difference b/w A- & A (3.7 and 4.0), which do med schools look at?

[PremedBear]

I go to a school that calculates A= 4.0, A-=3.7, etc. but I know other schools (supposedly easier than mine) have A/A-=4.0, B+/B/B-=3, etc. and was wondering if most med schools will look at the +'s/-'s for both types of GPA scales at different universities. For example, if someone at a school with the latter system had mostly A-'s, will most med schools still count them as 4.0 or change them to 3.7. I would assume this would be very misleading towards students, thanks!

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[rockaction]

I go to a school that doesn't do +/-. All of my grades were reported as As, Bs, etc. I got some 90-92s in some classes that would have probably been A-'s at other places, and I got As for them. But...I also got some 89s that were Bs and not B+'s. So there is a benefit in the +/- system. The +/- system is helpful if you get B+'s, and without system is helpful if you make A-'s. But yeah there is a lack of standardization in GPA calculations so that's why there's an MCAT.

When you fill out the AMCAS application, you report the grades as they are on your transcript. AMCAS then calculates your GPA.

 

[orangeANDgreen]

how about cornell which gives you a 4.3 for an A+

http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/advising/gradreqs/gradeguide.cfm

 

[rockaction]

how about cornell which gives you a 4.3 for an A+

http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/advising/gradreqs/gradeguide.cfm

AMCAS assigns its own values to the grades. A+/A = 4.0

 

[Cezanne]

It doesn't matter how the schools individually calculate GPA's. What the medical schools will be looking at is the AMCAS GPA, which is calculated using a standardized scale.

 

[JJMrK]

If you're talking about schools that actually assign +/- grades but then only assign GPA points of 4.0/3.0/2.0, the GPA reflected on your transcript differ from your AMCAS GPA. If you just mean that the school does not assign +/- grades, the AMCAS GPA will probably = the transcript GPA.