Class Rank, Weighted and Unweighted GPA, and the "Education Race"

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It’s time to declare a moratorium on class ranking.

One of my most popular post is on the difference between weighted and unweighted GPA, and the phenomenon of class rank.  I get scads of comment on that post, and on other similar ones.

Today I received one from a distraught parents whose daughter was being “demoted” from the rank of #1 in her class because of a change in policy at the girl’s school.  I responded at length, and I decided to reprint it as a post in hopes of helping to calm other parents who obsess about class rank.

Here’s the question:

I may be a bit late to find your site, but my daughter (a senior) finds herself frustrated by a recent “mishap” in due diligence at her school. Historically, the school used unweighted grading, yet uses class rank (which also determines valedictorian). Evidently, the school decided to assign a 4.3 to A+. My daughter has several on her transcript and they are all in either core subjects or language (which is an elective at this school), all As and one A- in an AP course (of which she has several). We were sent her transcript with GPA (4.15) and rank (1). “Several parents”, seeing these values printed in the school handbook, and seeing their children’s rank drop complained to administration who then decided to “reverse” their newly published policy. If there has been a re-calculation (and she was told by her guidance counselor there has been), we have not been notified. I am furious at this convoluted “process” and lack of communication and have an appointment to speak with the principal. College apps are due, and I want the school to send her transcript/GPA/Class rank that we have in hand that was valid on Sept 2 (but apparently not now!). Is it worth it to ask them to send both? Is it worth it to ask them to calculate a weighted GPA as well (I wouldn’t even know the values! and would think that they do even if they don’t use weighted).

Also, is there a correlation between an unweighted grading system and use of class rank? In other words, could it be suggested that a school that uses unweighted grading ought to NOT rank?

Thanks in advance.


Here is my response:



Carnival of College Admission–Chinese New Year Edition

Welcome to Montgomery Educational Consulting.  We provide full-service counseling to Chinese students who seek to study in the United States.

We help you identify the best American university for you, and then we guide you through the entire application and admission process.

We are not paid a commission by the universities you choose.  Instead, we are your personal guides through the very confusing and very complicated process of American univesrity admission.

For more information about our work, visit our homepage. Or you can read our Chinese pages.  Or you can simply contact us. We travel to China often, and we would be happy to help you with make your dream to study in the US a reality.


Welcome to the 10th edition of the Carnival of College Admission. As always, we welcome our regular contributors, as well as a bevy of new folks.

2008_02_chinese_new_year

In honor of my upcoming trip to Hong Kong to give a presentation on college admission in the US and to meet with clients, we’ll have a look at how the Lunar New Year is celebrated in Hong Kong.  What does this have to do with college admission, you ask?

Not much.  But the images are fun!

For those of you new to the Carnival, here’s the scoop.  Twice a month, the Carnival of College Admission brings you the best of the blogs that touch upon the transition from high school to college.  As you shall see, there is a panoply of presenters this week, so grab a cup of jasmine tea and enjoy what’s on offer.

College Search

Wassan Humadi is a new member of the Carnival community.  She points out that debt, student loans, lower paying jobs for college grads, spiraling tuition costs, and excessive cost of books and campus life mean that many students are graduating already buried under debt.  Her post,. Best Value Colleges and Universities in the United States posted at Al Jamiat Magazine, argues that it’s time for students to make better informed financial decisions about their education. Whether its choosing to go to an in-state college, community college for a year or two as a bridge to a 4-year institution, or fighting harder for a full or partial scholarship, there are some colleges and universities out there that are still a fantastic value.

buffalo

In a much-heralded return to the Carnival, Wenchypoo reminds us that college is not for everyone in her post Rethink the Value of College posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo’s Mental Wastebasket.  It’s important to think about “return on investment” when paying for college.

Erika Collin is another new Carnival participant, and she presents 100+ Rankings to Pick Your School, City, Career, and More .  You can find Erika at MatchACollege.com.

