How To Find Your Lsac Calculated Gpa

Easily calculate your Law School Admission Council (LSAC) GPA based on your undergraduate coursework and understand how it’s determined.

Calculate Your LSAC GPA

Enter your course grades and the number of credit hours for each. LSAC includes all undergraduate coursework from all institutions attended.

What is the LSAC Calculated GPA?

The LSAC Calculated GPA is a standardized measure of your undergraduate academic performance used by law schools during the admissions process. The Law School Admission Council (LSAC) calculates this GPA based on all undergraduate coursework completed before the awarding of your first bachelor’s degree, including courses taken at community colleges, during study abroad (if the grades and credits appear on your home institution’s transcript and are convertible), and repeated courses. LSAC converts your grades to a standard 4.0 scale (with variations like 4.33 for A+) to provide a uniform basis for comparing applicants from different undergraduate institutions with varying grading systems.

Anyone applying to an ABA-approved law school through LSAC will have their undergraduate transcripts processed to determine their LSAC Calculated GPA. It’s a crucial component of your law school application, often considered alongside your LSAT score.

Common misconceptions include believing that only grades from your degree-granting institution count, or that you can exclude poor grades from early in your college career or from transfer schools. LSAC includes almost everything.

LSAC Calculated GPA Formula and Mathematical Explanation

The LSAC Calculated GPA is determined using the following steps:

1. Grade Conversion: Each letter grade from your undergraduate transcripts is converted to a numerical value based on LSAC’s standard scale (e.g., A+ = 4.33, A = 4.00, A- = 3.67, B+ = 3.33, etc.). Grades like Pass, No Credit, or Withdrawals that are non-punitive according to your school’s policy are typically excluded from the calculation. However, punitive withdrawals or failures are included as 0.00.
2. Quality Points Calculation: For each course, the numerical grade value is multiplied by the number of credit hours the course was worth. This gives you the “Quality Points” for that course.
3. Summation: LSAC sums all the Quality Points earned across all undergraduate courses and sums all the credit hours for those courses that are included in the GPA calculation.
4. GPA Calculation: The Total Quality Points are divided by the Total Credit Hours to arrive at the LSAC Calculated GPA.

Formula: LSAC Calculated GPA = (Sum of [Numerical Grade Value × Credit Hours]) / (Sum of Credit Hours)

Variables Table

Variable	Meaning	Unit	Typical Range
Numerical Grade Value	The value assigned to a letter grade by LSAC.	Points	0.00 (F) to 4.33 (A+)
Credit Hours	The number of credits each course is worth.	Hours	0.5 – 6 (typically 3 or 4)
Quality Points	Numerical Grade Value multiplied by Credit Hours for a course.	Points	0 – 26 (approx.)
Total Quality Points	Sum of Quality Points from all courses.	Points	Varies
Total Credit Hours	Sum of Credit Hours from all courses included in GPA.	Hours	Varies (e.g., 120 for a degree)

Practical Examples (Real-World Use Cases)

Example 1: Student with Consistent Grades

A student has taken 40 courses, each worth 3 credit hours. They received 10 A’s (4.00), 20 B’s (3.00), and 10 C’s (2.00).

• 10 A’s * 3 credits/course * 4.00 = 120 Quality Points
• 20 B’s * 3 credits/course * 3.00 = 180 Quality Points
• 10 C’s * 3 credits/course * 2.00 = 60 Quality Points
• Total Quality Points = 120 + 180 + 60 = 360
• Total Credit Hours = 40 courses * 3 credits/course = 120
• LSAC Calculated GPA = 360 / 120 = 3.000

Example 2: Student with an A+ and a C-

A student took two courses: one A+ (4.33) for 4 credits and one C- (1.67) for 3 credits.

• A+: 4.33 * 4 credits = 17.32 Quality Points
• C-: 1.67 * 3 credits = 5.01 Quality Points
• Total Quality Points = 17.32 + 5.01 = 22.33
• Total Credit Hours = 4 + 3 = 7
• LSAC Calculated GPA = 22.33 / 7 = 3.190 (approx.)

