Weighted vs Cumulative GPA: Which do colleges consider more?

Hey everyone, I'm a junior in high school, and I'm getting increasingly nervous about college admissions. I have a question: Do colleges look more at your weighted or cumulative GPA? I've taken some advanced classes, and I'm curious which would make more of an impact on my application.

Hi there! It's natural to be nervous about college admissions, and it's great that you're taking advanced classes. When it comes to considering GPA, colleges typically look at both your weighted and unweighted (cumulative) GPAs. However, they may place more emphasis on one or the other depending on the college and their specific policies.

Weighted GPA takes into account the rigor of your courses, giving more weight to advanced classes, like AP, IB, or honors courses. If you've taken these types of classes and performed well, your weighted GPA could be higher than your unweighted GPA. Colleges generally appreciate students who challenge themselves with a rigorous course load, so a higher weighted GPA can be seen as a positive.

Unweighted GPA, on the other hand, is the cumulative GPA that doesn't take into account the rigor of your classes. It's generally on a 4.0 scale but doesn't give extra points—so to speak—for advanced courses. Some colleges may focus on this metric to compare students on a more equal footing, without taking the potentially differing course offerings of various high schools into account.

When reviewing applications, colleges will usually look at both types of GPAs as well as the context of your high school. They'll consider factors like the courses offered by your school and the overall rigor of your course load relative to what's available to you. So, while there's no definite answer about which GPA colleges might consider more, it's essential to continue performing well academically and challenging yourself with the opportunities you have at your school. Good luck!