Who is the better candidate?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Assuming both are from the same school..</p>

<p>Candidate A</p>

<p>GPA: 3.6 (most challening schedule)
SAT: 2300
SAT II: 800 800 800</p>

<p>EC: Only four. In one of them however, he/she has delved very deeply into it, showed genuine passion, and made a real difference in community. </p>

<p>Recs: Superb and unique</p>

<p>Essay: Unique and conveys deep passion. </p>

<p>Candidate B</p>

<p>GPA: 3.9 (most challenging schedule)
SAT: 2300
SAT II: 800 800 800</p>

<p>EC: A diverse bunch with captain spots and awards here and there. Pretty typical stuff however, like MUN and debate. Not really a 'serial joiner' but is more quantity then quality. </p>

<p>Recs: Excellent but not unique</p>

<h2>Essays: Excellent but not unique</h2>

<p>Basically, the only criteria candidate A falls short on is GPA. And a .3 difference is admittedly a lot. But if all other subjective aspects of Candidate A's application is better, will colleges overlook the .3 difference in gpa?</p>

2

<p>depends on what classes the grades were worse in, and if those are very relivant to the major being applyed to. for example, if the person want to be a computer eng. and both had all A's in math, but B had a C in English II vs a B+ in english II for student A, that could definatly be overlooked.</p>

3

<p>Let's say.. Candidate A had all A's in subjects pertaining to his declared major. And obviously Mr. B had mostly A's throughout highschool.</p>

4

<p>I would say its impossible to say... so many other parameters are needed...
Still if we assume they are from the same ethnic background, etc.etc... The better candidate will depend on the schools they apply to. Usually public schools are more number-oriented while privates prefer more diversity... of course, each schools have different views and needs... so it would be impossible to be exact.</p>

5

<p>Rank and Schedule Please?? thats the only way to really tell who is more academically deserving</p>

6

<p>I would say that candidate A is going to be much better off at an LAC, while B will have an OK chance at a selective research university. For example, candidate A would be a great candidate for, say, Wesleyan, while B would be a solid fit at G–Town.</p>

7

<p>i think that it also depends on where you are applying. differences such as these might come in to play at HYP, but for top schools that are not ivies or extremely elite, the two may be considered quite equal. but i disagree with NewEngSocSciMan's portrayal that B would be a solid fit at georgetown. though georgetown is very rank and gpa-centric, they have such a small student body that they are about as selective as any non-ivy school can get, and since candidate B has not so passionate essays and is more quantitative than qualitative in involvement, i don't know if they would get in to georgetown. but that's just my opinion, of course!</p>