What a school profile is and who reads it
Admission readers at each college read the profile to judge a student in the context of their school. The Common App describes it as a document with contextual data about a high school community: student demographics, curricular offerings, grading systems, special programs and school policies.
- Penn: says its admissions officers use school profiles to evaluate each applicant within their context.
- Harvard: the secondary school report includes the transcript, a letter of recommendation and a school profile, if available.
- MIT: asks for a profile only if the school already has one. It says many international schools do not, and that an application is not disadvantaged without it.
A profile is not required, but it saves the reader from guessing. NACAC, the US association of college counselors and admission professionals, has flagged a common misconception since 1977: assuming colleges already know your school, its standards and its curriculum. NACAC research finds that nearly half of four-year colleges, particularly highly selective ones, recalibrate GPAs across schools. Without a clear explanation of your grading, colleges may draw their own conclusions.
What a school profile should include
NACAC, the College Board and the Common App ask for the same building blocks: school facts, contacts, curriculum, grading, tests and where graduates go. A school outside the US adds its national context, such as graduation rules and national exams.
| Block | What to include |
|---|---|
| School facts | Name, address, website, type of school, grades served, enrollment, size of the graduating class, student-to-teacher and student-to-counselor ratios, CEEB code and accreditation |
| Contacts | School leadership and counselors, with email and phone, and which students each counselor works with |
| Curriculum and programs | Curriculum overview, bilingual and international programs, advanced courses (IB, AP, honors, Cambridge), whether they are open to all and any cap per student |
| Grading and transcript | The grading scale teachers use, the passing mark, how averages are calculated, GPA and class rank (if any), grade distribution and a key to the transcript |
| Graduation requirements | What a student must complete to graduate, including the school's own requirements |
| Tests | SAT and ACT ranges, AP, IB, TOEFL or IELTS results and, for schools outside the US, national exams |
| Outcomes | College-going rate and recent college destinations, at home and abroad |
| Other information | What makes the school different, and any recent change to grading, curriculum or the calendar |
How to explain a 0 to 10 grading scale
On the Common App international supplement, the counselor gives the school's grading scale and its approximate equivalence to the US A to F scale. The profile is where you explain it properly: the scale, the passing mark, the grade distribution and the transcript.
- Scale and passing mark: say grades run from 0 to 10 and what the passing mark is, because it differs between schools. At Colégio Miguel de Cervantes in São Paulo it is 5. At Embraer Juarez Wanderley High School in São José dos Campos, students need 60% of the points and 75% attendance.
- Averages and make-up work: explain how the annual average is built (terms, weights) and how recovery work (recuperação) shows on the transcript. Brazil's education law requires schools to offer recovery studies for low performance, leaves the rules to each school's regulations and requires at least 75% attendance to pass.
- A to F equivalence: the NCAA publishes a table for Brazilian grades, below, and the 2026 profile of Colégio Miguel de Cervantes uses the same bands. If your passing mark is 6 or 7, adjust the equivalence to your own standard.
- Distribution: show how much of the class falls in each band, ideally as a chart. The Miguel de Cervantes profile shows its class of 2025: 7.27% between 9 and 10, 51.82% between 7 and 8.9 and 40.91% between 5 and 6.9, with an overall average of 6.86. That is what lets a reader place a 7 or a 9 from your student.
- GPA and class rank: if your school calculates neither, say so. The Common App School Report offers "None" for class rank and "No" for GPA, and MIT notes that many international schools do not calculate these figures. Phillips Exeter Academy in the US does not report class rank, and Miguel de Cervantes does not rank its students.
| Brazilian grade | US equivalent | Quality points |
|---|---|---|
| 9 to 10 | A | 4 |
| 7 to 8.9 | B | 3 |
| 5 to 6.9 | C | 2 |
| 3 to 4.9 | D | 1 |
| 0 to 2.9 | F | 0 |
The international grades guide explains the international supplement in more detail. The NCAA table is not an official conversion for admission: the NCAA uses it to decide whether an athlete can compete. Present it on your profile as an approximate equivalence, never as an official GPA.
The Brazilian context: graduation, Enem and vestibular
A US reader needs a few lines on how a student graduates and gets into university in Brazil. NACAC recommends that schools outside the US include national exams on their profile.
- Graduation: under Brazil's education law, upper secondary school has at least 1,000 hours a year over at least 200 school days. Outside technical tracks, Law 14,945 of 2024 sets at least 2,400 hours of general education and 600 hours of elective pathways (itinerários formativos), phased in from the 2025 school year. Add your school's own requirements, such as hours taught in English, projects or community service.
- Enem: INEP, the federal agency that runs it, describes the Enem as the exam that assesses performance at the end of basic education. Scores give access to Sisu, which fills places at public universities, to the ProUni and Fies programs, and to Portuguese universities with agreements.
- Vestibular: many universities run their own entrance exam. The University of São Paulo (USP) fills most of its places through the Fuvest vestibular and also admits through Enem scores.
- Calendar: Brazil's school year follows the calendar year, so the final year ends in December, after early deadlines, as the timeline guide explains. The School Report asks when mid-year grades are available and the graduation date: put both on your profile.
- Your numbers: the 2026 Enem takes place on 8 and 15 November, after 1 November deadlines, so report earlier classes' results. Say the year and how many students are included: NACAC asks that every figure say when it was gathered and who it covers.
