When students or parents try to gauge an applicant's chances of admission, GPA is always mentioned along with a flurry of accolades. They usually cite the number and breeze right on by to the next statistic. This makes me worry that people don't think about the subjective nature of GPAs these days.
The methodology for calculating GPA varies dramatically from place to place. What's more, grading scales are all over the map (there are seven different grading scales in use in Virginia public schools alone!). There are schools where 4.0 GPAs are rare and signify all As in the very best courses and there are schools where 4.0 GPAs are common and could be earned with okay grades in average courses. This year, I've read applications from schools with pretty interesting GAP scales, including 18 point and 500 point scales. I've seen schools where no courses are weighted and I've seen schools where Honors and AP courses have the same weighting.
So when you see or hear people from other school districts cite their GPAs, resist the urge to make comparisons. Chances are the grading scales and methodologies in use at your schools are different.
By the way, we don't have any opinion about all those grading scales. Whatever works for your school is fine with us.
11 comments:
Our school system went to numbers on transcripts, i.e. 97,88, etc. So there is no arbitrary system for a letter grade that is subsequently transformed into a GPA. If UVA could make a recommendation to the state to assign number grades, then maybe the whole state could go to a single unweighted grading system. The Admissions Officers could make their own judgement on the rigor of students' curriculum and the performance of each school. It could be standardized for the state, which would help the State Universities and Colleges with their analyses.
A uniform grading system wouldn't be something the universities could initiate. It has been proposed by the State Assembly in the past, but the bills haven't been successful.
Thanks for this post, I breathed a sigh of relief after reading it. My school doesn't factor weights into GPA so at other schools I'd have well over a 4.0 but at mine i have only about a 3.8. I was really worried about that but now I feel slightly better. Thanks :)
So how does UVa normalize GPA's for comparison purposes? Or do you?
We don't recalculate GPAs. Some other universities do that, but we just use the GPA in context.
The way we read, we don't get into the situation where we'll have two applications and only have the option of picking one. We compare what a student has done with what was available to them at their school.
Logistically, it would be very hard to read the way some people think we do (stack everyone from a school together and pick a few). I'll address that in a future post.
Wonderful info you have here on your blog and love your CavDog! If only we had the life of Riley or CavDog and did not have to worry about GPA's, only our next meal, our next walk, nap and wag of the tail.
At our recent High School Parents meeting, the GPA is a scale of 5.
pve
Hi Dean J.,
Sorry, but I have a question regarding applications. If my son recently received an award, but it was not made in time to place on his application. Is there a way to change that?
Thanks!
:) I don't think CavDog likes reading season too much. He sits under the desk and wonders why he doesn't get much attention.
Anxious, applicants an email updates to uvaapplicationinfo@virginia.edu.
Regarding the advice to refrain from comparing GPAs of applicants from different high schools -- does this mean that UVA admissions looks at just the unweighted GPA and the rigor of courses, in order to assess a student's high school record?
Bravo!
All universities today say they take a holistic approach, but when you look for scholarships and admission to honors programs the rank/GPA problem is alive and well.
Does UVA use the GPA and rank as comparative stats in any of their scholarships or honors admit decisions?
Violet, we look at whatever GPA is supplied along with the methodology used to calculate it. Weighted GPAs are used. You school's profile will explain the weight given to the different kinds of courses available at your school.
Jim, I'm not involved in scholarship awards, but my colleagues are of the same mindset.
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