Life just gets started after you graduate from your university. Responsibilities start knocking at the door and you see multiple ways. Either you will want to enter grad school or will land the best job for your career. The entry stage to this world starts with a pretty well-developed GPA- your key to unlocking the doors. Lets’ start with What GPA Is High Honors?
Grade Point Average commonly is popularized by its abbreviation GPA. These are the average of the academic results you obtain from your educational institution. The GPA system occurs differently at different levels. In most cases, GPA is calculated out of 4 in most universities. Some universities also measure the scale total out of 5 or 10. Maintaining the full GPA scale (4 out of 4) in 3 to 4 years of educational life is pretty hard. So, different universities hold a boundary of marks (changes with time) hinting at the quality of the students. If calculated out of 4, the average scale of 3.7-3.8 is referred to as the high honors in m. In other words, this honor is also known as magna cum laude.
The high honors GPA varies from university to university. But normally, a GPA of 3.5 is counted as a pretty good one which only refers to ‘with honors’. The upcoming discussions below will focus only on the high honors explanation and its different criteria.
Different Grad Schools fix requirements with a scale and specifically mentions that applicants must have High Honors as under-graduation. In most cases, they mention the criteria and specify the GPA but unfortunately, you may suffer if your university had a different grading system.
The variation of GPA calculation for determining High Honors
Comparing two of the most famous universities, Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), we can easily see the variation. At Harvard, the total scale is out of 4 but in the case of MIT, it is 5. Suppose, when you apply for these universities, you have to convert your GPA following the scales of their system. Thus, as a result of the high honors barrier in these universities also differ. In the case of MIT, they do not focus on High Honors, rather they are GPAs with 4.17 are considered a good cut-out mark. Again, in the case of Harvard, the range is around a GPA of 3.6-3.8 for achieving High Honors recognition.
The changing nature of High Honors
A university has no fixed calculation for offering High Honors for a lifetime. It changes according to factors like: the success of students, modifications in the syllabus, or changing span time of the semester. We can consider an instance from the Universities in Turkey- how the COVID-19 situation caused inflation in their grading system and it caused a change in the structure. They used to have the mark starting at 3.5, but for inflation, they later transferred it to start from 3.7 terming the High Honors. Refer to the following research paper which explains what grade inflation can do to the education system, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8386824/.
Keep track of your University Grading System
By now, you have known how the High Honors recognition can vary. You can always have a look at your university website to check what is the barrier set for achieving High Honors. This barrier normally sorts out the students performing well relatively compared to others. So, not getting too worried about High Honors, you can try to put your maximum effort into your studies for acquiring the highest excellence.
So let’s summarize what is a High Honors GPA
- The High Honors GPA is being determined by the University and its grading system structure.
- It may change due to factors and student result outcome
- The normal target for high honors should always be to achieve a GPA of 3.7 or above if it is on a scale of 4
How important is GPA?
When applying for your first job or applying to a grad school, GPA stands as the first priority. On top of that, if your targets are to get into top-level institutions, GPA with High Honors can put you ahead of many competitors. As you have already got the concept your GPA marks put a primary idea about yourself to others. These are your keys that will unlock the first doors. But recently many organizations and top institutions are more focused on skills and also have a series of tests. In cases like these, a minimum respectable GPA is necessary though not High Honors but close. Once you get landed on your first job or desired grad school destination, the GPA will not stay a much more important factor.
Conclusion
High Honors in your education life give you confidence besides keeping you ahead. But one thing should always be considered: how your skills and knowledge are necessary. Even when an applicant with High Honors has a chance of failure if he does not have the practical and soft skills. So, no need to get much anxious for High Honors but it is good to have an idea. There is no alternative to true knowledge which can always help you to fight the battles of life.