Confusion Over Weighted GPAs

So my school uses a weighted GPA system and I'm really confused about how colleges interpret it. Do colleges take these weighted GPAs into account or do they have their own method of calculation? Any help is appreciated!

While your school does use a weighted GPA system, colleges often recalculate GPAs based on their own systems because there is not a standardized way that high schools weight GPAs. For example, some high schools consider A.P. courses to be on a 5.0 scale while others might use a 6.0 scale, and some schools don't use any weighted system at all.

Colleges typically unweight your GPA and then take into account the rigor of your courses separately. They do this to create a consistent and equitable playing field for all students during the admissions process, since not all high schools offer the same number of AP or Honors classes, if any.

To evaluate course rigor, admissions officers often look at your school’s course catalog/profile to see what advanced courses are offered and check if you’ve challenged yourself within the context of your school. For instance, if a student from School A took 4 AP classes out of 6 offered and a student from School B took 5 AP classes out of 15 offered, School A's student will likely be seen as more academically rigorous even though they took fewer AP classes in total.

So while your school's GPA may not directly translate into college admissions, the efforts you've put into taking rigorous courses are definitely recognized and taken into account. Stay focused on doing well in challenging classes as that will stand out to colleges.