<p>Out of a scale of 100, what is an ideal cumulative average for ivy league schools?</p>
<p>I know on a 4.0 scale, about a 3.85+ is ideal, but everyone seems to have a different definition on what a 3.5-4.0 is… Some say a 95+ is a 4.0; some say a 96+ is a 4.0; some say a 97+ is a 4.0… There never seems to be a solid number grade on what a 4.0 is…</p>
<p>So, forget the 4 point scale…</p>
<p>Out of 100, what do you think is the minimum to have a decent shot at ivy leagues? (assuming no grade inflation/deflation)</p>
<p>The problem with 100 point scales is that, for example, a 94 could mean different things for different students. If that 94 is with every single class above a 93, then that person has the equivalent of a 4.0, but if that 94 is with some B’s and some A’s, the GPA will be a lot lower.</p>
<p>Your best bet is to calculate your grades on a 4.0 scale. Use a 93-100 as 4.0, 90-92 as 3.8, 87-89 as 3.3, 83-86 as 3.0, etc.</p>
<p>Naviance says that the average weighted GPA of students from my school accepted at:
Princeton was 98,
UPenn was 97
Yale, Brown and Columbia was 96,
Cornell it was 93.</p>
<p>(no info on Harvard or Dartmouth, although people have been accepted there).</p>
<p>Of course, many other factors come into play such as rigor of courses, EC’s, etc… but this should give you an idea.</p>
<p>Your best bet would probably be to look at Naviance for your school if possible, especially if there is a lot of data. Or, if you can’t do that, you could think about what top colleges people from your school got into, and their GPAs, to get some idea. “Assuming no inflation/deflation” does not really narrow down the disparities between schools’ averages; at some schools, 100 average might not get into any top schools, while at some, a mid 80s average might have a good shot at ivies…</p>
<p>In NY, most schools use the 100 point scale… At least that’s the impression I get from NY schools…</p>
<p>And @xquiksilverx See, I hate doing that because someone who got 98+'s their entire high school career has a 4.0, but then so does someone who has gotten all 93s and 94s? Doesn’t seem quite fair… </p>
<p>Or for example: (obviously there would be more grades, but for the sake of argument)</p>
<p>If you can find the book A is For Admission by Michelle Hernandez, she explains how adcoms calculate an applicant’s Academic Index, called AI. Using her book, you can calculate your own AI, so you have some idea of how you look to them from a numbers standpoint. </p>
<p>BTW, Ms. Hernandez was a Dartmouth admissions officer before starting her own college-application consulting firm.</p>
<p>Don’t forget a fair portion of colleges use their own GPA system. I’m not talking about excluding freshman year grades, but excluding certain classes such as gym and electives, and only counting the core classes into the GPA. I think many top colleges do this.</p>
<p>Rank is what matters. A 3.85 isn’t even top 20% at many high schools. The majority of unhooked students accepted by ivies are either first or second in their class. Virtually all are top 10%.</p>
<p>You probably want 96-97+ in all your classes unless you are a minority.</p>
<p>If you are a minority though, it gets a lot easier. A black kid in my class got accepted to U of Chicago (not an Ivy League, but harder than some Ivies to get into) averaging about 93 in his IB classes. He’s not in the top 10% and he’s no athlete.</p>