Percentage that GPAs count in different schools?

[Moonstruckmuse]

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I've heard a few statistics thrown around (like that GPA is 50% or higher of the weight when applying to say, Texas).

Is there anywhere to actually find these numbers?

If not, would anyone mind sharing a few schools known for basing their decisions primarily on GPA? I've got some experience and amazing recommendations (I think), but my GPA is definitely on the lower side. Above cutoff for almost all schools, but blehh.

(Specifically, does anyone know about Penn, Illinois, NCSU, UTK, CSU, Cornell, Ohio?)

 

[EllieGirl89]

I've heard a few statistics thrown around (like that GPA is 50% or higher of the weight when applying to say, Texas).

Is there anywhere to actually find these numbers?

If not, would anyone mind sharing a few schools known for basing their decisions primarily on GPA? I've got some experience and amazing recommendations (I think), but my GPA is definitely on the lower side. Above cutoff for almost all schools, but blehh.

(Specifically, does anyone know about Penn, Illinois, NCSU, UTK, CSU, Cornell, Ohio?)

Don't quote me, but I want to say Ohio is 35% grades, 10% GRE, and 55% non-cognitive (essays, recommendations, vet experience, animal experience, interview).

 

[laitmanvet]

I've heard a few statistics thrown around (like that GPA is 50% or higher of the weight when applying to say, Texas).

Is there anywhere to actually find these numbers?

If not, would anyone mind sharing a few schools known for basing their decisions primarily on GPA? I've got some experience and amazing recommendations (I think), but my GPA is definitely on the lower side. Above cutoff for almost all schools, but blehh.

(Specifically, does anyone know about Penn, Illinois, NCSU, UTK, CSU, Cornell, Ohio?)

I was just at Ohio and an admin there said 10%, although that 10% didn't even seem to mean that much...she said anything above a 1200 is competitive. The way she talked about it, it was minimal compared to GPA and experience on the app.
Penn looks at it, but I don't think very heavily. The admin there said they look at the percentile your score was in. I scored a 1200 overall, with a 700M/500V (with high-ish percentiles for both, I guess I got lucky with the verbal) and he said I was fine, that it wasn't worth taking over.

 

[NStarz]

I was just at Ohio and an admin there said 10%, although that 10% didn't even seem to mean that much...she said anything above a 1200 is competitive. The way she talked about it, it was minimal compared to GPA and experience on the app.
Penn looks at it, but I don't think very heavily. The admin there said they look at the percentile your score was in. I scored a 1200 overall, with a 700M/500V (with high-ish percentiles for both, I guess I got lucky with the verbal) and he said I was fine, that it wasn't worth taking over.

It looks like the OP was asking about GPA and not GRE.

 

[tuckervet]

I don't know numbers, but I think upenn puts a lot of weight on gpa. Illinois works based on phases, and your gpa only counts for the first phase. The way I understand it, if you get through that first phase (which I did last year, and I don't have a strong gpa) then from there it is not a factor anymore.

 

[laitmanvet]

It looks like the OP was asking about GPA and not GRE.

Woops! Read too quickly.
Penn looks at overall and last 45 cr hr GPA and they do put a lot of weight on that. Ohio looks at overall gpa, total science gpa (as in every science class you ever took, undergrad + grad), and last 45 cr hr gpa.

 

[cubby38]

I've heard that CSU is known at looking past your GPA, there is a cutoff (not sure exact number) but I've heard from a lot of people that they are more concerned with the more rounded candidates (experiences and references) than those strictly with a good GPA.

Iowa State is similar; they have a cutoff and after that, GPA doesn't matter. I actually work for a vet that is on the Admissions Committee and she said that they dont even get to see your GPA.

 

[Minnerbelle]

I was told from the admission folks at Tufts that they value GRE and GPA a total of 70% but that it's not a 35%, 35% split. If you do better on one, they'll count it more.

 

[luplodw]

UTK does a sort of point system. Phase one includes GPA, GRE, and course load. If you make it to phase two they evaluate your PS, ELORs, and you have an interview. Then they add up your scores from phase 1 and 2.

So here is the breakdown:

Max points from GPA= 120
Max points from # hours completed= 6
Max points from avg. # hours per semester= 6
Max points from GRE= 25

Maximum for phase 1 is 157 points
Maximum for phase 2 is 68 points

Therefore GPA is 53.33% and GRE is 11.11%

The breakdown for GPA is:

Overall GPA (including graduate work) x 6
GPA of physical science courses (including math, physics, chemistry, and biochem) x 12
GPA of all undergrad bio and animal science courses x 6
GPA for the most recent 4 semesters or 6 quarters x 6

 

[rileydog]

Here is the info for LSU even though its not on the OP list.

