Inside Scoop/GPAs for Hamilton College!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Hamilton College
1

Hi CC!
I am on the way home from a fantastic Junior Preview Day at Hamilton College! Everyone that I encountered was so friendly, and many had similar interests to mine (Creative Writing, Music, Sociology, and English). I’ve toured almost ten schools now and Hamilton is by far my favorite- in fact, I could easily see myself applying Early Decision down the line, which I haven’t felt at any other school besides Hamilton.

First of all, what’s the inside scoop on Hamilton? In other words, what should I know that admissions faculty and tour guides would not necessarily tell me (good and not so good)? Moreover, although Hamilton has published their standardized test scores, and luckily, my ACT score is right in there with other applicants, the Dean of Admissions told me that Hamilton does not publish GPAs. In order to make sure that I am a competitive applicant, would current students/parents and alumni mind commenting what their GPAs were coming into Hamilton? My current GPA is 3.8, which should be raised a bit by the end of junior year.

Thanks in advance!
Elena

2

They don’t publish GPA statistics because it is so dependent on the rigor of the high school the student comes from. Students coming from relatively less competitive high schools often have exceptionally high GPAs, whereas other students who come from extremely competitive and academically rigorous high schools tend to have lower high school GPAs (relative to their peers from less rigorous schools, still probably not lower than a 3.5 or so). That being said, most Hamilton students would say that they were among the top students in their high school, whether that means valedictorian at a rural, non-competitive school, or top 25% at an extremely rigorous well-known high school. Basically, it’s all relative, and only you can know what your 3.8 means.

3

@hammygirl Thanks for your response! I come from an extremely rigorous public high school in New York, so I’m hoping that a 3.8 UW or a little higher would be enough :slight_smile: