When does the differenxe between degree vs lsac GPA become problemati Forum

[nicole1994]

What is the cutoff...if there's like more than a 1.0 GPA difference ine two( overall GPA higher by 1.5) might that be an issue?

[nixy]

There isn’t an issue. The LSAC gpa is the one that matters.

[nicole1994]

There isn’t an issue. The LSAC gpa is the one that matters.

^cool. and that's the case even if the gpa from my degree granting institution are lower overall (but upward trend late) than gpa from junior college?

[nixy]

Adcomms will see all your grades and in extreme cases/on the margins a huge difference might raise red flags. But the LSAC gpa is what they report for ranking purposes, so it’s what has the most value. Assuming no issues with the rest of your app they’re not going to care. If you have other red flags that suggest you’re going to struggle at their school and you’re a borderline candidate, it might give them pause. But 99% of the time it won’t make a difference.

[nicole1994]

sry, but would a 1.0-1.5 difference be a "huge difference " in their eyes ..


and i have one other red flag (like 8 W's consecutively but after that none..was so not ready to attend school for one semester due to illness but was forced to attend by parents) ..but i am thinking that if i only apply to schools were my gpa is close to their median or right at it, this might not be a big issue.

Adcomms will see all your grades and in extreme cases/on the margins a huge difference might raise red flags. But the LSAC gpa is what they report for ranking purposes, so it’s what has the most value. Assuming no issues with the rest of your app they’re not going to care. If you have other red flags that suggest you’re going to struggle at their school and you’re a borderline candidate, it might give them pause. But 99% of the time it won’t make a difference.

[QContinuum]

Adcomms will see all your grades and in extreme cases/on the margins a huge difference might raise red flags. But the LSAC gpa is what they report for ranking purposes, so it’s what has the most value. Assuming no issues with the rest of your app they’re not going to care. If you have other red flags that suggest you’re going to struggle at their school and you’re a borderline candidate, it might give them pause. But 99% of the time it won’t make a difference.

I believe nixy's talking about situations like where, hypothetically, you had straight As all through college up until your last semester, and then in your last semester you ended up with straight Cs. Your LSAC GPA might still be okay, but unless you write a GPA addendum to explain that string of Cs, adcoms might pause to question that cliff-edge drop in performance.

and i have one other red flag (like 8 W's consecutively but after that none..was so not ready to attend school for one semester due to illness but was forced to attend by parents) ..but i am thinking that if i only apply to schools were my gpa is close to their median or right at it, this might not be a big issue.

Ws shouldn't be factored into LSAC GPA (or your school GPA for that matter), unless they are punitive W/Fs. Assuming they are "typical" nonpunitive Ws, then just write a GPA addendum noting your illness that semester and pointing out your otherwise consistent performance.