Objective Evaluation - 65%
- Required Course GPA - (29%)
- Last 45 Credit Hour GPA - (18%)
- General GRE score - (18%)

Subjective Evaluation - 35%
- Folder Reviews - (15%)
- Interviews - (10%)

also: the minimum GPA for eligibility is a 3.00

and the website for more information:
http://www.vetmed.lsu.edu/admissions/sel_process.asp

Good luck to all you who just applied. The wait is worth it when you get that acceptance letter 🙂

 

[squibby]

Iowa State is similar; they have a cutoff and after that, GPA doesn't matter. I actually work for a vet that is on the Admissions Committee and she said that they dont even get to see your GPA.

Interesting. Wouldn't it be nice to know what that cutoff is?

 

[canis13]

I was told from the admission folks at Tufts that they value GRE and GPA a total of 70% but that it's not a 35%, 35% split. If you do better on one, they'll count it more.

Also, not sure if this info has been posted on here before, but Tufts only looks at your cumulative GPA and doesn't separate out science/pre-req or last-45-credit-hour GPAs.

 

[NStarz]

Also, not sure if this info has been posted on here before, but Tufts only looks at your cumulative GPA and doesn't separate out science/pre-req or last-45-credit-hour GPAs.

Ooh, that's good news for me 🙂

 

[emersondust]

Cornell's DVM Admissions Formula:
25% Overall GPA
25% GRE (verbal and quantitative) or MCAT
5% Quality of Academic Program
20% Animal/Veterinary/Biomedical Experience
(supported with letters of evaluation)
10% Non-Cognitive Skills
10% All Other Achievements and Letters
of Evaluation
5% Personal Statement

 

[Moonstruckmuse]

Fascinating. Are Illinois and Cornell the main 2 schools known for working in phases?

My Bio/psych gpa (so, my last 45 hours) are beautiful numbers to look at, it's really the chemistry and some other basic stuff that has me a little hesitant. My understanding is that science is science, regardless of which branch, right?

Thanks so much for all the feedback already!

 

[KaibabVet]

UGA has created a pie chart with these approximate percentages:

49% GPA (cumulative, science, last 45 hr)
26% Experience (Includes LOR's and PS)
25% GRE (General and Biology)

 

[jl123]

Hi, I'm new to the forum, so not too familiar with how everything works. I just found out how to search the forum/threads and have been doing it obsessively... 😛 Does anyone know how the phase system works for Cornell? I researched on Illinois' system but I couldn't find much about phasing on Cornell's website. Is it pretty much the same as Illinois? Sorry if there's already a thread on this, I wasn't able to find it. Thanks!

 

[Coquette22]

As long as we're making this into a more general thread:

UPEI - AVC -
50% Pre-req GPA only
- 4 biology pre-reqs make up 30% of the 50%
- 16 other pre-reqs make up 70% of the 50%
5% GRE
(Interview invites are based on GPA and GRE only)
30% Interview
10% Vet/animal experience
5% Other extra curriculars

 

[Moonstruckmuse]

jl123 - I totally understand the OCD thread searching! That's what I've been up to, primarily.

Thanks for all the help so far! Does anyone know if how the course rigor of your schedule interacts with all this? I finished my biology major near the end of my sophomore year, and am still taking 3+ biology courses each semester. My professor/advisor had a good chuckle over the fact that I'm almost completing the major twice over and have taken most of the bio courses here! Haha. Does that count for anything? Aka, above and beyond the science level necessary?

Also, do schools that base your GPA on the last 45 INCLUDE the grades of your earlier classes if they were prerequisites? As in, will orgo/gen chem in freshmen/sophomore year count in my last 45credit GPA so long as I passed the cutoff point?

 

[eventualeventer]

No, prereq or science courses are generally a different category. Last 45 GPA's are usually just that - if your last 45 includes, say, 4 semesters in which you actually completed 50 credits, or whatever, some schools will do some calculation stuff and others will just take all of those 50 credits, but I haven't heard of any reaching farther back to create a combination last 45-plus-science GPA.

 

[SocialStigma]

For OVC at Guelph, to get an interview (top 200 ish applicants):

40% GPA of last 2 (full time) semesters
40% prereq GPA (8 courses)
20% MCAT/GRE

 

[Lechatnoir]

I don't know numbers, but I think upenn puts a lot of weight on gpa. Illinois works based on phases, and your gpa only counts for the first phase. The way I understand it, if you get through that first phase (which I did last year, and I don't have a strong gpa) then from there it is not a factor anymore.

