Every application a college reads arrives with a school profile, a short document in which the high school explains its curriculum, grading, and context. Admissions readers use it to judge a student's record against what that school offers, which is why the same grades can read very differently from one school to the next. Our high school guides walk through what each profile tells colleges and what it means for families planning ahead.
We write a guide only when a school publishes enough to support one: research has to confirm at least six of nine details, among them the curriculum, the grading and rank policy, the counseling model, testing, and where graduates enroll. Schools that fall short are covered in our regional guides instead. For how colleges read independent school applications in general, see our guide to applying from a private school.
Florida
Broward and Palm Beach
College Admissions at Pine Crest School
Post-AP seminars, a weighted core GPA without rank, and advising that moves from deans to college counselors.
Read the guideMiami-Dade
College Admissions at Gulliver Prep
IB, AP, or both, a weighted GPA without rank, signature programs, and dual enrollment.
Read the guideMiami-Dade
College Admissions at Ransom Everglades
Course numbers that signal rigor, an unweighted GPA without rank, the two-club limit, and counseling.
Read the guidePalm Beach County
College Admissions at The Benjamin School
AP courses that start late, a 4.33 grading scale without rank, the internship requirement, and athletics.
Read the guideTexas
Dallas
College Admissions at the Episcopal School of Dallas
Weighted honors and AP grades, a top-10% rank policy, AP Capstone, and college guidance from ninth grade.
Read the guideDallas
College Admissions at Greenhill School
An unweighted GPA with no rank, a three-AP yearly limit, Capstone research, and counseling from 10th grade.
Read the guideDallas
College Admissions at Hockaday
Unweighted grades, honors vs. AP, no class rank, and the counseling timeline at Hockaday.
Read the guideDallas
College Admissions at St. Mark's School of Texas
Advanced courses from junior year, weighted grades without rank, and counseling at St. Mark's.
Read the guideCalifornia
Los Angeles
College Admissions at Harvard-Westlake
Honors course limits, no AP-designated courses, and the deans-based counseling model at Harvard-Westlake.
Read the guideSilicon Valley
College Admissions at Castilleja
Advanced Topics courses instead of AP, grading without rank, and testing decisions at Castilleja.
Read the guideSilicon Valley
College Admissions at Gunn and Palo Alto High
Weighted grades from 10th grade, no rank, AP limits, dual enrollment, the UC GPA, and two counseling models.
Read the guideSilicon Valley
College Admissions at The Harker School
AP and post-AP courses, an exceptionally strong peer group, and senior research programs at Harker.
Read the guideSilicon Valley
College Admissions at Menlo School
The move away from AP, weighted grades without rank, and research capstones at Menlo School.
Read the guideNew York
How We Write These Guides
High school guides are editorial. They're based on each school's own published materials, cite a source for every fact, and give the month those facts were last verified. Passage Point Admissions is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any school we write about. Because schools update their profiles every year, we refresh these guides each fall. If you spot something out of date, our editorial standards explain how to tell us and how we correct guides.
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