Another new participant, Jonathan Cifuentes writes about changes to admissions policies in University of California system, which he posts over at his College Admissions Help Blog.  Indeed, the University of California system as a whole is under great strain, as state funding has fallen and applications have risen.

Dave Van de Walle, a Carnival stalwart, offers his post Highlights from Sunday Night Stickam Web Chat (1/25) posted at U Sphere Blog.Dave will be the host of our March 25th edition.  Thanks, Dave!

Getting In:  The Admissions Process

We’re pleased that the folks at the University of New Haven have joined the Carnival of College Admission.  Gil Rogers offers some last minute admissions reminders for students, the most important of which is to READ the stuff the admissions office sends out to applicants.  It’s amazing how people can forget (or neglect) to read.  Appropriately, Gil’s post is entitled, PLEASE READ THIS!, which can be found at University of New Haven Blogs.

Eric Perron, one of our regulars, presents Consider Advanced Placement Studies for Admissions posted at Dream Strategy. He points out that kids who do well on the AP exams can get sophomore standing in college–a real cost savings.  Keep an eye out for our next edition on February 25, when Eric will be our host!

Lai See Packets

Elizabeth King , an SAT prep guru, presents Why Spell Check is Your Enemy posted at elizabeth online.  Her point is simple: those who can spell do better on the tests.  And how does one learn to spell?  Primarily by reading.

From myUsearch, the Honest College Matchmaker, admissions consultant David Petersam offers true stories of big mistakes real students have made on their college application. Appropriately, the post is entitled You Did What On Your College Application?, and can be found at myUsearch blog

Carleigh wonders Why A.P. classes are a hot topic today .  Seems that Maryland has been cited for having the highest aveage AP scores in the nation.  You can read more about it at Cramster.com Study Blog.

Many seeking admission to competitive colleges will produce a resume to include with their application. Leaving The Folks presents Avoiding Resume Mistakes wher rule number one is to avoid proofreading errors.  Leaving the Folks , which is a new entrant to the Carnival of College Admission, is the online survival guide for anyone graduating college, leaving their parents’ house, or entering the real world for the first time.


Chinese Zodiac

Scholarships and Financial Aid

Tom Tessin offers three helpful tips on Where to Find Unique Scholarships Online, which he shares with us at FCC Student Blog.

Todd Johnson points to some helpful charts that will help you figure out What Will Your College Cost You? The answer?  It really depends on the college, because some are able to offer better deals than others.  Read Todd’s post over  at College Admissions Counseling.

In the same vein, Lee Anne Hannula presents Why You Can’t Get a Loan , which points out that many students choose a college for the wrong reason, and end up paying more than they should.  Her post can be found at Student Loan Help.

Amanda Fornecker offers up a piece with lots of good reminders about the importance of getting the FAFSA done right, and getting it in early in her post, The Supply and Demand of Financial Aid fount at College – U. Got It?.

Lora Lewis is yet another Carnival Newbie (get this woman some cotton candy!), and she offers up a great post that explains the basics of the FAFSA.  Every parent should read her post at Paying for College: FAFSA Fundamentals found on Lora’s blog,  Keys to College.

And, last but not  least in our burgeoning financial aid section (“It’s the economy!”), Mariana Evica from the Connecticut Student Loan Foundation offers some last minute advice on filing for financial aid.  See her post, entitled Last Chance FAFSA Assistance. We’re glad to have you and the CSLF on board, Mariana!  Want to ride the Tilt-a-Whirl with me?


Boarding Schools

Peter Baron, an expert on boarding schools and our heroic host of the previous edition of the Carnival of College Admission (didn’t see it?  go here!) presents Interim Grades & Your Boarding School Application posted his Boarding School Blog. Brian Fischer, who is a regular feature on the AQ Boarding School blog, points out that is always best to do whatever the admissions office wants…if you are really serious about your application.


