<p>I have a ridiculously low GPA and all I've got to "counter-balance" that is a high SAT score, a high ACT score, and an essay. (Note the apostrophe)</p>
<p>So from an admission officer's point of view, what would that say about me as a person? That I am a person who slacks in school but is intelligent? (by all means I'm not calling myself intelligent because of some stupid SAT score) Or that I am a person who struggles in school but when motivated enough I can do reasonably well?</p>
<p>I know the SAT/ACT and the essay isn't the be all and end all for college admission and, in the bigger view, GPA is what really counts, but all I've got are scores...</p>
<p>If anyone here is GENUINLY willing to help, please PM me. And please, no adverts.</p>
<p>The former. GPA is a reflection of 3.5 years of HS, SAT is one test, one day. Your SAT shows that you’re intelligent, but that for whatever reason, you didn’t apply yourself in HS. They won’t have much sympathy for your lack of motivation, as they can select their class from the many students who are self-motivated.</p>
<p>Entomom is right. A one-day test score will never “counter-balance” a 3-year GPA.</p>
<p>Your low GPA is going to be a problem for you, unless you have a truly good explanation for it – e.g., a one-semester dive due to a major illness but good grades every other semester, or perhaps a bad start freshman year but progressively stronger grades each succeeding semester.</p>
<p>Entomom is correct in general. But there are colleges that approach admissions more formulaically where a high SAT score can go a long way to balance a lower GPA. These are mostly state schools and include the UCs.</p>
<p>There are also private colleges outside of the top ones that can be swayed by high scores.</p>
<p>If your school has a reputation of deflationary grading and an especially stringent academic program, your GPA can be seen in context. Your school’s profile would address this.</p>
<p>I’ll just say I have learned to take “ridiculously low” with a grain of salt on College Con, and that I thought most UC’s are filled with kids in the top ten percent of their class.</p>
<p>And I agree that “ridiculously low GPA” is a relative term. There is plenty of evidence of cases where applicants got lower GPAs and high standardized tests scores and were admitted to the top Ivy League and LACs. The evidence is in the colleges’ own reporting of admissions from prior years as well as self-reports in websites such as this one. What are some of the extenuating factors? First, if you are a legacy applicant, a top athlete, or a member of an under-represented group–not just an ethnic minority, but it could be a resident of a state where the college has a hard time recruiting. Or if you are a cellist, and the college needs one for its music programs. It may also be that your teacher recommendations and your counselor gave logical, consistent explanations for your poor grades. </p>
<p>In any case, I would not argue that a low GPA suggests you were a slacker. That is as inaccurate as saying that adults are poor because they are simply lazy.</p>