To know do college look at grades or GPA….Read on this article….!
Spring is here, and students all over the world are stretching every nerve cell in their brain to focus on their college admissions, surely this is a hectic time for the students and their parents. Students who have completed their high school, now proceed towards college with a heavy and confused mind, and it’s almost natural for students to feel so, they have to choose their major, scholarships they can apply for, and most important they have to score a satisfactory grades or GPA. GPA stands for Grade Point Average, it’s a type of standard grading system used by most universities in the USA for college entrance.
GPA in High Schools
In high school, grades are always considered the most crucial part of the school life, you can easily find a teacher scolding students in the hallways that “Focus on increasing your grades, your soccer practice is not going to help you in college application” and it’s common in the house for your parents to compare your grades with your friends and cousins.
Students always have a lukewarm feeling toward this attitude and they couldn’t comprehend why everyone is so focused on GPA, am I in a real-world Squid Game? Am I going to be cast off by everyone if I don’t do well? These are just a few examples of mental pictures and scenarios created inside the brain of a student. The experience and performance in high school surely affect your future, the college you will get into, and your work ethic.
Importance of GPA
Factually speaking, GPA is like a golden ticket for your future, everyone thinks a good GPA is equivalent to a good student after all it is based on your overall performance in the school, how well you did, and how serious you were towards your studies and responsibilities. It is a standard way of measuring your academic success and students have to do really well if they are planning to apply to some prestigious colleges in the U.S.A.
College do look at grades or GPA while considering your application form, it is also necessary if they want to find out, the type of student you are, are you going to be helpful and productive for their university or you are going to lounge around the whole year? Maybe it does not entirely define you as a person but it sure does occupy a larger part of your academic performance. Your GPA can surely give a glimpse of your future ahead.
GPA and How to calculate it?
Let’s know in depth about this GPA( grade point average)-
It is the sum of a student’s grade points earned throughout the course of the academic year.
GPA is typically estimated on a scale of 0.0 to 4.0 at most schools.
A number equivalent is assigned to each of your letter grades (or percentage grades, depending on the school). Your cumulative GPA is calculated as the average of the equivalencies. For your college admissions, it is a data-backed measure to check your abilities.
Here is a chart for more insight into grade points-
| US GRADE | PERCENTAGE | GPA |
| A | 90-100 | 4.0 |
| B | 80-89 | 3.0 |
| C | 70-79 | 2.0 |
| D | 60-69 | 1.0 |
| F | 00-59 | 0.0 |
There are also grades minus and grades plus levels for more sophisticated and exact bifurcation, and it now allows students and teachers to grasp almost the exact score.
Ways you can maintain a stable GPA
If you are in the final year of high school, these are some ways by which you can maintain a good GPA for your future college application-
- Do all of your assignments and hand them over on time. (it’s not something big but developing a habit of following the deadline and getting work done is surely going to help you in college)
- Ask questions and don’t be shy (asking questions even if they are dumb, ensures that you get a clear idea of the subject moreover it helps you in better understanding and no question is dumb if you don’t understand it.)
- Get into as many AP & Honors classes as you can (maybe you can’t able to perform well in AP classes but it is a great way to boost your GPA as a B is pretty much the same as an A in a non-honors class, GPA wise)
- Develop the mindset and motivation to work hard (nothing in this world is as wrong as these “get rich in 5 days” or “lose weight in 2 days scheme” same goes for your journey, for acquiring a good GPA, no scheme is going to work unless you put patience, effort, and consistency into it.)
Getting a high GPA is the only passage to college?
Academic success surely has great benefits. It not only leads to obvious benefits like a better college or a more enriching career but also trains basic skills that can be applied to improve the rest of your life.
But is it really worth becoming a bundle of nerve?
The answer is a simple NO!
Yeah, GPAs are important, but it does not define your whole future, it is crucial from the point of the admission committee that is going to review your application. There are other factors universities take into consideration like your LOR, SOP, extracurricular activities, volunteering experience, and competitions you have participated in.
Just because the fact you’ve got a low or below-common GPA, does not suggest you aren’t intelligent, or that you aren’t a hard-running pupil. A low GPA can suggest that maybe you struggled a bit in starting in grasping the subjects, or maybe you have missed some deadlines or bunked some classes, there can be many reasons but how you work in the future on filling those holes and ready to change your attitude determines you as a student.
How to move forward with a low GPA?
If you have a low GPA that does not mean you throw all your hopes of getting into a good college into the trash can, if you can justify your low GPA with genuine reasons, like a serious medical condition, full-time job, financial difficulties, and switching school. The interviewer may be willing to overlook the low GPA. You can focus on subjects where you can high GPA, your practical and soft skills.
Get recommendation letters from your teachers and make sure you have enough credit points from extracurriculars.
Conclusion
Universities always hope for a strong GPA from their applicants, it also depends on which university you want to get into. Get your research done, make lists and sort out things. Watch out for the minimum requirements, credits, scholarships, financial aid, and additional credits through which you think you stand a chance of getting accepted.
A good GPA surely gives you a sweet and simple passage for your college admissions, work hard and everything will gradually fall into place, don’t stress over getting everything perfect rather make progress your pivot point for the future, you can surely control your experience and your grades.
Frequently asked questions
- What is considered a good GPA?
A GPA from 3.0-4.0 consider a good GPA according to most universities.
- Is it necessary to take AP classes in high school?
NO, it is not mandatory. But if you are looking to enhance your critical thinking and reasoning, you should give this a try and it also helps in getting a stable GPA.
- Difference between unweighted and weighted GPAs?
The unweighted GPA system does not consider the difficulty and is calculated on a scale of 0.0-4.0 whereas the weighted GPA is calculated on a scale of 0.0-5.0
- What is the lowest GPA that colleges will accept?
2.0 in some colleges depends on college but it is safe to have a GPA of more than 3.0
- Do extracurricular matter for college application in the U.S.A.?
Yes, extracurricular matters, you can show that outside academics you have interests. E.g.- any sport, volunteering service, theater, creative writing, etc.
