CLASS OF 2018

ANNANDALE HIGH SCHOOL

Understanding College Admission
Robin Roth, College and Career Specialist
Judy Hingle, College Access Fairfax

Anyone Feeling
Like This?
College Admission Can Be Scary

What Do Colleges Look At Activity

Work as a group

Select someone to record your groups

consensus
Rank the admission factors on the handout
from 1 to 16, with 1 as the most important
Select a spokesperson for your group to
share your results

Before You Start, Here are Some

Definitions
College Prep Courses English, Math, Science, Social Studies and

World Language Courses required for graduation

Strength of curriculum The combination of regular, honors and AP,

IB or Dual Enrollment courses selected by a student

Admission test scores. Your SAT and/or ACT scores usually count

highly if the college requires them

Test Optional Colleges More than 850 four-year colleges and

universities do not use the SAT or ACT to admit substantial numbers

of bachelor-degree applicants. fairtest.org/university/optional
Grades in all courses. Your overall GPA also serves as an indicator

of your academic success in high school

And Here are Answers from Colleges

Compare your groups ranking to the

colleges responses for your spokesperson

to share
Any surprises?

Which factors were seen as considerably

important by more than 50% of colleges?

How many factors were ranked as considerable
important by less than 10% of colleges?
Any other comments?

Group Responses
Blue Group
Red Group
Green Group

Purple Group

Why Were There Different Answers?

Accept > 85% of Applications
Accept 71 - 85% of Applications
Accept 50 70% of Applications

Accept < 50% of Applications

Grades in College Prep Courses

Strength of Curriculum
Admission Test Scores (ACT, SAT)
Grades in All Courses
Essay or Writing Sample
Students Demonstrated Interest
Class Rank
Counselor Recommendation
Extracurricular Activities
Interview
Teacher Recommendation

AP/IB Scores
SAT II Scores
State Graduation Exam Scores
Portfolio
Work

% of Colleges that Identify Each Factor as of Considerable

Importance

Ranking of College Admission Factors

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20
Accept >85%

10
Accept 71-85%

0
Accept 50-70%

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

Factors

Accept <50%

What Does This Tell Us?

The primary focus for colleges that accept the great

majority of applications tends to be limited to

Grades in College Prep Courses
Strength of Curriculum
Admission Test Scores (if required)
These colleges are typically large public institutions

As a general rule, the fewer applications a college

accepts, the more factors are considered

Strength of Curriculum
Less Likely to be Test Optional
Essays and Demonstrated Interest
These colleges are typically smaller private institutions

Lets Talk About GPAs

FCPS reports a weighted cumulative GPA at the end of

each year
7th and 8th (if the student takes high school credit courses)9th, 10th

and 11th
End of the 7th semester for 12th
One final transcript is sent to the college a student will attend

Core Courses
English, Math, Science, Social Studies and World Language
required for graduation
Weighted Subjects
Honors classes are a deeper exploration of a subject
AP, IB and Dual Enrollment classes may be eligible for college
credit
Electives
Chosen by student interest to complete graduation requirements

Grade Points
A (93-100) = 4.0
A- (90-92) = 3.7
B+ (87-89) = 3.3
B (83-86) = 3.0
B- (80-82) = 2.7
C+ (77-79) = 2.3

C (73-76) = 2.0
C- (70-72) = 1.7
D+ (67-69) = 1.3
D (64-66) = 1.0
F (below 64) = 0.0
.5 additional for Honors
1.0 additional for AP, IB, DE

Weighted GPAs
Total Weighted GPA

Core Weighted GPA

Subject

Grade

Points

Weight

Total Points

Subject

Grade

Points

Weight

Total Points

IB English

IB English

IB Math

IB Math

IB Science

IB Science

IB Social Studies

IB Social Studies

IB World Language

IB World Language

Elective

Elective

Elective

Elective

3.86

Core Weighted GPA

Total Weighted GPA

3.8

Unweighted GPAs
Total Unweighted GPA
Subject

Grade

Points

Weight

Subject

Grade

Points

Weight

Total Points

IB English

IB Math

IB Science

IB Social Studies

IB World Language

Elective

Elective

Total Points

IB English

IB Math

IB Science

IB Social Studies

IB World Language

Elective

Elective

Total Unweighted
GPA

Core Unweighted GPA

3.14

Core Unweighted
GPA

2.8

Remember
More than half of colleges recalculate GPAs to

adjust for grading scales and weighting

An upward trend makes a difference
Your electives can demonstrate your interests
and strengths
Research the typical preparation of successful
students at the college you are interested in

Tools: Scattergrams
High school specific results from the last 2 years
College with fewer than 5 results are not included
Indicate Average Accepted GPA and SAT

Use your graph analysis skills

Tools You Can Use

Family Connection
Individual accounts for all students
Links to college websites for general information
Specific application results for Annandale students

School Counselor
Selecting the right curriculum for you
Resources for academic and personal success

College and Career Specialist

College visits at AHS
Summer Opportunities
Updated college, scholarship and other information through Family

Connection

College Access Fairfax

Financial Aid Information Sessions
Completing Financial Aid Application Clinics
Scholarships

Class of 2018
Annandale High School