The Law School Admission Council (LSAC) will include a letter with Credential Assembly Service (CAS) reports to law schools, acknowledging disruptions to spring 2020 coursework caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The letter will remind admissions offices that institutions were forced to transition to online instruction, students faced challenges in their living and learning environments, and grading systems were altered during that semester.
LSAC converts grades to a standard scale to provide law schools with a uniform basis for comparing applicants. Yet, the council clarifies it does not assess the value of grades earned at different colleges, recognizing that a grade’s meaning can vary between institutions. Law school admissions committees understand these nuances when evaluating applicants.
According to LSAC policy, grades earned in graduate and professional schoolwork completed after a bachelor’s degree is conferred are not factored into the LSAC GPA calculation. Despite this exclusion from the GPA, transcripts from these institutions must still be submitted. This includes graduate, law, medical, and other professional programs.
Certain grades are excluded from GPA conversion. Withdrawals, and withdrawals with a passing grade, are excluded if the issuing school deems them non-punitive. Incomplete grades are also excluded under the same condition. Grades received for remedial courses are not included in the calculation unless the transcript explicitly identifies them as such.
The University of Southern California’s admission blog highlights the holistic review process employed by law schools, noting that a simple comparison of GPAs can be misleading without understanding the context of how those GPAs were calculated. USC admissions counselors examine transcripts to understand the nuances of each applicant’s academic preparation, considering factors like course rigor and upward trends in performance.
Unofficial transcripts provide a record of a student’s academic history, including basic information, degrees awarded, and course grades, but are generally not accepted for official purposes. Official transcripts, bearing a college seal and registrar’s signature, are required for formal applications.
A Grade Point Average (GPA) is a numerical representation of academic performance, calculated by assigning numerical values to letter grades. The specific method of GPA calculation can vary, making direct comparisons between applicants challenging.
