Recently, we had the pleasure of speaking with a few ex-admissions officers in our circle, one of whom was a previous UC Riverside admissions officer.

One of the things we discussed was how GPA was measured during the admissions process. It turns out the ever-elusive question of whether unweighted or weighted GPA is more important is a bit more difficult to answer than expected.

That’s why we wrote this guide today!

In this article, we’ll be covering the difference between unweighted and weighted GPA. We’ll also discuss what constitutes a good unweighted and weighted GPA, alongside how colleges judge the two and which is more important.

Table of Contents

1. What Does Unweighted GPA Mean?
2. What Counts as a Good Unweighted GPA?
3. What Does Weighted GPA Mean?
4. What Counts as a Good Weighted GPA?
5. How Do Colleges Judge Unweighted and Weighted GPA?
6. What’s More Important? Weighted or Unweighted GPA?
7. Unweighted vs Weighted GPA FAQ
8. Conclusion

What Does Unweighted GPA Mean?

Unweighted GPA (shortened as “UW GPA”) is your academic performance (letter grades earned) without consideration for class rigor or “weight” (honors or AP classes.)

This means your honors and Advanced Placement (AP) courses are all weighed at the same value of a regular class. For instance, a 91% or A- in AP Lang is the same as a 91% or A- in 11th grade English.

Simply calculate your GPA as you normally would without adding extra “weight” to the honors and AP courses —hence the name “unweighted.” You can think of this as your raw GPA without the consideration of class rigor.

All unweighted GPAs fall under a 4.0 scale. Thus, there is no difference between an A and an A+.

What Counts as a Good Unweighted GPA?

There is no standardized number that constitutes a “good” unweighted GPA.

However, one can check a university’s average accepted freshman profile to see what GPA is “good enough” to have a solid chance of acceptance. Take a look at UC Berkeley’s freshman profile as an example. the middle 50% of students earned a 3.62-3.96 GPA.

Note: UC schools calculate unweighted GPA by removing the + and – at the end of grades and only measuring the letter grade. (For instance: A- and A both count as 4.0)

As a general rule, your GPA is “good” if it’s at or above the median freshman profile of the college you’re applying for. So, if you’re applying to UC Berkeley and their median unweighted GPA is 3.89-4.0, a good unweighted GPA is anything at or above 3.89.

However, even if your GPA is 0.1 – 0.3 points lower than the median, that doesn’t mean you have no chance of acceptance. In fact, we often recommend students still apply to a handful of colleges whose freshman profile is more competitive than theirs. This is called applying to reach schools.

What Does Weighted GPA Mean?

Weighted GPAs (shortened as “W GPA”) are the opposite of unweighted GPAs. They calculate both your academic performance (letter grades earned) and your course rigor (honors and AP classes.)

Typically, schools scale grades earned in an AP class by raising them one full letter grade. For instance, a C is equal to a B; and, a B is equal to an A. However, not all schools use the same weighing process. The most common weighted GPA scale is the 5.0 scale. Meanwhile, some schools use a 4.5 scale, a 6.0 one, and more.

As such, during the admissions process, admissions officers will take this variance in weight scales to account. Since GPA weighing systems aren’t standardized, they will recalculate your weight on their own.

What Counts as a Good Weighted GPA?

The same rules for “good” unweighted GPAs applies to “good” weighted GPAs.

1. There is no standard “good” weighted GPA, as “good” is relative to the colleges you’re applying to.
2. You can see if your weighted GPA is competitive by searching for the freshman profile of the school you’re applying for.
3. As a general rule, your weighted GPA is “good” when it’s at or above the median freshman profile.
   • Using UC Berkeley as an example again, their median weighted GPA for incoming freshman was 4.28 – 4.62. So, a good weighted GPA to have is at or above 4.28.
4. Again, if your weighted GPA is just shy of 4.28, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t apply. It may still be worth taking a shot at applying.

How Do Colleges Judge Unweighted and Weighted GPA?

If you’re worried about whether your weighted or unweighted GPA is more important, you likely have an unbalanced GPA.

Unbalanced GPAs are often the result of low unweighted GPAs paired with high weighted GPAs. This comes from students challenging themselves with honors and AP courses; but, performing poorly in some of them.

Now, this begs the question: do admissions officers still judge you negatively for having a low unweighted GPA even if you have a high weighted GPA? Roughly speaking, yes. They do. But, it’s more complicated than that. Colleges consider both unweighted and weighted GPA. This is because the admissions process considers both academic rigor (how many APs and Honors you took) alongside your GPA.

