Myth: The UW turns away students with perfect GPAs.

It depends on what you mean by perfect. If it’s a 4.0 grade point average, then yes, UW-Madison does in a few cases reject students with 4.0s. But remember, in a lot of high schools, a 4.0 GPA isn’t perfect anymore. Many schools now hand out above-scale bonuses for honors classes, meaning that applications these days are full of impossible-sounding GPAs like 4.3s and 5.0s.

Admissions counselors say they’re frustrated by what they see as a pervasive trend toward higher marks across the board in secondary schools. One recent ACT study indicated that high school grades have inflated 12.5 percent since the early 1990s. At many high schools, merely average students have 3.7s and 3.8s, creating a logjam of kids with similarly unblemished transcripts — and little way for counselors to distinguish them. “I review one state where I don’t think I’ve ever seen a C on a transcript,” says admissions counselor Bobbie Jean St. Arnauld ’02. “I don’t think they’re doing those kids any favors.”

“There’s so much compression at the top that, these days, if we see some Bs, we might have to say, ‘Forget it,’ ” says admissions director Seltzer. “That’s the business we’re forced into. Twenty years ago, a 3.1 was great. You were working hard and doing good work. Now, that 3.1 is a 3.9.”

Next myth » Some students get special treatment in the admissions process.

• Introduction
• Myth: It’s a secretive process.
• Myth: A formula determines whether students are admitted or denied.
• Myth: UW-Madison has raised its admissions criteria in recent years.
• Myth: The UW turns away students with perfect GPAs.
• Myth: Some students get special treatment in the admissions process.
• Myth: It’s impossible for regular students to get in anymore.
• Myth: No one reads personal statements.
• Myth: It pays to apply early.
• Myth: Minority students get in with lower grades than some white students who are rejected.
• Myth: UW-Madison caps the number of students who can be admitted from one high school.
• Myth: Back in the day, UW-Madison let everybody in.
• Myth: Applicants from outside Wisconsin are taking up spots that could go to state residents.
• Myth: Connections with important people can get you in.
• Myth: Alumni can get their kids in if they pull the right strings.
• Myth: Being postponed is the same as being on a wait list.
• Myth: An A is always better than a B.
• Myth: One grumpy admissions counselor can doom an application.
• Myth: Admissions counselors like rejecting people.
• Myth: My son or daughter isn’t emotionally ready to be turned down by the university.
• Myth: It’s a perfect system.