Should high school freshmen find out their class ranks?
As the mom of a high school freshman, I've learned it's easy to find out your child's class rank.
At our school, your kid is given a printout of the past semester's grades, which include a rank calculation. Needless to say, all the kids are asking each other what their ranks are.
Of course they all want to be as high as possible, and the frustration begins early. I began to wonder how important rank really is when colleges are looking at your application. I asked Lynn Lubell, publisher of InLikeMe.com, a self-help college admissions Web site based in Boca Raton. Here's what she said:
"While a high class rank is impressive, admissions officers tend to be more focused on the entire picture, including rigor of academic schedule, grades in specific classes, entrance exam scores, intellectual curiosity, activities, recommendations and what positively differentiates the student from other applicants."
So I will try not to obsess too much about the fact that my daughter is not in the Top 10. Until next semester's rankings come out, that is.
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