<p>"penalizes" kids who take non-weighted electives like band? Ok, his HS only gives numeric grades. So, report cards look like this: Earth Sci ACC-96, preAP world-98, Earth sci ACC-95 etc. The weighting takes place this way: at the end of the first semester of Senior year, your are ranked and Val and Sal are determined. AP classes taken add points to overall GPA this way: if you receive a 95-100 average in an AP class you receive one addition point, 90-94 you get .8 additional, 85-89 you get .6 and so on. So lets say DS had an overall gpa of 96, he took 9 AP classes of which he scored 95-100 on 6 classes and 90-94 on 3, his final weighted average would be 96+6+2.4=104.4. Knowing this methodology, will he be penalized if he takes non-weighted electives like band vs. his peer who takes mostly APs and some study halls? Let me know how you think the math works out…thanks!</p>
<p>In terms of class rank, possibly yes. In admissions, no. Keep a rigorous schedule but take whatever electives you’d like. </p>
<p>Yes, but this video explains that colleges know about this issue, which is why class rank is becoming less of a factor every year. <a href=“Why taking choir kept me from being a Valedictorian: Austin Channell at TEDxColumbus - YouTube”>Why taking choir kept me from being a Valedictorian: Austin Channell at TEDxColumbus - YouTube;