anecdotal evidence is lovely, but I would be willing to bet quite a lot that the acceptance rate for higher GPAs is higher than that of lower GPAs. There is a seven percent drop between the acceptance rates for valedictorians and salutatorians alone. That is more than can be accounted for by extracurricular activities.</p>
<p>Of course you can get in with less than 4.0. No one had a 4.0 at my high school; grade deflation was rampant, and we didn’t weight GPAs. Colleges will look at your GPA in the context of your high school it’s not like the adcom sees a 3.95 (or a 3.75 or a 3.3) and throws the application away without a second glance.</p>
<p>Granted, I’m extremely skeptical when it comes to the admissions process. I’ve read a lot and talked to a lot of informed people, so I do know that no matter what any admissions office claims to do, things aren’t going to be as fair as we like. </p>
<p>However, I do know that your application will be read by someone who knows your background. Even if your grades and scores are not up to standards, you might still make the cut if you have something else in your favor. People get in for all sorts of reasons.</p>
<p>If you want cold, hard facts from the Brown Admissions office, go here: [Brown</a> Admission: Facts & Figures](<a href=“Undergraduate Admission | Brown University”>Undergraduate Admission | Brown University)</p>