In the past couple of months, I found myself filling in my GPA and class rank on nearly every college or scholarship application. Though I was never too concerned with either of these numbers during my first three years of high school, the number of times I had to report them this year caused me to pay more attention. Every time I submit another application (and believe me I filled out enough to last me a lifetime) I wonder how much more impressive an application with a No. 1 class rank would be than one with, say, a class rank of 25. The same goes for GPA.

This idea also brings about the question of how worth it would it be to take those few more AP or honors classes to boost GPA, and therefore class rank. Throughout my four years, I opted to take Apparel Design, LRM and Newspaper Journalism, none of which are weighted classes and therefore “lower” my GPA. Furthermore, I had few study halls and always had a full schedule. Though those who take a study hall or weighted class might come out with a slightly higher GPA, I firmly believe in taking classes to maximize my high school experience, not my GPA.

Many schools in the area are moving away from reporting class rank. ACHS took the first step toward this by eliminating the valedictorian recognition in recent years. However, this hasn’t eliminated the sense of competition between students, especially, I would say, those who are near the top of the list.

I still believe that GPA is important and can somewhat accurately give an idea as to the grades a student receives and the level of difficulty of the classes taken. What it does not always show is intelligence, effort or involvement.

There are plenty of students whose GPAs do not necessarily reflect their true potential. There are also students who work extremely hard to fit multiple AP or honors classes in to their schedules that end up at a lower rank than someone who takes a study hall all four years. The number of hours you spend at practices for sports, volunteering or working a part-time job are not factored in at all.

I realize that there is no way to fairly represent every aspect of a student through a number. I’m not suggesting that the district should modify the GPA/class rank system to include activities involved in, IQ or points for effort. What I am suggesting is that students not be overly concerned about where they may fall on GPA scale. That doesn’t mean slacking off because you don’t care how low your GPA falls; it means, go ahead, take a few fun classes here and there. Trust me, you won’t regret the experiences and they might benefit you more than a GPA that is a few decimal points higher.