<p>This is my personal situation but may be relevant to many of you so any feedback would be appreciated. I applied RD to Cornell, UPenn, Brown, UVA, UNC, Georgetown, and BC. My GPA, up to Junior Year, was a 96.33/100 UW and a 98.77/100 W (borderline top 5% in the class). That was after many honors classes and 3 AP's. Then, I decided to increase the challenge and decided to take 5 AP's and a college class for senior year. My UW GPA dropped to about a 92 (not due to a lack of effort). However, the increased weighting of AP's (x 1.06 of the base average) puts my GPA at a high 97 (not too far from my weighted GPA up to junior year). Obviously it dropped on both accounts but I sent in supplementary materials to all my schools and have solid scores and extracurriculars (I believe). So, my question is... Is the GPA drop really that hurtful with regard to admissions or does the dramatic increase in course rigor help my cause enough to 'cancel' it out.</p>
<p>Thanks to anyone who can help me out or share their own relatable stories.</p>
<p>Hi applicant. I think the colleges can see the increase in rigor and an 89 is a very high B. Considering all the factors involved in selecting applicants, I would be willing to bet that this would not be a reason to not accept you and you have done well in the harder classes which is good . I think it will be noted that you challenged yourself . Of course none of us know for sure and it is hard to wait. I hope you get good news. </p>
<p>Thanks so much @Pennylane2011. I hope so too! I’ve just heard so many stories and comments that the ONE thing you shouldn’t do is let your senior year grades drop. I just wasn’t sure if the relatively significant increase in rigor was an even trade-off.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that rigor of classes is noticed and that it is good to challenge yourself. Also, that “B” is close to an “A” . I don’t see this as a major drop in grades. Hopefully the colleges will agree. </p>
<p>Grades are basically a checkbox. If the rigor is “hard enough” colleges move on to your ECs, Personal Statement and institutional requirements. Therefore if you get rejected, it’ll be for something besides grades. </p>