overandover

I don't know much about GPAs, but I'm almost positive there's no class rank.
Also, the grading scale is 1-6, so it's really incomparable to other school grades.

lemonade1

Kids are elected to the National Honor Society in 2 rounds, so I think that's how you can figure out top 10% and top 20%. Andover from time to time publishes median (or maybe mean) GPAs for each class on the 6 pt scale, and I would expect that colleges know very well how to convert them to compare with those on a 4 point scale!

overandover

Actually, according to Andover faculty members, colleges really don't compare the 1-6 scale with a 1-4 one. Andover uses their grading scale for that reason. Colleges know Andover academics are on a different level than other schools, so Andover grades would not be compared to public or even many private school grades.

TlGER

Go pa. Flagstaffffffff

fudgebrownies

are there dances at andover?

overandover

Yes, basically every weekend. Usually they're really casual and not everyone goes, but then there are also some formals (Sadie Hawkins, Blue and Silver, Prom).

Padre13

I don't think I've ever seen Andover publish a school-wide average or mean GPA. However, the school profile (available from the college counseling pages on the website) does provide a GPA histogram from which one can determine the median and create a reasonably accurate estimate of the mean.

benevolent4them

Alright grades at Andover.

6 means your smart for Andover, which means your brilliant (92-100)
5 is above average. It means your doing really well (84-91)
4 means that your average, but at Andover, average is still good. (77-83)
3 means that you aren't doing so great. It's alright, but it needs work (70-76)
2 means that you're really sucking. (62-69)
1 fail
0 ultra fail

I have a 6,5,4 right now. My other three subjects are pass fail.

BrooklynGuy

From the Andover Blue Book:

Grading System
6 Outstanding
5 Superior
4 Good
3 Satisfactory
2 Minimum Pass (and minimum college certifying grade)
1 Failure
0 Low Failure

As an Andover parent....I don't think a 3 equals "not doing so great." If the class is not my child's best subject, and she is working hard, I would be quite happy for her to get a 3. Also, I have heard that 6's are very rarely given by some teachers, and may be more equivalent to 97-100.

And confusing your/you're on an essay is a sure way not to get a 6

hijklm

would like to know from student perspective, what do andover students feel is the difference btw andover, exeter, sps? understand these perspectives are obviously biased, but interested in perceptions too. thx.

i_CANTSTANDTHISS

i want to clear up grading.
3 = not good, nobody strives for a three. Nobody is happy with a three. A 3 is only satisfying if somebody had a failing grade at midterm.
4 is decent
5 is good
6 is great
some teachers do not like giving 6's but they are never 97-100. They are either 93-100, 92-100, or 90-100 depending on the class. However even that certain teachers who do not like to give 6's will avoid giving 6s. In math and science this is done by making tests hard. However their are few math and science teachers who actually dislike giving 6s.
History and english is a different story.
If a teacher gives percents a 6 will still be 92/93-100. However most english and history teachers dont give percents on papers. they give 1-6 so if they dont like giving 6s they just wont give 6s on papers. There is one history teacher with whom getting a 5 is a big accomplishment aka he gave one or two students 5s last year.

CCJS1234

Hi!
Do you feel being at such a large school makes it hard to make friends?
Is the performing arts program stronger than other boarding schools?
Which classes use the harkness method of teaching and do all classes have smartboards?
Thanks : )

overandover

Hey,

Not at all. Andover does such a good job of making you feel part of a community that you hardly ever notice it being big. First of all, each grade really comes together as a whole, and it's easy to get to know each other in class. Then, there is your dorm, your cluster, sports, clubs, etc...So many social outlets that make a big place tight-knit.

I'm not an expert on the performing arts program, but just based on the RIDICULOUS talent and performing arts opportunities (countless dance teams, improv troupes, student-run plays, major productions, film classes, etc.), I'd have to think so.

It's hard to say; how the class is run really depends on the teacher, and there are no strictly Harkness or strictly lecture classes. Naturally, English and History teachers tend to take more of a discussion-based approach, but it really varies.

No, there are no SmartBoards here.

i_CANTSTANDTHISS

thats completely false, there are some rooms that have smartboards, they are just not omnipresent

TlGER

Uh.. 6's are 94-100
5's are 85-94
and so on.
for me anyways and im in 2 AP classes (Lower)