Mid-Level GPA, High SATs?

ucbalumnus
Fri, 02 Mar 2012 00:06:50 +0000

ThePinko:

Quite honestly, I’m frustrated with the entire system. GPAs don’t solely show a student’s academic performance. Favoritism runs rampant in the grading process, and someone who is simply earnest in their attempts will be able to rank very highly.



High school grades are nowhere close to perfect predictors of college performance, but they are the best predictors available to college admissions committees in general. Standardized test scores do add some predictive value, though less than high school grades, and their predictive value depends on the test and the student’s major (e.g. SAT math has a strong correlation to college success majoring in math or physics, but no correlation overall, presumably due to lower scorers choosing less math-intensive majors).