<p>I spent my freshman year and the first semester of my sophmore year in a British-curriculum based school. It doesn't give out any GPA nor rank.</p>
<p>During the beginning of my second semester as a 10th grader, I transferred to an American High School, which of course, does provide both GPA and rank.</p>
<p>My problem is this: My former school is a very competitive private school; I received 7A's and 3B's (we take 10 subjects according to the GCSE curriculum) but it was one of the best grades in the class. After the transfer, my new councellor intepreted the GCSE courses I took into American courses in order to give me credit. She stated that there was no way that she'll give me all 10 credits for all 10 courses I took (which is very reasonable). Only 6 credits were given and coincidentally, they included all subjects I received the B's on. A GPA that should've been a 3.7 resulted to be a 3.5 (please, no comments regarding the 'subtle' difference with a 3.5 and a 3.7)</p>
<p>My current school on the other hand, is far easier than the previous; its a typically large public with numerous tied with a uw 4.0 valedictorian.
As a class consisting of more than 400 students, even the slightest change in the GPA can drop your rank by dozens. </p>
<p>Will colleges understand this certain circumstance?
Majority of my friends who've transferred to an american high school told me that their new school took into account only the grades they received in the new school. Is this something thats meant to happen?</p>
<p>I seem to sound very paranoid, but it isn't a very fun thing when your rank drops by more than 50.</p>
<p>I would send an explanation to the schools that you are applying to. I don't mean to go into too much detail, but briefly say:</p>
<p>During my freshman year and sophomore years, I attended (name of school) in (location) which is a well known private school in that country. Students take 10 subjects according to the GCSE curriculum. While there, I received 7A's and 3B's. These courses and associated grades were:</p>
<p>(list of courses and grades)</p>
<p>When I transferred to (name of school), my guidance counselor evaluated how my credits while attending (name of school) were to be transferred to my new high school. Only 6 credits were given and coincidentally, they included all subjects I received the B's on. Due to this, my gpa for the first two years of high school went from a 3.7, which was one of the highest gpa's at (name of school), to only a 3.5. This is understandable, but I wished to make you aware of the circumstances of my gpa and class rank so that you can better make a decision concerning my admission.</p>
<p>my current weighted GPA is 4.03, which is ridiculous, considering that during the two semesters I had in my new HS, I received a 4.41 and a 4.58 (5 AP classes) respectively. (more whining... :( )</p>
<p>dufus, do you think I should email the admissions office and ask how they deal with such things?</p>
<p>I would try to get something into your file about it. They could like the fact that you were in high school abroad because of the uniqueness factor. I would type up a letter in the basic format I described and send it. You could follow up with an email afterwards and ask if they received the letter.</p>
<p>Just my personal opinion, but I think letters are more reliable than email because I see them getting into your actual file more readily.</p>