College Life

Yet another new participant in the Carnival of College Admission is John from ESN, who shares his secrets of  How to Get Straight A?s in College (with Minimal Effort) .  His tips are straightforward, but it’s amazing how many students don’t realize that they have it in their power to improve their own performance.  See John’s post at Universities and Colleges.

Peach Blossoms

Jen Himottu, star student blogger over at Worcester Polytechnic Institute,  presents Tour Guide Season posted at True Life: I’m a WPI senior…. We loving having a student perspective at the Carnival…keeps us all young!  Jen explains how one is chosen to be a tour guide at WPI.  Very helpful info!

Karen Chenoweth, writing for the Britannica Blog presents Impatience with Bad Teaching.  Let’s face it:  there is an awful lot of bad teaching going on at all levels of our educational system.  It’s one thing when the education is free, or at least inexpensive.  But what do we do when we are paying $40k per year, and the instructor is lousy?

Edvisors presents A new CampusX Community for Colleges Students to Network posted at College Admission Guide College Search Advice. This is a new community on Ning, and is worth a look.

Dawn Papandrea, one of our Carnival Regulars (I think she is addicted to roller coasters!)  presents CollegeSurfing Insider: 7 Things to Do After You’ve Been Laid Off posted at CollegeSurfing Insider.  Dawn points out that even college students need to avoid complacency in this economy, because younger hires may be the first to be laid off if a company’s income drops.

The folks over at Unigo have been writing about the college dating.  I should have read this stuff decades ago…might have improved my social life in college.  Check out their site at Unigo.com.


chinese-new-year-fireworks-hong-kong

Graduate Schools

Adam Markus is an independent admissions consultant specializing graduate business programs.  Adam tells us what to do if you are waitlisted for Business school in 2009. His post is Waitlisted? Now what? can be found on his blog, Adam Markus: Graduate Admissions Guru.

Jared Maloney is a “fad buster:”  he sheds light on assumptions and popular attitudes that may be plain wrong.  In this post, he advises against the rush to law school that may be a product of the ecnomic downturn.  See if you agree with him by reading  Fad: Law School posted at Fade That Fad.


Online Colleges

OnlineCollege presents Walden, and 99 other Free Online Books posted at Universities and Colleges.

Heather Johnson presents a post that doesn’t deal so much with online colleges as with online, open source courses in her post 101 Free Open Course Classes to Learn How to Build ANYTHING posted at Best Universities.  Whether you’re looking to supplement your own classroom instruction or just insatiably curious, have a look at these resources.


Ornamental Orange Trees

Other Cool Stuff

Alvaro Fernandez presents Learning about Learning: an Interview with Joshua Waitzkin posted at SharpBrains. Here you can catch a brain in full display.  This stuff is really cool!

Cort Johnson of goSwoop gives advice to admissions offices on how to use communications tools to recruit students, especially international students.  Check out this enlightening post on the goSwoop blog.

************

Well, that wraps it up for this 10th edition of the Carnival. Our next edition will be open on March 25th, when our host will be Dave van de Walle over at Usphere. You can submit to the next edition by filling out our handy submission form.  For the archives of past editions, please see our official home page.

As always, we welcome your comments, your suggestions, and your continued support of this online blogging community.

See you next time!


Mark Montgomery
College Coach




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Advice for Completing FAFSA Form for Financial Aid

One of the most daunting tasks in the college admission and financial aid process is completion of the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.  A colleague forwarded this link to a great video that explains what the FAFSA is and how to complete it in five entertaining minutes.  Have a look.

Okay, it glosses over the details (which may lead to hair loss among some parents).  But at least it points out how important this form is in helping families get the best financial aid packages possible.


Mark Montgomery

College Counselor





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Early Decision Applications Up–Despite Economic Downturn

Yesterday Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed reported in a lengthy (but characteristically thorough) article that despite the economic downturn, the number of early decision applications to many expensive, private colleges is up this year over last. Mr. Jaschik offers the following possible explanations:


1.  Colleges are better communicating that college fit matters, so students are making decisions earlier about which colleges fit them best.

