What are the differences between Canadian and American universities?

Which grades do American Universities look at?

• I always dreamed of going to an American school, but I want to know which years/grades they look at and why those. My friend claims that American universities look at only 11/12, perhaps 12 the most, but I, after doing research, found that it's all four years. So anyone who went and/or graduated from an American University as an American student or an international student (e.g. Canada), which grades do they look at and why? If you can't answer why, that's alright, but I still want to know which grades they evaluate. I don't know whether I have a chance or not as a Canadian, I'm not american but my dad, he works in the US. I don't know if that little piece of information will help me or not. I'm kind of getting off-track I know, but if you're willing to answer them, I'll be forever grateful!

• Answer:

  You'll most likely need to make a resume detailing your entire high school career. They will look at your transcripts for all four years, which will have all of your grades and your GPA (your cumulative grade from high school). Also, most if not all colleges require either an ACT or SAT score. Why? Because they aren't just going to ignore your first half of high school. What if you slacked off only to actually start doing better half way through? That could be an indication of laziness and your possible future performance at their school.