Evaluation Process

After students have requested their courses, the Advising and Registration Team will evaluate all requests. We cannot guarantee that a student will be able to take all the courses they requested.

First, the team confirms that students have met the prerequisites for taking each course that they signed up for.

Second, if applicable, the team decides whether a student may take more than one course in a given field of study simultaneously. Students who have earned A’s in their prior courses in that subject area are sometimes permitted to take an advanced course along with its prerequisite simultaneously. For example, a student who has earned an A in Biology Honors may be allowed to take Chemistry Honors and AP Biology the next year. Similarly, students earning an A in Algebra I are sometimes allowed to take Geometry and Algebra II Honors simultaneously.

Third, the team evaluates the total course load of the student. While a student may meet the prerequisites to sign up for multiple AP or honors courses, the evaluation team may determine that the total load is too much for that student to carry and require the student to replace some AP or honors courses with less demanding courses. The team may use PSAT scores, GPA, teacher recommendations, section enrollment limits, and the preferences of the student to determine which of the requested AP and honors courses a student may take.

Fourth, the team evaluates the viability of the schedule a student has selected. In some cases, students will not be able to fit a given elective course into their schedules. If a student does not arrive on campus within six weeks of the start of the semester, they may lose their spot in a course.

Overenrollment & Rescheduling of a Course

In the event a course is overenrolled, the Advising and Registration Team must give priority to meet section enrollment limits. Top priority will be based on seniority (seniors, then juniors, etc.), graduation requirements and students who were unenrolled from another class. For an AP or honors course, the Advising Team will also consider GPA and a demonstrated history of success in rigorous courses. Any remaining slots may be filled by a random lottery after this point.

If the Advising and Registration Team denies a student’s requested course of study, a member of the team will contact and/or meet with the student to determine a viable course of study. We will make every effort to communicate these conflicts as soon as possible.

If you have any questions about advising, registration, or scheduling, please use the Registrar email address: registrar@sbs.org.

Cum Laude Society

Each year, the top 20% of grades 7 - 11 are honored with certificates of recognition from the Society, and students in the top 20% of the senior class are officially inducted into the Cum Laude Society

To be considered for membership seniors must, at minimum, meet the requirements for a High Honors diploma (requirements noted above). They must be in the top 20% of their class and have a good citizenship record in the School.

Students earning an A in a regular elective course for which there is no honors or AP alternative will not have their grade included in their GPA calculation for Cum Laude purposes unless doing so raises their GPA.

The honor certificates are awarded annually, determined by combining the first semester GPA (weighted two-thirds) with the third quarter GPA (weighted one third). For seniors being considered for induction into the Honor Society, GPA standing is determined by combining the junior year GPA (weighted foursevenths), the fall semester GPA from the senior year (weighted two-sevenths), and the GPA from the third quarter of the senior year (weighted one-seventh).

Note for one-year seniors: Only the senior GPA will be used for honors and Cum Laude purposes. In order to qualify, however, the student must be enrolled in two AP classes their senior year for an honors or high honors diploma and three AP courses to receive a highest honors diploma.

Honor Roll

Honor Rolls are determined at the end of each semester. A student qualifies for the Honor Roll if no grade is below a C and the following GPA requirements are met:

Honor Roll = 3.0 - 3.499

High Honor Roll = 3.5 - 3.999

Head of School Honor Roll = 4.0 and above

Diploma with Honors, High Honors or Highest Honors Additional Requirements

Students must earn the following GPA and minimum honors/AP/College-Level course counts to qualify for these graduation honors. Further, no student may earn a final mark below a 2.0 during senior year.