The high school grade point average (GPA) is often adjusted to account for nominal indicators of course rigor, such as “honors” or “Advanced Placement.” Adjusted GPAs—also known as weighted GPAs—are used widely for computing students’ rank in class and in the college admission process. Despite the high stakes attached to GPA, weighting policies vary considerably across states and schools, with ...

This paper uses administrative data from the University of Texas-Austin to examine whether the number of same high school classmates at college entry influences college achievement, measured by grade point average (GPA) and persistence. For each freshman cohort from 1993 through 2003 we calculate the number and ethnic makeup of college freshmen from each Texas high school. Empirical specificati...

This report is a companion to a study that found that high school grade point average was a stronger predictor of performance in college-level English and math than were standardized exam scores among first-time students at the University of Alaska who enrolled directly in college-level courses. This report examines how well high school grade point average and standardized exam scores predict c...

High school grades are the most frequently used predictors in college and university admission decisions. As such, educators and policymakers are extremely interested in the consistency of grading standards and policies across secondary schools. There has always been some concern over the comparability of grades (Adelman, 1983; Camara, 1994), and with increased competition among a growing propo...

BACKGROUND In Iran, admission to medical school is based solely on the results of the highly competitive, nationwide Konkoor examination. This paper examines the predictive validity of Konkoor scores, alone and in combination with high school grade point averages (hsGPAs), for the academic performance of public medical school students in Iran. METHODS This study followed the cohort of 2003 ma...