College Admissions at Gunn and Palo Alto High: A Parent's Guide

Palo Alto's two public high schools share a district and much of a grading approach, but they organize college advising in different ways. Both schools publish a profile that goes to every college reading their students' applications, and both profiles answer the questions families most often ask: how grades are weighted, why there's no rank, and how many AP courses a student should take. This guide walks through the 2026–27 profiles for both.

Weighted Grades That Start in 10th Grade

Both schools report a weighted GPA, but only for courses taken from 10th grade on. Paly gives honors, AP, and dual enrollment courses in grades 10–12 a five-point scale when a student earns a C or better, and states that it doesn't weight 9th-grade work. Gunn lists both an unweighted and a weighted GPA on the transcript, weighting honors and AP courses in grades 10–12, and its one AP course open to 9th graders isn't weighted. At both schools, plus and minus marks don't change the GPA.

Neither school ranks students. Instead, each gives colleges a picture of how grades are distributed. Gunn's profile lists the weighted and unweighted GPA range for each tenth of the Class of 2027, and Paly's charts cumulative GPAs from grades 9 through 11. Those tables let an admissions reader see where a student's record sits within the school, which is the comparison that matters.

The UC GPA Is a Different Calculation

For California residents, the University of California calculates its own GPA, and it differs from the school's in three ways that matter here:

• Only 10th and 11th grade count. The UC uses A–G courses from the summer after 9th grade through the summer after 11th grade, so senior-year grades, however strong, aren't part of it.
• Extra points are capped. A student earns an extra point for each semester of a UC honors-level course, up to 8 points across 10th and 11th grade, and no more than 4 from 10th grade.
• The course has to qualify with UC. For residents, AP courses, UC-certified honors courses, and UC-transferable college courses earn the extra point. A school honors course earns it only if it's certified by UC. For Paly students, that makes the dual enrollment courses with Foothill College worth checking: those that are UC-transferable count as honors-level for the UC GPA.

Our UC application guide covers the application itself, and our Silicon Valley guide covers UC's guarantee programs for California residents.

Limits on AP Courses, by Design

Both profiles tell colleges that each school limits AP course loads. Paly "recommends students take no more than 2 AP courses a year." Gunn allows a maximum of two AP courses per semester and says AP courses "are not generally recommended for 9th grade."

Families sometimes worry that following that guidance will make an application look less rigorous. The Common App school report asks the counselor to compare a student's course selection "with other college preparatory students at your school," and the profile tells colleges exactly what the school permits and recommends. A student who takes a demanding schedule within those limits, and does well in it, is doing what readers hope to see. Our AP, IB, and AICE course planning helps students choose which advanced courses fit their interests, rather than adding as many as possible.

Two Counseling Models

The schools organize college advising differently, and it's worth knowing which model applies to your student.

• Paly's Teacher Advisor program. According to Paly's profile, the Teacher Advisor program is "at the core of the guidance department." Teacher advisors deliver guidance lessons during Friday advisory periods, serve as students' academic advisors, and write the counselor recommendation and school report for college applications. School counselors and college and career advisors round out the team.
• Gunn's counseling team. Gunn's profile lists seven school counselors, a college and career counselor, and a college and career information specialist.

At either school, the person who writes the school's recommendation should know the student as a person, not only as a transcript. Students who check in regularly, share what they're involved in and why, and complete any questionnaires or senior profile forms thoughtfully give that person far more to work with. Our guide to letters of recommendation has practical suggestions.

Keeping the Process in Proportion

Both schools are academically demanding, and Gunn's profile describes a deliberate investment in student well-being: a Wellness Center and SELF, a weekly, ungraded program in which every student meets with a trusted adult mentor and classmates to build skills such as self-awareness and self-management.

Parents can reinforce that balance at home. Treat the school's AP guidance as a reasonable ceiling rather than a floor to exceed. Build the college list around what the student wants, not around where classmates are applying. Keep sleep, downtime, and family time protected, especially in junior year. Our guide to supporting your teen through admissions and our collection of resources for parents offer more on staying steady through the process. If a student seems overwhelmed, the school's counselors and wellness staff are the right first call.

Where Graduates Go

According to the profiles, 82.8% of Paly's Class of 2026 are attending four-year colleges, 11.7% two-year colleges, and 3% are taking a gap year. At Gunn, 79.1% of the Class of 2026 went on to four-year colleges and 15.3% to two-year colleges. Paly also publishes a college-specific matriculation summary for 2023–2026 through its College and Career Center, a useful starting point for research. Our guide to building a balanced college list covers how to turn that research into a list that fits.

Related Guides

• College Admissions in Silicon Valley: A Guide for Families
• The UC Application and Personal Insight Questions
• College Admissions at Menlo School
• College Admissions at The Harker School

Passage Point Admissions is based in South Florida and offers virtual advising to families anywhere in the U.S. Our college admissions advising is meant to complement the support students already receive at school.