In addition, colleges typically don’t look at the total GPA number at the bottom of your transcript. In fact, they often recalculate your GPA based on their own system of grading.

They also assess your course rigor in the context of your school’s overall competitiveness.

What’s More Important? Weighted or Unweighted GPA?

More often than not, colleges will consider your unweighted GPA more than your weighted one. Thus, if you had to choose between a high unweighted GPA but fewer AP classes and a low unweighted GPA with more AP classes, you should choose the former. Maintaining a high academic performance remains paramount. So, don’t take on more AP classes than you can handle. Just take enough to demonstrate academic rigor.

Nonetheless, you should aim to have both a high unweighted GPA and high weighted GPA. This means taking as many AP classes as you can whilst also maintaining academic stability.

If you have a low unweighted GPA but normal weighted GPA, it’s okay. It’s not the end of the world. It just likely means you took on more difficult AP courses than you could handle.

Additionally, you can explain a lower unweighted GPA by writing a letter of explanation to the admissions office. This is a crucial step to maximizing your acceptance rate, especially if your GPA is not as high as you would hope.

Unweighted vs Weighted GPA FAQ

Here are a few frequently asked questions regarding the unweighted vs weighted discourse.

• My school uses a 4.0 scale for grades. But, a friend of mine goes to a school that uses a 5.0 scale. Will they have a higher chance of acceptance than me because their GPA looks better than mine?
  • No. Admissions officers often recalculate your grades to their standard because GPAs vary in scale anyway. Some schools use 4.0, others 5.0. In some countries, they use a 100-point scale. Some institutions have even gone so far as to not report GPAs at all. Regardless, admissions offices do everything in their power to judge fairly.
• What if my GPA is high but my academic major-related classes are low? For example, a C in English as an English major; or, a B- in Math as an Engineering major. But, As in electives like PE and Art.
  • This is exactly why college admissions officers seldom make swift judgements based on total GPA alone. They contextualize their admissions process by looking at your individual class performance. As such, a high GPA with low academic performance in major-related classes won’t be viewed as favorably.
• I’m taking courses at my local community college as a high school student. Will these go into my transcript? And, if so, will they be factored as AP classes since they’re at the college-level?
  • This depends entirely on how the college calculates your transcript and grades. Sometimes, the transcript your school sends does NOT count the college courses you took. So, admissions officers don’t even see it on the file. This is why it’s useful to explain to admissions officers the courses that you’ve taken that may not show up on your transcript.
  • However, even if admissions officers consider your college courses taken, they likely won’t weigh them as AP courses. But, again, it depends on the campus you’re applying for. Contact their undergraduate office of admissions to confirm these details.
• My AP teacher is very challenging and was notorious for giving everyone a low grade. Will admissions officers be understanding of this?
  • Admissions officers generally know the academic rigor of a particular region. They typically have representatives in every respective geographical region who can attest to your school’s rigor. However, they may not know minute details such as which teacher happens to grade harshly.
  • If you have a class you performed poorly in due to unfair grading, consider explaining this in your letter of explanation. But, remember: it’s your word against them. So, you’ll need to tread carefully if you’re going to explain your situation with an unfair teacher. That’s why we consider anyone in this position to speak with a professional college admissions consultant who can articulate your experiences carefully and tactfully.
• How does the University of California calculate GPA?
  • UC schools only count your academic performance by the letter grade. They take away the + or – at the end of your grade. So, having all 90% (or A-) grades can still count as a perfect 4.0. This is why students with more – grades than + grades can get a “boost” in their UC GPA.

Conclusion

In summary: unweighted GPAs only calculate your raw letter grades without considering academic rigor or boosts from AP/honors classes. Weighted GPAs calculate your grades weighing your AP/honors classes more heavily. Schools generally consider a high unweighted GPA more important than having a high weighted GPA. If you had to choose between good grades or high rigor, choose high grades. But, both is ideal.

Additionally, GPA isn’t the only admissions factor. There are other important aspects such as your standardized test scores, extracurricular activities, awards and leadership, college essays, and more. It’s a multivariate process that takes everything into account. So, don’t lose hope if your GPA is low.

However, if you are stressed about the college admissions process and don’t know what to do, consider speaking with us! We’ve helped students defy all odds and get into some of the best schools in the nation including Princeton, MIT, Duke, Columbia, USC, UC Berkely, UCLA, and more!