<p>I'm worried, because I know the normal grading scale is 91-100 is an A, but for my district, it is a 93-100.</p>
<p>So, my question is, how would an Ivy interpret these grades:</p>
<p>91-B or A
95-A
97-A
91- B or A?
92- B or A
93- A
95-A</p>
<p>would that be a 4.0 or a 3.5?</p>
<p>My transcript comes with the number grades in paratheneses next the to course, and the weighted average at the bottom, so how would colleges interpret, say a 92.2 B?</p>
<p>It would be great to see a national simplification of transcripts. Without the numerical value next to the grade, a “B” for example in our public high school could run from 80 to 89.5. That’s quite a big spread and does the student no service when the grade is listed alone without the corresponding number.</p>
<p>Also, some comment on a school’s over all approach to grades seems worthy. While word often gets around amongst colleges about who is tough, easy, middle of the road etc, a straightforward guidance department comment pertaining to lack of grade inflation or deflation practiced here, or we do not use curves, nor allow extra credit or projects when close to upper quartile (which then leaves it to teachers to play a powerful role) would again benefit the applicant. Words can clarify. Two different schools attended during high school should reflect in their transcript the above.</p>
<p>Good luck on your search for answers. I have heard that Ivy’s disregard 9th grade GPA, yet in today’s competative climate, I find that hard to believe.</p>
<p>The grading system should not be a big deal, adcoms know what they’re doing. Fairfax County in Virginia, which includes Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology (#1 HS in US), runs on a 6 point scale. You think your 7 point scale is bad, well their A goes from 94-100. It doesn’t stop Fairfax from over-accomplishing every other county in the state.</p>
<p>^No weighting for Honors, .5 weighting for AP. I believe (your) 7 point scales give no weighting for Honors as well, but .7 for AP. Furthermore, the 7 point scale awards for +'s, 6 point scale generally does not.</p>
<p>Thomas Jefferson High School, well known to all adcoms, is rather straight forward now isn’t it with it’s 6 point grading scale. That shortens the numerical range of letter grades, and hence are more honest to the student.</p>
<p>It’s all the non-TJ’s in the country, perhaps less well known or with wider numerical spread of grades (the 10 point spread as example) which do our students a potential injustice. Numbers may be speak more clearly than grades.</p>
<p>Fairfax County in Virginia, which includes Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology (#1 HS in US), runs on a 6 point scale. You think your 7 point scale is bad, well their A goes from 94-100. It doesn’t stop Fairfax from over-accomplishing every other county in the state.>></p>
<p>The grading scale was changed last year and effective immediately. So this year’s seniors have two years under the new scale. A 93 used to be a B+. TJ also has a different weighting system than the other district high schools. </p>
<p>Most of Virginia actually uses that scale, I live in Virginia, and we’ve had that scale all my life, until next year, it is pretty tough, but I’ve never been in a position where I have had to be mad about it.</p>
<p>I actually didn’t mean to cause the focus to be aimed at TJ, and I do know it was changed as of last year, but that doesn’t have anything to do with the topic at hand. If we jumped back a year, the topic would be the same and the points for arguments that everyone has would still be the same.</p>
<p>As for TJ, I actually meant to simply point out FFCounty in general. Even Langley, which is not TJ, is a great school producing great students who go to great places, and they have (had) a 6 point scale, so giveherwingsmom, I wasn’t trying to really focus on TJ. I just went off on a tangent with that, sorry.</p>
<p>By the way cap, I was wondering, they made it active for the year they changed it?! LUCKY! I’m from Loudoun, we underwent the same change but it was not made active for the year it was changed. Every stat for last year is all on the old scale. They only made the new weighting system active for last year, which mean we got 1.0 for any AP taken only last* year. -.- Lame</p>
<p>My guess is that this isn’t relevant to the top colleges. It’s not as if they will calculate a GPA, and say that if you have a 3.8 you’re fine, but if you have a 3.7 that’s not good enough. Instead, they’ll look overall to make sure you’re doing well in challenging classes, and make a general observation of your coursework, and move on from there.</p>
this concern is essential a moot point … a much bigger influence on GPAs are how easy the courses are … are you more likely to get a A in a course with a 93-100 A scale where 75% of the students get 93+% scores … or a course with a 91-100 A scale and only 25% of the students get 91+% scores?</p>
<p>My understanding is that the IVYies do not restate As to Bs (or Bs to As). They do do things like … 1) consistantly treat +/- type grades … 2) consistanly treat honors and AP courses … 3) be consistent about which years of school count (high schools have differing policies about freshman and senior grades for example) … and 4) restate all applicants grades onto a common grading system/scale (various high schools have incredibly differing grading scales and systems … by scale I mean are schools on a 4.0, 4.3, 5.0. etc scale).</p>