The R score (French: cote de rendement au collégial, CRC or cote R) is a statistical method that classifies college students' academic performances in Quebec.
The ISGZ is the average high school Z-score (Zsec) the group's students obtained on the MEES uniform examination subjects in Secondary 4 and 5.
The inclusion of the ISGZ and the IDGZ in the determination of the R score allows for a more equitable comparison between students, regardless of their CEGEP's academic rank, but the effectiveness remains in dispute.
The use of the constant C = 5 greatly reduces the possibility of a negative value in the score and the multiplying the sum of all the preceding values by the constant D = 5 ensures the largeness of the score.
Until July 2017, an additional score of 0.5 was added to the overall R score to a student graduating with an International Baccalaureate degree or a DEC (Diplôme d'études collégiales) en Sciences, Lettres et Arts.
First-hand experience suggests that the R score is not as good an indicator as it was meant to be.
Such students have the opportunity to obtain grades much higher than the low average of their class, thus earning an elevated Z score, but students in strong groups cannot earn such high Z scores.
The perceived weaknesses of the R score are particularly worrying, because it is the main and sometimes the only criterion considered by Quebec universities during the admissions process.
Since the R score is perceived as an absolute measure of a student's academic performance regardless of their academic rank, differences smaller than 0.5 are often used to discriminate between candidates applying to programs with fixed quotas such as medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, and law.