<p>I've heard different things about GPA in Harvard admissions, mostly falling into two categories:</p>
<ol>
<li>Most (more than half) of accepted students have an unweighted 4.0, so it is unlikely to get in without a perfect GPA unless you have something special going for you.</li>
<li>Anything 3.9+ (a couple of Bs or some A-s), especially with a rigorous courseload, will make an applicant competitive academically.</li>
</ol>
<p>Does anyone know how important that perfect 4.0 is? I think I have a pretty good application, but my unweighted GPA is not perfect (~3.93). I don't want to get my hopes too high if my grades mean I don't stand a chance. I'm an Asian male, by the way.</p>
<p>(Sorry if this comes across as attention-seeking or obsessively perfectionistic, but I think the stress of applying to college is really starting to get to me >.< thanks in advance for any input)</p>
<p>You are compared to others in the admissions pool. If all things equal, there are plenty of 4.0s in the pool, then your 3.9 is out. They just draw that line right there, and it’s a moving line it that it depends on the situation as to where they draw it. If in a given year they can draw it under the 3.9 level or 3.95 level, then that is the case.</p>
<p>Neither of my sons had a 4.0 unweighted average in high school, yet both managed to get accepted to Harvard. They had superior test scores, and some good and interesting extracurriculars. But with the exception of national language awards, nothing beyond the school or local level. No Intel prizes, no cancer cures.</p>
<p>A 4.0 helps, but is far from necessary. A 2400 helps (or even a 2340) helps, but is far from necessary. Being valedictorian, president of your close, starting a business, founding a charity, winning a national prize all help, but none are necessary. Possession of all things helps, but is not sufficient.</p>
<p>These, and recommendations, and good essays, are prerequisite building blocks of one’s application, but even all together, don’t produce the winning ticket.</p>
<p>Harvard (and other highly-selective schools) don’t tell the whole story, don’t give away all the pieces of the puzzle. There are a piece or two missing, left largely unsaid. If Harvard spelled it out plainly, every applicant would try to replicate a reasonable facsimile of the missing pieces, but Harvard isn’t interested in a reasonable facsimile. They want the real thing.</p>
<p>Anyway, that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it. ;-)</p>
<p>Harvard doesn’t “forgive” anything. Its admissions department isn’t comparing applicants to some hypothetical perfect applicant, and deciding whether to overlook deviations from perfection. It doesn’t have any secret formula that it’s hiding from the world. It is looking for applicants who are really smart, really interesting, and who look like they can get a lot out of Harvard and give a lot back. Getting a few A- grades is perfectly consistent with being that kind of person. Getting only As doesn’t come close to guaranteeing that you are that kind of person.</p>
<p>On the whole, that kind of person is pretty rare . . . except in the admissions pool at Harvard (or at Yale, Stanford, MIT, Princeton, etc.). You can be exactly the sort of person Harvard is looking for, and still get waitlisted at Harvard. That’s not fair; it’s just how things are.</p>
<p>(And no one at Harvard is drawing any “lines” under 3.95 or 3.8 or whatever. How your grades get viewed really depends on what kind of school you come from, what kind of classes you take, and what kind of student you are. Also what your teachers say about you. Being less than a straight-A student is fine if, for example, you are a math genius who struggles a bit with English because you didn’t speak it until you were 12, or if you are a professional violinist who plays with orchestras all over the world, or if you are a High School All-American offensive tackle.)</p>
<p>The kids I know who got into H during the last decade either had a hook or an X factor. They may have had some B’s or only a few AP’s. The one common thing is that none of them spent high school trying to get into H.</p>
<p>^ I agreed with the last statement @snarlatron made. My cousin was the exact same way. In fact, she was in debate about which school to go to even after getting in.</p>
<p>“all things equal, there are plenty of 4.0s in the pool, then your 3.9 is out. They just draw that line right there, and it’s a moving line it that it depends on the situation as to where they draw it. If in a given year they can draw it under the 3.9 level or 3.95 level, then that is the case.”</p>
<p>That’s just nonsense. They don’t draw it at some line. JHS is perfectly correct in his assessment.</p>
<p>Actually, your best indicator of acceptance is to be a stellar athlete. This is the most important “X” factor. If you are a guy, be great at lacrosse.</p>
<p>My friend’s daughter was in the top end of her class, but she did not have a perfect gpa or SAT.</p>
<p>She was the editor of the HS literary magazine, had won a Bronfman Fellowship (which goes to 26 people nationally a year), and she played in a chamber quartet she helped start. Oh, and she was on the regional board of an organization and organized activities they sponsored and had lived overseas for some years. I’m sure her letters of recommendation and essays were first rate.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your reassurance. In any case, there’s nothing I can do about my GPA at this point, so I’ll be working hard on my essays and music supplements!</p>