I’m finishing junior year with 2 A+, 2 A (one is AP), 2 A- (one is AP)… will the A-'s hurt me at Ivy/MIT/Stanford-level schools?
It sounds like a ridiculous questions, but this remains a ridiculously competitive process so…
Yes, they care, but many kids who have straight A’s also won’t get into those schools. A+'s are not a thing at many HS’s, so I don’t know what to tell you there. Two AP courses as a Junior will also be unlikely to impress elite institutions, but there are always exceptions.
Don’t mean to be negative, but make sure you have some rock solid safeties. I have seen kids with perfect GPA’s, perfect ACT’s, and AP courses out the wazoo get shut out of the elites this year.
I don’t think they care, no. Disagree with poster above. A- on your report card won’t be the thing that keeps you out.
It’s all relative. Do they care if the transcript is all A-'s? Well, “care” is probably not the right word. It will certainly be less impactful. Will a couple of A-'s be the difference between acceptance and rejection? Doubtful.
Advising to have affordable matches and safeties should apply even if the applicant had a 4.0/1600/36 application for that exact reason.