<p>In terms of my own school, it is a little weird in that the top 10% of 2012 or so are much much much more competitive than the top 10% of 2011 and 2010, but on average, everyone tends to be less competitive and less academically successful than the previous classes. While the GPA difference between 1 and 2 of 2011 was about .07 or so, for 2012 the GPA difference is apparently about .005. The difference between 20 and 21 on the other hand is about .2 for 2012, while for 2011 it was still about .05</p>
<p>Wow, this is so NOT true for my school. My high school has 100 kids so it’s a pretty small sample size but the class of 2012 is FAR superior. Class of 2011 had terrible grades, the teachers and staff hated them as a class (they were so happy when they graduated), and they didn’t contribute to the sport teams and clubs. My class basically had to be the seniors. We carried the school. </p>
<p>But i really hope that overall we’re not as competitive. That with less graduates hopefully will make this year better than last year for college admissions (for the students!).</p>
<p>“Note that I do not have a source to back me up, but I HEARD that this is true because there are less students in the class of 2012 than there were in last year’s graduating class. This will be of good benefit to us if it is true!”</p>
<p>It is true that the total universe of U.S. kids is slightly smaller and starting on a downward slope. And, the economy is persuading a lot of very competitive kids to select their state flagships.</p>
<p>But, the common application has made it easier for applicants to apply to many schools and there is some evidence that there are more students willing to attend college far from home than in previous years - this has made the tipy top schools more competitive.</p>
<p>I have not seen any data to suggest that standardized test scores are any lower or higher. We’ll have to keep our eyes and ears out for more information.</p>
<p>I agree, my class is 2012 and we suck.</p>