On Tuesday, the US and World News ranked DePauw University at No. 54 on its top National Liberal Arts Colleges List, adding another satisfying placement to our laundry list of not-so-surprising rankings released this year.
They also put DePauw on the list of "A-plus Schools for B students." At first glance, the editorial board found this list to be unfair and thought it discredited the hard work we have put into our time here. DePauw is hardly a community of slacking students, so how can we be reported as ideal for B students?
Perhaps though, DePauw probably shouldn't be surprised to find itself here, if we dive deeper into what this translates to in regards to our student body.
The description provided with the rankings states: "If you're a good student with less than stellar test scores or a so-so GPA, these are the schools for you. These colleges, which have strong ratings in the 2014 U.S. News Best Colleges rankings, accept a significant number of students with non-stratospheric transcripts."
It then dives deeper into their methodology, which is based upon first-year retention rate and standardized test scores, as well as the percentile in which students fell amongst their peers' scores.
We find this methodology to be clear and credible. Maybe this list isn't the most prestigious we've appeared on, but it is likely accurate. The applicants for DePauw may not be the top of their class, but they probably possess something solely school-center valedictorians may not: a sturdy resume of activities and general involvement in high school.
DePauw students have always prided themselves on being involved. We run from class, to double-booked meetings, to chapter meetings and to our radio shows. Schoolwork can (on occassion) slip by the way side when the only time we have to study is into the wee hours of the night. While focusing on studies is very important at DePauw, it is just as important to have extracurriculars, and we often sacrifice an A for a B in order to keep that balance.
Moreover, DePauw merit scholarships are offered to students with GPAs at 3.5 and above, which is a B-plus average. DePauw admissions has long emphasized involvement in high school as a criteria for acceptance. Given these factors, it's no wonder our student body is comprised of hard-working young adults, both in and outside the classroom. It's also worth noting these potential students may be in Advanced Placement / International Baccalaureate classes, which may make B-level grades more like A's in other courses.
This ranking is not to say DePauw is a breeze, and high school seniors should know they will be in for a challenge, no matter their GPA in high school. But we encourage applicants to boast their extracurriculars, as that speaks more of our campus culture than the B's we may receive with our challenging course loads.