<p>The irony at a place like UofC, and I think it stems from the grading subjectivity of a lot of the core courses (after all, what is an “A” hum paper? how is it different from an A- or B+ paper?), is that the kids who really excel, getting the 3.8 or 3.9 GPA, do so in spite of their best efforts.</p>
<p>By that I mean that they do well because they like to work hard and just “do well”, not because they’ve set a target of getting all A grades. After all, conventional wisdom has it that you can’t get all As anyway. </p>
<p>In fact, there is a small subset of our population that seem to excel at things they set out to do. And they often do so in rather private ways, without seeking a lot of personal glory or fame. They view excellence as a personal matter. But this behavior does get noticed by faculty, and these are the kids that go on to great opportunities. They are the “unknowns” that win top scholarships and honors. Not in every case, of course, but frequently enough. </p>
<p>The one thing they don’t do is obsess about grades, or worse, talk about them.</p>