UC Berkeley GPA, how important?

Hey guys, I've been dreaming of going to UC Berkeley for a while now. What GPA do you think I should aim for to have a good shot at getting in? I know that GPA is not the only factor, but I want some benchmarks to set my academic goals. Thanks in advance!

It's great that UC Berkeley is your dream school! While it's true GPA isn't the only factor, it's still an important part of the admissions process. In general, you'll want to aim for a high GPA to be competitive, as UC Berkeley is quite selective.

For context, the middle 50% for admitted students' unweighted GPA is between 3.89 to 4.0 on a 4.0 scale, and the average GPA is approximately 4.0 (most students have earned straight A's in regular-level courses and/or a mix of A's and B's in honors/AP/IB courses) and the middle 50% for weighted GPA is between 4.28 to 4.62. It's important to have a strong GPA, but remember that UC Berkeley also considers your course rigor, meaning they'll want to see that you've taken challenging courses (like AP, IB, or honors) in addition to having a high GPA.

Good luck on your journey to UC Berkeley, and just remember to focus on maintaining the best GPA you can while also making sure to excel in other areas like extracurriculars, writing strong personal statements, and demonstrating your passion for your intended area of study. Enabling your application to shine through a combination of factors will give you the best chance of admission to your dream school.