2.  Colleges are more clearly communicating that early decision applicants will not suffer by receiving smaller financial aid packages than their counterparts who are accepted regular decision.

3.  State colleges are sending out panicky press releases that not only will it be tougher to gain admission, but faculty will be cut, programs slashed, and class sizes increased–messages that send families running in the opposite direction.

4.  Parents are unwilling to sacrifice a quality education for their kids, no matter the financial burdens.


Frankly, however, nobody really can figure out why early decision and early action applications are up at so many expensive private colleges.  What everyone does agree on,  however, is this is shaping up to be one of the wackiest, least predictable admissions cycles ever.


Here are some sample increases of percentage increases in early applications at some private colleges.


Haverford: 13%

Richmond:  14%

St. Olaf:  50%

Dartmouth:  10%

Northwestern:  15%

New York University:  1%

Hamilton:  8%

Warren Wilson:  30%



Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant




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College Shopping Tips: When Out-of-State is Cheaper than In-State Tuition

The financial downturn has high school seniors and their parents running scared.  How can we reduce costs?  How can we get the best deal?


The conventional wisdom says that an in-state college is the cheapest option.  As with most conventional wisdom, this assumption is wrong.


Let’s compare costs for a Colorado student considering majoring in business at three state universities in the region.



A few notes explain where these numbers come from:

  1. CU-Boulder tuition is $10,852, but Colorado students automatically are eligible for the Colorado Opportunity Fund, which effectively reduces tuition by $2760.
  2. Colorado students with an ACT of 28 or higher attending Montana State are eligible for a tuition discount under the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE–pronounced “woo-ee”).  Students with even higher ACT scores are eligible for other scholarships that reduce the overall price even further.
  3. Colorado students attending the University of Wyoming also are eligible for the WUE discount.


Sometimes what you major it makes a difference, too.  Business is the most expensive major at CU Boulder.  If you major in Arts & Sciences,  tuition is less:  $7,278 per year.  Engineering, however,  is $9,568.


So parents, don’t cut off your nose to spite your face!  If your student is interested in going out of state to college, do your homework before you assume that staying in state is the cheapest option.  Here we have compared only state schools, but even some private colleges will end up costing you less than the University of Colorado at Boulder.


As with most everything in life, it pays to comparison shop!


Mark Montgomery

College Counselor





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Economic Considerations Remove Blindfold from Need Blind Admissions

A few days ago I wrote a post providing some of my predictions about how the credit crunch will affect college admissions.  The New York Times ran a story yesterday about how both rich and poor colleges are reacting to the economic downturn.


There are two points from this article I want to emphasize.


First, colleges and universities will try their best to freeze or reduce their expenses.  Representatives of colleges quoted in this article talk about hiring freezes, salary freezes, and putting building or renovation projects on hold. The plan is not to reduce financial aid offered to incoming freshmen.  I feel that the the press is exaggerating the effect of the credit crisis on the dollars colleges will devote to financial aid, largely because they do not understand that most financial aid is not actually money, but discounts off the full price of tuitoin.


The second point has to do with “need blind” admissions.  All colleges would like to be able to admit students regardless of their ability to pay.  However, only the most wealthy colleges can be “need blind” in their admissions policies, and even they are never fully blind to the financial implications of the admissions process (more on this topic in another post).  The issue is not that colleges will have fewer dollars to offer, in absolute terms.  It’s that more students may have more need this year, because families’ financial situations may be more bleak this year than in the past.  With assets having been decimated, the financial aid formulas will require colleges to spread around their financial aid dollars in creative ways in order to build the class that they want.


The effect, then, is that colleges will have to lift their blinders and take a cold, hard look at their budgets–as well as the credentials of the students seeking admission.  As I mentioned in my previous post, it will thus be easier for full-pay students go get into competitive colleges.


Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant




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