Ever since I have been at UGA (18 years or so), we have added .5 to every AP or IB grade during the calculation of the UGA GPA (excluding schools who add points to actual teacher grades on the transcript). In a review of the weighting practices of a large number of high schools with […]
From January through mid-March, the admissions staff will hide out in our offices and read files during our holistic file reading process. There are six main areas that we look at in our file reading process, and this post covers the second two areas, focusing on a student’s academics and the strength of curriculum. While […]
In the UGA Admissions Office, there are some things we will never say no matter what. Some people will ask questions hoping for one of these answers, but you will not hear us give an answer (at least not the one some people expect). I sometimes feel like Dr. Seuss in “Green Eggs and Ham”, […]
Every day of every year (except for decision days), the most popular question asked of an admission counselor is “Is it better to take a tough HS course and make a B, or an average HS course and make an A?”. The most popular answer? A half-hearted smile and the statement ‘We would prefer an […]
Every once in a while, the topic of dual enrollment (taking college classes while in high school) comes up on this blog. Every year, well over 1,500 of our freshman applicants will have some form of dual enrollment work, and most likely 700-900 freshmen will enroll with dual enrollment work. It ranges from 3 hours […]
As you might have guessed, I am a big fan of fables, and the following one applies directly to the idea of students challenging themselves and working hard. Aesop’s Fable, “The Ant and the Grasshopper” Once there lived an ant and a grasshopper in a grassy meadow. All day long the ant would work hard, […]
This section will be brief, as I have written about it a number of times. The file reading topic for the day is Intellectual Challenge/Rigor of Curriculum. First, don’t ask how many AP/IB/Honors/Advanced/Dual Enrollment/Post-AP/TBE (The Best Ever!) classes you should take, because there is no right answer. Instead, look at the academic opportunities both at […]
I was at a swim meet last night watching my son and daughter compete, and I had a chance to watch some amazing athletes. In one 11-12 year old heat, my son was up against a young man whose times were better than some 18 year old swimmers. While it was tough knowing that my […]
