Amidst the chaotic and massive amounts of paperwork of a college application lies one small blank: class rank. At this spot, most STA students will draw a blank and for good reason. STA has not used class rank for many years.

In a ranking system, all students in a particular class are placed in order according to their grade point average (GPA). According to the College Board, “Most large state universities… still require applicants to report class rank (as do many scholarship programs), and rely on it to help sort through the high volume of applications received.”

If colleges utilize it, why shouldn’t STA rank? Ms. Bridget Gramling, dean of admission at William Jewell College, explains that it is often unnecessary.

“It depends on the college,” Gramling said. “I’ve worked at three private schools, and it wasn’t important at all at two of them. Because Jewell has traditionally attracted kids from public high schools, they used it more until recently. But a student who comes from a school that doesn’t rank isn’t hurt by that.”

STA college counselor Debi Hudson argues that discarding the ranking system was best for students because it forces the colleges to take a closer look at the individual.

STA’s administration discontinued the ranking system in 1994 and, according to principal for academic affairs Barbara McCormick, it has not hindered any student from being accepted to their college of choice.

“I would not be in favor of ever returning to class rank,” Hudson said. “I want colleges to look closer at the curriculum a student chooses to take instead of some magical rank that varies from year to year.”

Though colleges do not base their admissions decision on class rank, the type of students they admit is often reflected in their average ranking statistics.  Below, a few colleges of varying size illustrate this:

MU: Nearly 33% ranked in the top 10% of their high school class

Creighton: 29% ranked in the top 5% of their high school class; 44% ranked in the top 10%

Notre Dame: 71% ranked in the top 5% of their high school class; 89% ranked in the top 10%

Hudson and McCormick agree that if college admissions officers analyze the student more closely without class rank, then it is best to do without.

“I feel the way we’re doing it benefits our students because they’re looked at more closely,” McCormick said. “It makes [admissions officers] have to shift gears; instead of looking at numbers, they have to look at the individual.”

The College Board website has other opinions as to why schools have dropped class rank.

“Most small, private and/or competitive high schools have done away with it because they feel it penalizes many excellent students who are squeezed out of the top 10 percent of the class and then overlooked by elite schools,” said an article on the website entitled “Class Rank & College Admissions.”

When schools do not rank, colleges can easily compensate because so many schools are moving away from the system.

“Colleges are so used to schools not ranking so it’s really not an issue to most admission offices,” Hudson said. “High schools typically send a profile of the school with each transcript. Our profile states that we do not rank and it provides a bar graph after the 6th semester of work so colleges can get a feel for the rigor of the school.”

According to Gramling, rank is only a small piece of the puzzle. She said they first review the curriculum, grades, standardized test scores, and essay.

“Rank is a tiny piece of the application that, if it’s there, can help us to make a good decision about your file, but it doesn’t worry us if it’s missing,” Gramling said. “We look at the percentage of students who are going to college, which gives us insight into the type of [high school] you attend. We look at grade distributions when they’re provided by the school.”

Although colleges do not require class rank, Gramling points out some positives in using the system.

“It gives us insight into the school and the student’s abilities,” Gramiling said. “When you’re looking at kids applying from schools all over the country, any information that helps you to gauge the preparation of the student is helpful.”

Therefore, in Gramling’s opinion, ranking students does have some benefits, but is not necessary for admission into college. As far as the McCormick and Hudson are concerned, STA will not return to the ranking system anytime soon.

“Students that come to St. Teresa’s Academy come motivated, they want to achieve, the don’t need rank to drive them,” McCormick said.