Hey everyone! I've been wondering about class rank recently. My high school uses it but I'm not quite sure how it works. How is it determined? Based on grades? Test scores? Any insight would be greatly appreciated!
Class rank is a metric used by a high school to compare a student’s grade point average (GPA) to that of their peers. It is primarily based on academic performance, usually your weighted GPA if your high school offers both weighted and unweighted GPAs.
Weighted GPAs take into account the difficulty of your classes, so Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and honors classes may count more towards your GPA than regular courses. Unweighted GPAs, on the other hand, don't consider course difficulty and give the same weight to all classes.
In terms of the actual calculation, once all students' GPAs are sorted from highest to lowest, your rank is determined by your position in this list. For example, if you have the highest GPA in your class, you would have a class rank of 1.
Test scores like the SAT or ACT are not generally factored into your class rank. Class rank is distinct from your standardized testing performance, which colleges will consider separately in your application.
However, different schools may follow different policies, so I recommend checking with your guidance counselor for how your specific school calculates class rank. They should be able to provide you with the most accurate information.
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