<p>my grade has 70 or so people in it, which means top 5% are 3 people (or 4 rounded up?)
it’s quite an intensive private school with quite a reputation in the region, sending maybe 7-10 people to ivies or equivalent each year. I’ve noticed that most princeton acceptees are within the top 5, and it’s a bit unnerving. I’m estimating that I may be around 5th, which makes 10% but still, not as secure. does anyone know whether people from small schools get a bit of leeway in terms of class percentiles?</p>
<p>I’m sure that they take percentiles in context.</p>
<p>For example, if you go to a large, public school, then it’s probably expected that you should be in at least the top 5%, if not the top 2%.</p>
<p>If you go to a tough private school, then it’s not aberrant at all to be in the tenth percentile, maybe even the fifteenth. I think that you should be fine.</p>
<p>Haha, I’m in a class of 19 people, so even if you’re ranked #3, your percentile doesn’t look good. My counselor has told us repeatedly not to worry about it.</p>
<p>I’m from overseas, but how do they consider the percentiles of students from selective schools?</p>
<p>My school has a senior cohort of around 240 students (the norm over here), and each year we have around 4 students in the top 0.05% (who graduate with a score of 99.95, calculated by considering all of their subjects) with around 50 in the top 1%. The median’s usually around the top 2 or 3%, and we usually have 20-30 students (in 2008 we had 35) topping the state in a subject, which is highly, highly, highly unusual. I usually come in the top 2 or 3 students of my year level, but the gradings are exceptionally competitive and artificial (often students who don’t attain the top marks within the school top the state in the subject). My question is, would a school like Princeton consider the exceptionally competitive nature of my school, despite the fact that it’s overseas and hence doesn’t have a reputation in the US? It’s really well known over here.</p>
<p>my school has 625 students. i dont have to worry about it.</p>
<p>This brings a question to my mind: How does Princeton know whether your school is competitive? (I mean for school abroad.) They just can’t believe everything the school counselor says on the school forms. Every school WILL classify themselves as competitive.</p>
<p>I guess you can put in statistical ranks, but that doesn’t mean much unless you know the system…</p>