Do colleges look at your class rank or go off of your SAT score and GPA through high school?

Most look at GPA and SATs more than rank at class.

That’s top 30%, which is definitely decent. Colleges will look at rank, GPA, and SATs, among other things. They’ll all be weighed against each other. However, GPA and test scores are more important than rank.

Different colleges look at different things, although what the others have said does weigh heavily. Each school that you’re interested in will weigh things differently. One of the schools my daughter was interested in said that they were much more interested in how a student performed over four years (GPA) than over four hours on one random Saturday (SAT). Some schools will also look at the overall ranking of a high school. If the school is better, class rank of 111 will be better than a student with a rank of 75 from a poorly rated school. The colleges you are interested in are usually willing to discuss this with a prospective student.

Pretty much all three; how they weight them will vary from college to college and probably admissions officer to admissions officer.

The colleges recalculate your GPA anyway because of weighted GPAs as well as differences in scales 90 v. 92 v. 94 for an A for instance. Grades, test scores, recommendations, essays and activities are important. Class rank is just another number that goes into the mix. As mentioned, top 30% is good and won’t hurt you.

The more selective colleges pay more attention to class rank, along with the scores. It’s just a way of narrowing down who they will consider. Many people might make the required test scores but there are fewer who are in the top 1% or 5% of their class.

The problem with looking at class rank, is there are schools with less than 10 graduating. There is a school 75 miles up the road from my parents that had 2 people graduate the same year I did.

Unless they have changed the state constitution, that school won’t close as it is the only school in the county, and that state requires at least one school in each county.

All three to a certain extent but like WestRiverrat said, it loses some importance when you graduate at the top of your class with only 10 people graduating. I think colleges are more focused on SAT/ACT scores and your GPA.

My experiences support what @JilltheTooth has already mentioned.
When I was applying for college (undergraduate) it depended on the institution. Actually, I was told by representatives from a couple different institutions that SAT scores do not matter as much anymore. For some reason, I was under the impression this was a new thing and would only continue in the future (I applied in 2000). So, maybe SAT scores matter even less now?

It also may depend on your major. Some schools require a separate application to get into certain programs. I had to write a completely separate paper to get into the philosophy department (it only accepted 20 students a year).

Colleges are also starting to appreciate the value of service work more. My advice to you: volunteer. Find a cause you support and feel strongly about, contact a non-profit in that field and volunteer (even if you can only work 5 hours a week). Not only does it look good on college applications- it’s good for your soul! (coming from someone who is about to begin her non-profit career…)