I know that it varies by school, but is there a general ranking of the admissions factors? (GPA, EC etc)
Not really, but here’s a try:
- GPA 1A. Test scores (SAT-1, ACT) (these two just "qualify" or "disqualify" an applicant. Once qualified, these aren't such important factors anymore.)
- ECs 2a. Essays 2b. SSR
- Rec letters
- Interview (if applicable)
Of course some truly jaw-dropping ECs can climb up the list, as can truly standout essays.
@marvin100 where does rigor of schedule stand in the rankings
It’s in weighted GPA
@marvin100 what I does SSR stand for?
Take a look at the Common Data Set for each school, there is some info in there. You can Google it.
This is so idiosyncratic to each school.
NACAC did a survey of college admissions counselors and published the results. So you don’t have to guess!
http://www.nacacnet.org/studentinfo/articles/Pages/Factors-in-the-Admission-Decision.aspx
Google Common Data Set and the School Name. It varies tremendously. For Texas public Us Class Rank is king.
@janjmom it says #1 is grades in college predatory classes, how does this differ from grades in all classes?
PE, band are not college prep classes.
Agree with @labegg.
Typically, college prep GPA is calculated from the five “majors” - english, math, science, social studies/history, and foreign language. (There’s some variation, depending on the college, to include courses like AP psych or AP economics, but you get the idea.)
@janjmom what if AP Econ is my social studies credit, will all colleges use that?
@1zogden1 presumably yes if that’s your social studies class…I can’t see why not…but I also can’t speak for “all colleges”