GPA, Explained

As I build lists with my juniors, I see that parents and students need clarification on the two kinds of GPA (weighted and unweighted). They also need to understand that a weighted 4.0, unlike an unweighted one, may not put a student near the top of their graduating class, depending on how many students choose the most rigorous courses. Most northeast public high schools use a weighted GPA that gets a boost from AP, IB, or Honors courses. Many colleges, especially large public colleges, will recalculate the GPA using their own standards--and these vary.

Academic (9-12) GPA - includes all grades but only courses noted as "academic." Study halls, community service, pass/fail courses are often not included.

Academic (9-12) GPA - includes all grades but only courses noted as "academic." Obviously, it does not include courses like PE, but it may not include anything outside of English, History, Math, Science, or World Languages.

Academic (10-12) GPA - same as above but doesn't include 9th grade. While all colleges want to see all your grades, some like the CSU/UC (California State or UCalifornia Collges) A-G GPA, do not include 9th grade in the calculation.

Verdict from Jonathan Burdick, Admissions Leader at Cornell, University of Southern California, University of Rochester over the past 38 years

"As a long-term college guy I'd say it matters, but likely a bit less than (parents?) think. All things equal the admissions reading process would initially default to looking at the reported weighted GPA, but it would still be important to label or demarcate on the actual transcript which grades were weighted (and unless it's very simple, how much weight). These two ideas are separated because the reported GPA is much more likely to enter the student's record as a data point just because it's so much easier to find. And sadly, there's a non-zero chance that that data point persists all the way through to reporting, scholarships etc. But the actual admissions read, if it's serious, includes perusing the transcript as a direct source of important information."

That means that the courses a student chooses matter at least as much as GPA. Whenever possible, choose rigor in the courses you know that colleges will factor into your GPA if you are reaching for competitive colleges.

.