<p>I keep asking this, and no one can give a definitive answer.
USC used to say that their average GPA was 4.0. This is obviously weighted. Does anyone know how they weight it?</p>
<p>Now they say that their average GPA is 3.8. If that is unweighted, then that is ridiculously good. Great, I don't know if even USC's average GPA can be that high. If a person has 45 classes, that's roughly 38 A's and 7 B's.</p>
<p>Is the average student at USC really possesive of a 3.8 GPA and 1300 SAT Score?</p>
<p>I have a 3.45 in a very advanced courseload only counting academic classes (Math, Science, Foreign Language, English, and Social Studies) (6 AP's this year, 4 last year, all honors, blah, blah, blah) and a 1540. Am I out of the running because my GPA is sooo much lower than the average? Or are USC's numbers inflated?</p>
<p>As far as I know, USC uses a "unique" way of determining average GPA...something to do with weighted GPA, as you know, but I'm not 100% sure what the exact process is. I am like, 99.9% sure that USC's GPA listed is NOT unweighted, and they use some funky way to determine it. Don't worry too much :)</p>
<p>i feel the same way...really confused...i have a fairly good weighted GPA, but unweighted its a 3.5 :(. i've taken as many Ap/honors courses as possible, so i hope that helps a little. i think that maybe they weight it similarly to the UC system, only counting certain courses more than others, in a really weird, confusing way. i also thought that a 3.8 average GPA was pretty high, but thats what the website says, and they imply that it is unweighted. but who really knows...</p>
<p>It's not unheard of for a college to use GPA's weighted in one way for admissions decisions, and then to report "average" GPA's for general information distribution using a different, more favorable weighting system which coincidentally enhances the school's reputation. IIRC, for admissions purposes USC weights only AP, IB and college courses, but not honors courses, even if they're "approved" by the UC system. That doesn't mean that the "3.8 average" - which is described as "unadjusted", whatever that is supposed to mean - is also calculated that way, though.</p>