Three General Questions (help please!)

Applying to College
1

<li>My GPA was 3.5 in grade 8, 3.75 in grade 9, 3.5 in grade 10, and 4.0 (now) in grade 11. Are they going average my GPA from grades 8-12?<br></li>
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<p>My current thoughts: In that case, if I keep my 4.0, I’ll have an average of 3.75…</p>

<li>Do American universities look at average % as well as GPA? </li>
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<p>My current thoughts: I heard that they do the average % as well as GPA, so in that case…my overall average would be around the 90% range (is that really bad?) although for this year and I predict next year it’ll be around 95%…</p>

<li>My school offers IB, but a friend told me to do AP exams and study on my own instead, and I’m beginning to regret it, as from reading these boards, I seem to get the idea that IB is better for admissions… As well, I take AP courses, but they’re online courses (from apexvs.com). Is there a way to report these online AP courses, or is there no point?</li>
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<p>Finally, (I guess I do have a 4th question, unfortunately…) does self-studying APs help at all for university admissions? </p>

<p>I mean, I’m not taking the course…which is what they’re looking for, right?</p>

<p>EDIT: I just thought of a 5th question (darn…now my topic makes no sense): in my school district, summer school completion courses count as regular courses. However, I live in Canada; is it the same for the US? Is summer school completion counted just like a normal course?</p>

<p>Any help is appreciated, thanks!!</p>

2

<p>1 Most universities consider your GPA over the years, not as an average. In your case, they will look favourably upon the upward trend in your GPA.</p>

<p>2 No? I suppose it depends on what is given on your transcript. I don’t see how this would give them any more information than the GPA, really.</p>

3

<p>*2. Do American universities look at average % as well as GPA? *
They’ll look at whatever you send them on your transcript, so I guess the answer is yes if your school includes the percents on your transcript? </p>

<p>3. My school offers IB, but a friend told me to do AP exams and study on my own instead, and I’m beginning to regret it, as from reading these boards, I seem to get the idea that IB is better for admissions… As well, I take AP courses, but they’re online courses (from apexvs.com). Is there a way to report these online AP courses, or is there no point?
Will you be getting credit for these courses? Will they show up on your transcript? In my area, we can take online courses for credit which will count towards our high school diploma, so the courses will show up on our school transcripts.</p>

<p>*Does self-studying APs help at all for university admissions? *
I guess it’ll show you are self-motivated? </p>

<p>In my school district, summer school completion courses count as regular courses. However, I live in Canada; is it the same for the US? Is summer school completion counted just like a normal course?
I’m not sure I understand your question…I think they’ll consider it equally with your other courses? (I.e. unlike med schools, which apparently look unfavourably upon summer courses)</p>

4

<p>Thanks for the insight, guys!</p>

<p>My online courses do not count for credit, sadly :S</p>

<p>CDN_dancer, I see that you’re part of UPenn! That’s the university I’m striving for (although I guess it’s unlikely for me…). Got any tips?</p>

<p>In my school, our transcripts do include the average %. Do you know what average % is a “requirement”? As in, do you think my 90%-ish average for all courses (my “electives” are accounting and economics…which are strangely harder than my core courses, such as physics and english; I didn’t get high A’s for those) will make it impossible to get in Upenn?</p>

<p>I need to know if I’m reaching for the impossible :S</p>

<p>EDIT: Also, I can tell my online AP program to send my scores separate from the transcript. Do you guys think it’ll help?</p>

5

<h1>1 Advice: Do not read the chances threads, or threads of accepted/rejected students, or at the very least, take them with a grain of salt. You will only succeed in driving yourself batty :P</h1>

<p>In terms of average, obviously unlike Canadian schools, there isn’t a clear “cut-off” mark; your application is evaluated holistically. Generally I’d say that 90-95%+ would make you a competitive candidate, although keep in mind that many other factors go into the admissions decision. Make sure you’re involved in activities that interest you (don’t join things for the sake of writing them down on your app) Don’t leave your application to the last minute; it’s simply not possible to write a good essay in one night, so leave time to edit and get feedback if possible. </p>

<p>And if possible, don’t leave your SAT testing until fall of grade 12…it makes things so much more stressful.</p>

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<p>Thank you for your advice!! You’ve given me some hope :D</p>

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<p>Don’t worry about whether your AP courses appear on your HS transcript. Just be certain that your AP exam scores are sent to the colleges you apply to. Lots of people take AP exams after self-study, and lots of people take them after completing a course that doesn’t have AP in the title. What the colleges want to know is how well you did on that exam.</p>

8

<p>berkshire, I don’t know of any university or college in the US that will include your g.p.a. from grade 8 in its calculations or in its considerations. Some don’t even include grade 9, but I think most do.</p>

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<p>calculated gpa: never includes middle school (6-8th grade)</p>

10

<p>Make sure that you mention on your app that you are self studying for AP exams. I also suggest sending colleges copies of your AP exam scores. </p>

<p>Self studying anything shows a high level of motivation that would be impressive to colleges.</p>