Our HS lists individual classes on the transcript out of 100. For GPA calculation, 10 points are added to AP classes, and 7 points to Honors classes. So, the GPA is weighted.
On the SRAR, we entered the weighted GPA listed on DS’s transcript, but what should we put for ‘on a scale of’? Directions say ’ highest weighted GPA possible at your school’.
Obvious answer would be 110, but that is impossible to actually achieve, because of required regular classes like gym and heath that get no extra points. And… there are so many classes that have regular pre-reqs, like you have to take regular Spanish before taking AP. And there is no AP English available for 9th/10th grade. Etc.
So… what to put? I’m not trying to make this more complicated than it is, but given that I don’t know exactly what colleges do with this info, I’d like it to be as accurate as possible.
They usually mean the highest weighted score possible. However, with different weight for honors and AP classes, I’m not sure how one would go about figuring that out. Check in your Student Handbook.
We asked, and they said in the past, everyone just puts 110. But then they calculated the max given all AP classes except gym/health, and it is 108, so they told us to put that.
But it seems that even putting 108 as the max is doing a disservice to our HS students - there is no feasible way a student can take all AP classes for all 4 years. The percentage (weighted gpa/max weighted gpa) comes out much lower than if they were to just report unweighted gpa. For example, DS’s weighted GPA is 103.74, which, out of 108 is a 96%, but his unweighted GPA(out of 100) is 98.1. If he had used 110 as the max unweighted gpa, his percentile would have been 103.74/110 = 94.3. That’s 4 points lower than using unweighted gpa!
I guess it all depends on how colleges use this information(if at all!) as to whether it makes a difference or not!
Does the school report that accompanies the transcript give you any clue?
If your guidance counselor tells you 110, that is safe. I see the dilemma, though.
Whatever number you use is probably irrelevant. Many colleges will recalculate applicants’ GPAs according to their own system. They do this because each high school weighs differently, and they want to compare apples-to-apples. Or they use the unweighted GPA, since they’re going to go through each class on the transcript anyway, and will evaluate rigor that way.
Instead of listing the “highest weighted GPA possible at your school” is it possible to list your son’s UWGPA and WGPA on the SRAR?
If so, he can go through his transcript and deduct the various +10 points added for each AP and +7 added for Honors classes. Then, with these unweighted grades, he could precisely calculate his unweighted GPA and enter that number.
Then there would be no worries about a possible error in understanding.