Yes once you get past phase 1, no one sees your GPA/GRE score anymore. Which btw the GRE score is based on average percentile score of all 3 sections not numerical scores. If you suck at verbal (like me) you can still end up with a decent average. Phase 2 looks at everything else in your app (extracurriculars, ps, supplemental etc) and after you pass that phase nobody knows a thing about you for your interview!

 

[Moonstruckmuse]

Out of curiosity, does anyone have a nice little list of the schools that look primarily at Last 45 hours GPA (or Science GPA, or Cum GPA?) After a little number crunching, it's really only a few courses that I realized are dragging down my GPA a good bit, haha.

 

[twelvetigers]

Minnesota doesn't look at your cumulative at all... UTK has a last 30 rather than a last 45. Illinois calculates all science courses into your science GPA, whereas Mississippi only uses chemistry and math... there's SO much variation. It's a pain.

 

[AuRevoirFinance]

I noticed Wisconsin, in addition to the most recent 30 credits and the GPA in required courses, uses the cumulative GPA up to the first undergraduate degree.

*drawing pencil line through UW-Madison on the list of possible venues*

And then there were 27....

 

[twelvetigers]

Oh man, ditto.

A school needs to let us pick what degree we want to count. I'd apply there. 😉

 

[phaedraeos]

I've heard that CSU is known at looking past your GPA, there is a cutoff (not sure exact number) but I've heard from a lot of people that they are more concerned with the more rounded candidates (experiences and references) than those strictly with a good GPA.

I think I'm a pretty well rounded applicant, but I was rejected from Colorado 2 weeks after they received my application due to an "early academic review." My GRE's are really good, but my GPA is very low, although it's above their cutoff.

For OVC at Guelph, to get an interview (top 200 ish applicants):

40% GPA of last 2 (full time) semesters
40% prereq GPA (8 courses)
20% MCAT/GRE

It's worth knowing that Guelph does not EVER look at repeated courses for their prereqs. So, if you passed a class, even if you got a "D" (which my undergrad considered passing), and the class is 8 years old, your "A" that you got last summer doesn't count. You also have to take all prereqs during "full time semesters," meaning that you must have been taking at least 15 credits in the semester you took the prereq. This also means any postbacc coursework probably won't count towards your cumulative GPA, and you need to write an appeal to include any postbacc work as a prerequisite course. 👎

 

[lalaland]

GPA counts for a lot in the first phase at Illinois. They look at cumulative undergrad and required science, and they came up with a lower GPA calculation for me than my transcripts did. Yay. They do not look at most recent (graduate) work, even if it's at their own school in a related program, unless it is a very particular type of graduate degree involving lots of research. Apparently that matters more than GRE scores because mine were excellent but did not outweigh a lower undergrad GPA. But good news, if you make it past the first phase, it gets a lot easier! They recently posted a breakdown of the selection process on their website, you just have to click around a lot for it, just like you did to find the application itself.

 

[lalaland]

Minnesota doesn't look at your cumulative at all... UTK has a last 30 rather than a last 45. Illinois calculates all science courses into your science GPA, whereas Mississippi only uses chemistry and math... there's SO much variation. It's a pain.

What does Minnesota look at?

 

[twelvetigers]

They look at last 45 and science. I'm pretty sure that their website explains the process pretty well.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

What does Minnesota look at?

http://www.aavmc.org/vmcas/documents/Minnesota2010.UPDATED.pdf

 

[LetItSnow]

What does Minnesota look at?

For academics, MN calculates a score based on two GPAs (most recent 45 credits, and pre-requisites GPA) and the GRE.

It used to be that if you made the academic cutoff, MN did not go back to your score. That is, if the cutoff were, for example, 26 points, the person who got 30 points was on equal footing with the person who got 50 points.

As of this year they are changing their method so that the final ranking will be a 33% blend each of academic score, subjective evaluation (letters, personal statement, experience), and interview.

This is how it was described to me by the director of admissions last spring. It is, of course, possible that I misunderstood her in some way.

 

[tuwest2011]

This is from the founding dean Shirley Johnston .I found this in a article I saved and this is her partly explaining the process.

"The other thing that makes our process legitimate is we're defining the criteria for admissions. GPA (grade point average) and test scores are only about a fourth of the credentials you need to get into our vet school. Historically some schools have weighted GPA and test scores and used them as a cutoff. We're just not doing that," Shirley Johnston Fouding Dean.

I wish all scores were like this 🙄