Page 15 - Laguna Blanca Magazine Summer 2018

Character Makes
Explore

the Grade
bravely

IT’S THE STORY BEHIND THE GPA THAT MATTERS.

One of my biggest challenges as a college counselor is the overemphasis many
students place on their GPA. To some students, GPA is the be-all and end-all—the
definitive measure of their time in high school and, ultimately, their future success. This
is a persistent and pernicious myth. For one thing, the GPA that appears on a student’s
transcript is seldom the same number that many colleges calculate using their own
measures and metrics. (I can hear some heads exploding already.) Even more important,
students who place too much focus on their GPA may be missing the big picture. The
ultimate question is not, “What number did you earn?” but instead, “What kind of
person are you?” It’s the story behind the GPA that matters—the place where humor,
dedication, and yes, resilience, carry the most weight.
At a small, independent school like Laguna, students’ overemphasis on grades is all
the more prevalent—but it’s also all the more pointless. For instance, in a large public
high school, GPAs can serve as a useful shorthand for determining who has earned BY MATT STRUCKMEYER,
distinction in the top 10 or 20 percent of the class. But such a distinction is far less DIRECTOR OF COLLEGE
helpful in a class of 40 or 50, one where nearly everybody takes the same college prep COUNSELING
classes, and much of the class clusters within a few decimal places of one another. In
these situations, what truly sets you apart?
Colleges expect that capable and ambitious students at schools like Laguna will
be well-known to their teachers, which is why a recommendation coming from an
experienced instructor—one who has seen hundreds of students come
and go—can offer so much insight to college admissions personnel.
How does this student stack up against other creative and capable types? “WHAT IMPRESSES TEACHERS
What adjectives leap to mind in describing you? These are the things MOST IS THE STUDENT
that really matter to college admissions teams. WHO OVERCOMES EARLY
Nine times out of ten, what impresses teachers most is the student DISAPPOINTMENT TO FIND
who overcomes early disappointment to find success. This is why, as SUCCESS.”
an English teacher, I’m suspicious of students who expect to earn A’s
right out of the gate. Where’s their incentive to improve? On the other
hand, nothing delights me more than students who realize that they are not meeting my
standards of excellence and take the initiative to learn how to change that. I respect a
student who is not above asking questions like, “How can I improve this paper? What do
you mean my transitions could be more effective? How could my prose be sharper and
leaner?” Those are the types of students who will succeed in college and later in life.
So, here’s the bottom line on GPA: work as hard as you can and embrace the
challenges. Remember you are not just a number. It is not your GPA that will be discussed
during the admissions committee meetings. Rather, it is your persistence, grit, and
SUMMER 2018
resilience that will give you a good chance at standing out from the crowd of competitors.

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