How to Use This LSAC Calculated GPA Calculator

1. Add Courses: The calculator starts with one course row. Click “Add Another Course” to add more rows for each undergraduate course you’ve taken where you received a grade that counts towards GPA.
2. Enter Course Details: For each course, optionally enter the course name (for your reference), select the letter grade received from the dropdown, and enter the number of credit hours the course was worth. If a course grade is not included in the GPA (like a non-punitive withdrawal or pass), select “Not Included”.
3. Calculate: As you enter data or click “Calculate GPA”, the results will update automatically.
4. Review Results: The calculator will display your estimated LSAC Calculated GPA, Total Quality Points, Total Credit Hours Included, and the Number of Courses Included.
5. Examine Table & Chart: The table below the results shows a breakdown per course, and the chart visualizes your grade distribution.
6. Reset or Copy: Use “Reset” to clear all entries and “Copy Results” to copy the main outputs to your clipboard.

Understanding your estimated LSAC Calculated GPA helps you assess your competitiveness for different law schools and decide whether to retake the LSAT or address any academic weaknesses in your application. For more details on the application process, see our law school application guide.

Key Factors That Affect LSAC Calculated GPA Results

• All Undergraduate Coursework: LSAC includes grades from all undergraduate institutions attended before your first bachelor’s degree, including community colleges and summer sessions.
• Grade Values: The specific numerical values LSAC assigns to grades (A+=4.33, A=4.00, etc.) are fixed and may differ from your home institution’s scale.
• Credit Hours: The weight of each grade is determined by the credit hours assigned to the course. Courses with more credit hours have a larger impact.
• Repeated Courses: Unlike many undergraduate institutions, LSAC includes all attempts of repeated courses in the GPA calculation, unless your school completely removed the original grade and credits from the transcript (rare). Both the original and the repeated grade will be factored in.
• Study Abroad Grades: If grades and credits from study abroad appear on your home institution’s transcript and are convertible to LSAC’s scale, they will be included. If they are just listed as “Pass” or transfer credit without grades, they might not be.
• Withdrawals and Incompletes: Non-punitive withdrawals are generally not included. However, if your school considers a withdrawal as failing (WF) or assigns a punitive grade to an incomplete, LSAC will likely include it as an F (0.00).
• Pass/Fail Grades: “Pass” grades are usually excluded unless the underlying grade is available and convertible, or if your school defines “Fail” as punitive, in which case it’s treated as an F.
• Academic Forgiveness/Renewal: LSAC generally does not honor institutional academic forgiveness or renewal policies that exclude earlier poor grades. All grades before your first bachelor’s degree are usually included.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Does LSAC round the GPA?

LSAC calculates the GPA to three decimal places and does not round to two. So, a 3.499 is a 3.499, not a 3.50.

2. What if my school uses a different grading scale?

LSAC converts grades from various scales to its standard 4.0/4.33 scale to ensure fairness and comparability across applicants. Refer to the LSAC academic record summary for details.

3. Are graduate school grades included in the LSAC Calculated GPA?

No, the LSAC Calculated GPA is based solely on undergraduate coursework taken before the conferral of your first bachelor’s degree. Graduate grades are reported separately.

4. How are AP or IB credits treated?

AP or IB credits granted by your undergraduate institution without a grade are usually treated like transfer credits without grades and are not included in the GPA calculation. If your transcript assigns a letter grade, it might be included.

5. What if I took courses after my first bachelor’s degree?

Courses taken after your first bachelor’s degree are not included in the primary LSAC Calculated GPA but are reported to law schools.

6. Can I appeal LSAC’s calculation?

If you believe there is a clear error in how LSAC processed your transcript (e.g., misread a grade or credit), you can contact LSAC. However, disagreements with their policies (like including repeated courses) are generally not grounds for appeal.

7. How important is the LSAC Calculated GPA compared to my LSAT score?

Both are very important. The relative weight varies by law school, but your LSAC Calculated GPA and LSAT score are the two most significant quantitative factors in law school admissions.

8. Where can I find my official LSAC Calculated GPA?

Your official LSAC Calculated GPA will be available in your Academic Summary Report once LSAC has processed all your undergraduate transcripts.

Related Tools and Internal Resources

• LSAT Prep Courses: Explore resources to improve your LSAT score, another critical factor in admissions.
• Law School Application Guide: A comprehensive guide to the application process.
• Understanding Your LSAC Report: Learn more about the components of your LSAC report, including the GPA calculation.
• Standard GPA Calculator: Calculate a simple GPA based on one institution’s grades.
• Study Abroad Credits and LSAC: How study abroad coursework impacts your LSAC GPA.
• Repeated Courses and LSAC: Understand how LSAC treats courses you’ve taken more than once.