A 93 by any other name is.... still a 93

Here's an interesting article about my home county, where it takes a 94 to get an A in high school instead of a 90 like in many other parts of the country. Apparently, parents are rallying to water down the grading system to match the rest of the nation.... But how much will it really change things?

College admission boards keep track of different parts of the country, and Fairfax County with several top 50 high schools and the magnet high school TJHSST (a.k.a. Future Einstein High) is likely known across the country as a tough place to go to school - i.e. a 3.5 from Fairfax probably equals a 3.8 from somewhere else, and 3.8 from Fairfax is truly elite.

I don't see how changing the grading system will accomplish anything. Fairfax just won't be an outlier anymore. Congrats parents, your children will no longer stand out with a slightly higher GPA if the measures pass.

My favorite quote from the article proves the point itself: A parent mentions that her daughter is a straight C student, and as a result, doesn't stand a chance of getting into the University of Virginia, which happens to be my alma mater. What this deluded parent doesn't realize is if the measure were to pass and your daughter were to become a half B and half C student, or even a straight B student, she STILL wouldn't have a chance of getting into UVA. UVA's looking for the closest to straight A's possible, and importantly, emphasises admitting well-rounded individuals who have stretched themselves by engaging in many different extracurricular activities. This girl needs to study harder and the grades will take care of themselves.

On a side note, as an in-state school receiving several thousand apps each year from Fairfax county, of all universities she could have mentioned, UVA would be particularly well aquainted with Fairfax County's grading scale.