<p>Assuming that hypothetical students A and B have excellent EC's, Teacher Rec's, and no other hooks, which situation would be better?</p>
<p>Student A: 90 GPA (Low considering it's only a 3.5) and a 2200 SAT. Given mediocre rank (maybe 40-above).</p>
<p>Student B: 98 GPA and a 2000 SAT. High Rank (20 or below)</p>
<p>If I were an admissions officer, I'd have a really tough time deciphering between the two.</p>
<p>The comparison is impossible to make without knowing for sure the rigor of the schools and how intense the competition is amongst the class for a high rank.</p>
<p>That being said, assuming that the students go to comparable schools, admissions officers tend to favor the applicant with the lower SAT and higher class rank. This indicates to them that despite less “natural intelligence” the students achieve due to hard work. The other scenario is typical of the “gifted slacker” student, which are not looked favorably upon by colleges.</p>
<p>B seems more promising.</p>
<p>I’d have to go with the second.</p>
<p>I go with B too.</p>
<p>Let’s also assume that they have the same class rigor:)</p>
<p>I feel that colleges pay more heed to higher test scores, and I’m a little confused by that.</p>
<p>^ if it’s the same class rigor, i myself would personally choose student B easily. Also, i disagree, obviously it depends on the situation (specific numbers) but i think colleges put slightly more emphasis on GPA than SAT score.</p>
<p>How about we make it interesting and say applicant A has a 2350?</p>
<p>it depends on the essays.</p>
<p>The fact that neither student excels in both areas means that if the school even considers both of them, there is no issue; one would generally be just as competitive as the other. If a school was picky so as to pick one but not the other, surely it would pick the student with a high GPA AND a high SAT score. If it came down to both of them for a single remaining slot (which realistically isn’t how admissions works), essays and extracurricular activities would be the deciding factor.</p>
<p>Student A: 90 GPA (Low considering it’s only a 3.5) and a 2200 SAT. Given mediocre rank (maybe 40-above).</p>
<p>The GPA in my opinion is satisfactory and the SAT score is excellent. If this student were to retake his or her SAT’s and were able to bring it up to 2300, this would without a doubt be the better applicant.</p>
<p>^If you’re talking about top colleges, I’d expect the GPA to be a bit higher, as a 3.5 isn’t that great. But I agree with Challenge, admissions is more than a few numbers, EC’s, Essays, and teacher rec’s are really important.</p>
<p>I guess it depends upon the college in the end, which factors they give more credit to than others.</p>