How to submit your profile
The profile goes through the Common App with every School Report, and it also lives on your school's website. There are six steps, and this year's version should be ready before your first School Report.
- Write it in English. That is the language of its readers. At Stanford, for example, transcripts and teacher letters must also arrive translated into English.
- Keep it to one or two pages. That is the length the Common App recommends and Penn describes as typical. The College Board prefers both sides of one letter-size sheet, on non-glossy paper with dark ink on a light background, so it scans well. Put the school's name on every page.
- Upload it to the Common App. The counselor uploads it in the profile section of the Recommender System, or in the college and career platform your school uses if it integrates with the Common App. The Common App attaches it to every School Report.
- Send it outside the Common App too. At MIT, which has its own forms, the counselor submits the profile with the transcript through the MIT Secondary School Report form.
- Post it on your website. Link it from the main page and use a file name that is easy to find in a search, such as school-profile-2026-27.
- Update it every year. Make sure every counselor uses the same version and reports the same data.
If your school has no CEEB code yet, request one through the College Board school code portal. The College Board estimates 7 to 10 business days, and requests from international schools may take longer.
Common mistakes
NACAC collects these pitfalls from admission officers, and the Common App adds the last two on this list.
- Assuming colleges know your school. Explain the basics, even what seems obvious at home.
- A hidden or unclear grading scale. Explain the scale on the profile itself, where it is easy to find.
- Walls of text. Use sections, bullet points and charts instead of long paragraphs.
- A promotional brochure. List highlights, not every achievement and activity.
- Every college acceptance for the past five years. Show recent destinations.
- Old or undated figures. Say which year each number comes from and who it covers.
- Names without contact details. Every counselor needs an email and a phone number.
- A profile that is hard to find. No profile split across several files, and no broken links on your website.
- Links nobody can click. Readers may not be able to click a link in your PDF: use a short URL or a QR code.
- Different versions. The profile must not contradict the School Report or change from one counselor to another.
For students and families: how to ask your school
The profile belongs to the school: the counselor sends it, not the student. If your school has none, do not panic: MIT, for one, says your application is not disadvantaged without it. It is still worth bringing this guide to your school early and asking for a profile along with the School Report.
If your school has no college counselor, the person responsible for your transcript can take that role on the Common App, as the recommendation letters guide explains. What else your school sends is in the Common App guide.
School profile template to copy
Copy the sections below into a document and fill them in with your school's data. Keep this order: it follows the logical sequence NACAC recommends.
1. Header and contacts
- School name, address, website: official name, full address and website.
- CEEB code: your school's College Board code.
- Head of school: name, title and email.
- College counseling: name, email and phone with country code (+55 for Brazil) for each counselor, and the students each one works with.
- Profile year: the school year the data covers, for example 2026-27.
2. School information
- School type and grades: private, bilingual or international, secular or religious, and the grades served.
- Enrollment: total students, upper secondary students and the size of the graduating class.
- Ratios: students per teacher and per counselor.
- Accreditation: accreditations and networks the school belongs to.
- Mission and community: two or three lines on the mission, the city and the student body.
3. Curriculum
- National curriculum: for Brazil, the three-year upper secondary program, general education and the elective pathways your school offers.
- Bilingual or international program: how it works, hours taught in English, who takes part and what qualification it leads to, such as IB or Cambridge.
- Advanced courses: how many IB, AP, honors or Cambridge courses you offer, whether they are open to all and any yearly cap. If you offer no AP, say why and what you offer instead.
- Multiple tracks: if the school runs more than one curriculum, show them side by side.
- Graduation requirements: required hours, the 75% attendance minimum and your school's own requirements.
4. Grading and transcript
- Grading scale: grades from 0 to 10, the passing mark and how the annual average is calculated.
- Approximate US equivalent: the table below, adjusted to your passing mark.
- Grade distribution: the share of the last graduating class in each band, with the year.
- GPA and class rank: if you calculate neither, write "The school does not calculate a GPA or rank its students". If you do, explain how.
- Recovery work and failed courses: how recuperação and failed courses appear on the transcript.
- Transcript key: what each column and abbreviation on the transcript means, such as hours, attendance and grades.
| Brazilian grade | Approximate US equivalent | Share of last graduating class |
|---|---|---|
| 9 to 10 | A | ____% |
| 7 to 8.9 | B | ____% |
| 5 to 6.9 | C | ____% |
| 3 to 4.9 | D | ____% |
| 0 to 2.9 | F | ____% |
5. Testing
- SAT and ACT: the middle 50% range and how many students tested, if any.
- English tests: TOEFL, IELTS or others, with how many students tested and the range of results.
- IB or AP results: average or distribution, if you offer them.
- Enem: your school's average and how many students sat it, with the year, plus one line on what the Enem is.
6. National context
- University admission in Brazil: one or two lines on the Enem, Sisu and vestibular exams, such as Fuvest for USP.
- School calendar: start and end of the school year, terms, when first-semester grades of the final year are available and the graduation date.
- Recent changes: recent changes to curriculum, grading or the calendar, such as the rollout of the new upper secondary curriculum.
7. Outcomes
- College-going rate: the share of the last graduating class that went on to higher education, at home and abroad.
- Recent destinations: universities where recent graduates enrolled, including Brazilian ones.
8. Beyond the classroom
- Highlights: a few highlights of activities, awards or programs, not the full list.