Grade Progression through HS and it's impact

Applying to College
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<p>I’ve seen several posts about grades in general and improving or declinging trends specifically. here are some comments from some admissions people on the subject.</p>

<p>Answers to Common College Admissions Questions</p>

<p>Some experts say the college application process really begins in the ninth grade with the student’s academic rigor and grades from that first year of high-school forward. How do you look at grades? Do you look at all four years equally, or are the final two years more important? Can an applicant make a case for admission with a mixed bag of grades in academically challenging courses?</p>

<p>Grades and coursework are indeed important during all four years of high school, but showing improvement after a slow start does count. And academic rigor of courses can play a major role.</p>

<p>Here are the answers to this question from each member of our panel:</p>

<p>Joyce Lantz, Valparaiso University</p>

<pre><code>The admission committee at Valparaiso University considers all four years of an applicant
</code></pre>

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<p>I think trajectory really is important. If a kid starts freshman year in hard classes doing well and ends up in easier classes doing poorly you’re going to be able to predict how he will do in college compared to someone who started out in easy classes doing poorly and ended high school doing well in hard classes. </p>

<p>My freshman year and part of my sophmore I was sort of lazy, averaging a 3.5 in mid-range classes, but by the end of highschool I will have taken 5 AP classes (among the most in my class) and had straight As for several consecutive semesters. If universities only looked at my average GPA for the four years and my rank, I don’t think I would have gotten in at least one of the highly selective schools that I did (even with solid test scores). That’s why I think they look at increasing performance as an indicator of potential success at the higher level.</p>