how does Penn estimate rank?

vanillasky123 · 10-18-2009, 06:27 PM

my school doesn't rank anyone and about 30% of my grade has 3.8+ (my school is VERY competitive..) so how would they know how to rank me? I get decent grades but I really have no idea how I fit into the context of my school since there are tons of brilliant kids...

NJDS · 10-19-2009, 05:10 PM

this is where standardized testing, secondary school report/counselor recommendations come in

john2 · 10-19-2009, 10:29 PM

so do how do they find ranks?

IBclass06 · 10-20-2009, 08:15 PM

Quote:

secondary school report/counselor recommendations come in

Yep. The secondary school report asks for counselors to estimate quartile/quintile/decile, even if their schools don't rank.

Don't stress about it. Usually 15-20% of admitted students don't have class ranks.

tomhuu · 10-24-2009, 01:13 PM

IB class 06,

Are you sure they ask them to estimate, because it does not state that clearly in the app.
my counsellor just said they will leave it blank, just your average (for my case), and nothing else. They can only compare to the same students in the same school's marks in that case, I believe...

my counsellor says if u have the quartile/quintile/decile thing, it just destroys the purpose of not ranking...

kosherz · 10-24-2009, 04:05 PM

I agree with above^

Only half of all US high schools rank at all.

The other half simply puts a BIG slash mark over the class standing and class rank column, stating "we do not rank."

Quintiles, Deciles, Quartiles will not be disclosed at half of all High schools.

Sirensong · 10-24-2009, 04:47 PM

Well, they will still probably the answer the courseload questions, "most rigorous," "very rigorous," or whatever it is. If you are the only student applying to their school, they will probably take a close look at your sat's. If there are many students from your school applying, they may compare you to them to get some idea of rank.

IBclass06 · 10-24-2009, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomhuu

Are you sure they ask them to estimate, because it does not state that clearly in the app.

"We do not rank. Instead, please indicate..."

It could not be more plainly stated.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomhuu

my counsellor says if u have the quartile/quintile/decile thing, it just destroys the purpose of not ranking...

It also puts you at a disadvantage when applying to Penn, which weights class rank heavily.

The admit rate for unranked students is lower than that of applicants in the top 10%, and the admit rate for students ranked first or second is more than double that of unranked applicants.