Grade point average, otherwise known to all students as GPA, is something that high school students are told to take seriously. But what is GPA, and what is the true importance of having a high grade point average?
According to the 2025 College Board website, “High schools use different grading scales to calculate GPA (grade point average), and the 4.0 scale is just one common example. On this scale, an A typically equals 4.0, and your overall GPA is the average of your class grades. A 4.0 is usually a 90-100, a 3.0 is a 80-89, a 2.0 is a 70-79, a D is a 66-69, and an F is anything below that.”
The tricky thing about measuring GPA is that different schools measure their GPAs differently.
“While it’s not subjective, different school districts have different rigor in their classes. A 4.0 at Hallettsville, for example, might not be the same as a GPA in Katy. They have so many other honors, dual credit, and lots more opportunities. It solely depends on what the student puts into it,” Strauss said.
But does GPA truly measure our intelligence? Or does it measure everything that they put their mind to in school?
“I don’t think it measures some intelligence, but I really think it measures work ethic more than anything,” Hallettville High School counselor Brooke Mathews said.
Ever since COVID, colleges have started looking for student involvement and including student transcripts and essays to help build the character of the student and not use their GPA score as the sole reflection of the student.
“The state has started a bill this year that’s going to standardize the GPA process across the state. I think it will be a little easier for colleges that do use grade point average to see how students from different high schools measure up against each other. Which I think is a really great thing because some schools are definitely harder than others…so they’re looking at GPA, student involvement, test scores, transcripts, all of the pieces of a student. I think that is one of the best things that’s come out of COVID, because it’s more than just the number; we all know that kids have way more to offer than just what their average is. Once you mess it up, it’s so hard to recover. Sometimes life happens. What if you had something traumatic happen in your freshman year that really impacted school, but you’re an awesome student,” Mathews said.
While some students are built for school, others specialize in traits that don’t involve school or GPA.
“Some of the students are just not academically inclined. There are more hands-on types of careers, and they will just flourish, or they go to the military, where you don’t meet a GPA, and they might not have a GPA, and they just blossom,” Strauss said.
For these students who are amazing in school, there might be a staggering difference in grades between high school and college.
“I think it does add a lot of pressure to a student. They’re very used to getting A’s in high school, and sometimes when they do get to college, they are kind of shocked when they make something besides an A,” Strauss said.
College can be a shocker to most students when first starting and adapting to new surroundings, different atmospheres, new teachers, and different teaching styles, which can all be an influence on our GPAs.
“I don’t think it predicts it at all, honestly. I think you can work really well in high school and still not necessarily be successful in college,” Mathews said.
Even though the pressure to keep your grades up to achieve that high grade point average, high school grades are not necessary for you to be successful in life. You can do anything you set your mind to.
