This is a question that comes up every year when decision letters are released, and the answer is a nice follow-up to my previous posting. If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that I rarely give short answers to questions-- and I'd like to give a detailed answer to this one as well! The short answer, though, for those of you who want the abridged version, is that there are so many other factors considered in the review process than just a GPA or class rank or SAT/ACT number. Let's delve a little deeper into this topic...

First of all, though the average invited student GPA is an "A-" this year, all "A-'s" are not created equal. As I have mentioned, we are looking at the GPA on our 4.0 scale. Though some high schools give extra weighting in the numeric GPA to Honors/AP level courses, we look at all GPAs on that straight 4.0 scale. Where students do get the "weight" for Honors and AP courses they have taken is in our strength of curriculum evaluation-- we take a look at what a student's high school offers and what courses the student then chose to take advantage of. The student's strength of curriculum rating and GPA are ALWAYS looked at hand-in-hand throughout the entire review process.

Also, while the overall GPA is certainly important, how a student got to that GPA is also extremely important in our review process. Take a look at these two examples-- both students with an overall GPA of just below an A-minus:

1. Student #1 has his/her weakest year as a freshman, achieving a GPA of a "B," but steadily improves each year to bring his overall GPA up to around an "A-"...
Grade 9 GPA: B
Grade 10 GPA: A-
Grade 11 GPA: A-
Grade 12 GPA: (1st semester) A

2. Student #2 has his/her weakest year as a senior, dipping an entire letter grade from the "A" average that the student achieved freshman year...
Grade 9 GPA: A
Grade 10 GPA: A-
Grade 11 GPA: B+
Grade 12 GPA: (1st semester) B

These two students are in approximately the same area when only their overall GPAs are considered, but obviously have taken different routes to get there. We are definitely aware of GPA trends, and are much happier to see a student with an upward trend in GPA (like Student #1) rather than the student with the GPA digression (Student #2). As we stress all the time here at PC, students cannot rest on their laurels after freshman and sophomore years-- they must continue to achieve during the junior and especially during the senior year.

Just from looking at the GPAs themselves, it is easy to see why students who have similar numbers can receive different admission decisions... But it is also important to remember the major role the subjective (non-academic) portions of the application play in admission decisions. Though you might have some idea of another student's grade point average or class rank, you are not seeing the entire application package that we see-- the college essay, the recommendations, the detailed level of their involvement, the additional materials they submit with their application, their choice of major... and the list goes on. These non-academic and supplemental pieces of information often are the "tip factors," or the reasons why students with similar academic numbers receive different decisions. As I have mentioned previously, MANY students have the average invite GPA, but we have limited space in the freshman class and the non-academic factors are crucial in our decisions of which students we will invite.

There you have it... the relatively short answer as to why students who look similar academically often receive different decisions. (And it is a relatively short answer, because I could go on and on about all of the factors we are considering to make our final decisions, but I think you get the idea). More thoughts to come!!