<p>Now I am aware that some of the UC’s (IE. UCSD and UCD) give extra point if a student comes from a low performing school. The UC’s have defined a low performing school as a school that has an API of 1-4.</p>
<p>So my question is which rank do the UC’s look at? Statewide, Similiar, or do they average the two? and Is my school considered low performing meaning that I will recieve the extra points?</p>
<p>i’m neither an API nor UC points expert by any means, but here’s some advice: speak to your school counselor, who should be able to tell you if your school is in something called “PI” status, and for how long it’s been in it. it stands for ‘program improvement’, and under NCLB (no child left behind) rules, both you and your parents are entitled to know what is going on with your school with respect to performance. at a glance, it looks like your school and surrounding ‘similar’ schools are all low-performing. a ‘high’ API is somewhere between 8 and 10…</p>
<p>it seems u just want to know about the points for UCs, so …</p>
<p>i wouldn’t say “automatically”, but it’s a red flag. there are many reasons why a school needs to improve, and i’d imagine (though just speculation here) that UC takes those reasons into consideration and weighs them with the number of years a school (or in some cases, an entire district) has been in this status. the longer the school’s been in PI, then things aren’t looking very good (but, in your case, u want (?) your school to be low-performing, so maybe you would interpret that as a good thing). </p>
<p>i really wouldn’t place too much emphasis on this one aspect of admissions though. things seem to be changing a lot with the UCs. are you a rising senior? is there another, higher performing school u could easily access and enroll in under NCLB rules?<br>
just some questions to consider. </p>
<p>Keep in mind, that attending a low performing school is only a small plus factor in admissions. It won’t overcome a 3.3 gpa and get you into Cal/UCLA.</p>
<p>^^^^^
first of all im not applying to UCLA/UCB. Schools like UC Davis and UCSD use the points system and they actually give people who come from a low performing school 500 points extra which is equal to a .5 GPA bump.I am borderline i have like a 3.6 UC GPA and 2040 SAT trying to get into Davis. I need this bump and im trying to see if I qualify for it. </p>
<p>Actually, going to a low performing school is a disadvantage
colleges let people who go to high API school “slip” their GPA a little because the school itself is competitive and the curriculum is rigorous. So if you’re going to a low performing school, be sure to reach out to other stuff that’s going to make you stand out.</p>
<p>if kids who attend a high-performing school are being rejected in favor of out-of-state kids, then kids at low-performing schools are–most definitely-- at a distinct disadvantage… </p>
<p>my advice to any student out there who knows that their school is considered low-performing based on API score and/or PI status (referenced above) is that you take advantage of the NCLB rule which says that you are entitled to enroll at a better-performing school. if it’s possible at all, enroll in the school with the higher API. otherwise, you’ll very likely be unprepared for college-level work.</p>
<p>It’s totally true what said in post#8.
4.0 GPA from High Academic Performance School with 900 and up is different from 4.0 GPA from API with 800 - 870. That means that in the school with for example 920 API class material is much harder and more advanced - extra homework, projects and grading is harsher so kids are working much harder and spend more time studying.
My school scored 910 this year,
[2011</a> Growth API School Report - Canyon Crest Academy](<a href=“http://api.cde.ca.gov/Acnt2011/2011GrowthSch.aspx?cYear=2005-06&allcds=37683460106328]2011”>http://api.cde.ca.gov/Acnt2011/2011GrowthSch.aspx?cYear=2005-06&allcds=37683460106328)
and I can tell you - our classes super hard. My school doesn’t even grade Honors classes in 5 or 4.5 scale only 4 but material even harder than in other Honor classes of the school district Honor classes which are graded on scale of 5 points. So it does matter and Colleges do look at the school standing rank in the state.</p>
<p>Agree with bluebayou.<br>
UC put heavy weight on GPA. Not saying it’s fair, but UC does give extra point when attending a low performing HS although the point given is not significant comparing the points for SAT/GPA itself. Search the UCSD’s point formular in CC, probably under UCSD forum, it was circulated two years ago. You’ll see what it means.</p>