<p>Hey guys,
I am an applicant from India and I saw those terms described in the school transcript forms.My school doesn't offer GPA.So should I just leave the GPA field blank(or please convert 80% marks for me into GPA(i have no idea what's weighter or unweighted)).Also if I request my highschool principal to include a note mentioning that GPAs aren't offered in my school would that help?</p>
<p>GPA is the average of all of your grades, usually converted to a 4.0 scale. Weighted means that honors, AP, and college courses are given a sort of bonus to them.</p>
<p>American high schools usually provide a “school profile” to colleges that explains the grading scale used at the school, the requirements for graduation, the range of classes that are available, and the level of competitiveness of the school.
Does your school have a similar document available?</p>
<p>I’m sure you can leave it blank. The school counselor will send the information that explains your grading scale. In the U.S. - every school has a different scale and has to send the school prospectus in to explain it. Lots of schools ARE on teh 4.0 scale, but…there are SO many variables.</p>
<p>Some schools take a 93% and make it an A, an A-, or a B+. Then THOSE letter grades are converted again. The MOST common would be 4.0 for a straight A, then 3.67 for an A-, 3.33 for a B+, etc. Some schools offer A+ at a 4.33, even if they SAY they’re on a 4.0 scale. Some schools don’t even HAVE plus or minus. Some schools are on a 12.0 scale! </p>
<p>So, THAT is why class rank is important, and why your school will send the description of your grades when they send your transcript. Don’t worry about it. In very general terms, for your own benefit only, as a comparison, I think an 80% would be a B- or a C+ at most schools…which would then most normally be a 2.67 or a 2.33 (unless you’re taking advanced/honors courses, then most schools would add their own “weight” to that grade…and THAT process gets even MORE complicated…it’s really only to compare kids WITHIN their own school, to create a ranking).</p>
<p>I never did understand the need to change a precise number grade, say a 93 to a less precise letter grade, be it an A or A-. </p>
<p>Then we have GPA, where a 93 is a 4.0 , but so is a 100…does that make sense? The kid who gets a 93 gets the same GPA as the kid who gets a 99 or 100?</p>
<p>Everything should be based on a number system…a 75 is a 75, a 95 is a 95…simple.</p>
<p>geeps20…I couldn’t agree more. There are STILL problems (some schools grader more harshly or easier, one grades homework and another just grades tests, one offers extra credit, etc.). BUT…if we JUST stick with the FIRST grade you get…a PERCENTAGE…then don’t TOUCH that number. Grading overall would at least be a lot more even across the board. Every school keeps trying to “one up” the next. I GET the weighting for class rank. But, other than that…I really don’t understand. My D went to a high school for 9th grade that SAID they were on a 4.0 scale. Yet they gave a 4.33 for a perfect 100%. That’s ridiculous! So a kid with NO weighted classes could have over a 4.0 on a 4.0 scale. THAT is why I’m “pro” standardized testing. Which sucks for my D, who does well on those, because it seems schools are going back to GPA for their #1 criteria. By the time we take a percentage and make it a grade then take another step to change it back to a number, then manipulate it again with weighting…we’ve really watered down the grading system to an unrecognizable factor in this college admissions equation.</p>
<p>The conversion to As Bs and such is because people within the grade range typically have similar skills/intelligence. And most schools look at your GPA in terms of the highest GPA in the school, so they would know that the school had a max gpa higher than 4.0 (GPA is calculated very very differently at many many schools). I believe that class rank and test scores are more important than GPA… But I digress.</p>
<p>Hey Abhimanyu! I’m from India too. Most schools, especially top ones, understand our Indian education system, and that we don’t use GPAs. No conversion is necessary, leave the GPA field blank and send in a one page ‘transcript’ with your half yearly/annual marks since 9th class. Attach a photocopy of your X board results and predicted XII board results, and a ‘school profile’ if possible from your counsellor.</p>