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What a law school GPA calculator does and when to use it
A law school GPA calculator converts your undergraduate grades to the 4.33 scale LSAC uses for the GPA law schools see. Your LSAC GPA can differ from your transcript GPA, because LSAC counts every attempt at a repeated course, A+ as 4.33 and grades from every school you attended.
Definition
CAS, LSAC’s Credential Assembly Service, collects your transcripts and sends law schools one report with your LSAC GPA.
Use it before you order transcripts for the Credential Assembly Service, or when you hold your number up against a law school’s admissions data. It gives one GPA, with no science split.
How to use the law school GPA calculator
Add your undergraduate years
Pick Freshman, Sophomore, Junior or Senior in each year’s title. Use Add year under Options for more.
Enter grades and credits
Choose each letter from Grade, including A+ if your school gives it, and the Credits from your transcript.
Leave later work out
Post-baccalaureate and Graduate years still show, but their courses are marked Not counted.
How LSAC calculates your GPA on the 4.33 scale
LSAC GPA = (LSAC grade value × credits, added up) ÷ (credits, added up)
LSAC values
A+ 4.33, A 4.00, A− 3.67, B+ 3.33, B 3.00, B− 2.67.
Credits
Undergraduate credits up to your first bachelor’s degree.
Added up
Both totals run over every counted course.
Say you finished your senior year, then took one Spanish course after graduation.
| Course | Grade · LSAC value × credits | Quality points |
|---|---|---|
| POLS 410 Constitutional Law Seminar | A+ · 4.33 × 3 | 12.99 |
| PHIL 330 Ethics | A− · 3.67 × 3 | 11.01 |
| ECON 301 Intermediate Microeconomics | B+ · 3.33 × 4 | 13.32 |
| HIST 350 American Legal History | A · 4.00 × 3 | 12.00 |
| SPAN 101 (post-baccalaureate) | B · not counted | — |
Senior year: 12.99 + 11.01 + 13.32 + 12.00 = 49.32 quality points over 13 credits. 49.32 ÷ 13 = 3.794, so the calculator shows Undergraduate GPA (LSAC) 3.79.
The Spanish course sits in a Post-baccalaureate year, so it’s marked Not counted and its 3 credits stay out.
On a 4.0 scale that caps A+ and uses 3.7 and 3.3 steps, the same four courses give 48.3 ÷ 13 = 3.72. The LSAC scale adds 0.07 here.
Because of the A+, the result also shows If A+ counted as 4.0: 12.00 + 11.01 + 13.32 + 12.00 = 48.33 ÷ 13 = 3.72, with A− still at 3.67.
How to read your LSAC GPA result
The big number is your cumulative undergraduate GPA on the 4.33 scale. A 3.79 shows an A− badge and reads as an excellent A− average.
Example
Say your 120 credits average 3.60 on a 4.0 scale, and 30 of them are A+ grades. LSAC’s 4.33 adds 0.33 × 30 = 9.9 points, so your GPA rises by 9.9 ÷ 120 ≈ 0.08, to about 3.68.
Because the scale tops out at 4.33, a result above 4.00 is possible if you earned A+ grades. GPA credits counts only undergraduate courses up to your first degree.
Law schools publish the GPAs of the students they admit, so set yours next to those numbers. Keep this result under My saves, or Open GPA planner to see what an unfinished senior year needs to average.
What changes your LSAC GPA
A+ counts as 4.33. LSAC gives A+ 4.33 even when your college caps it at 4.0, so A+ grades raise your LSAC GPA above your transcript GPA.
Work after your first degree is left out. Post-baccalaureate courses and graduate courses don’t count, however strong the grades. Only the years up to your first bachelor’s degree count.
A fail in pass/fail counts. LSAC leaves a passed pass/fail course out, but a fail (NP) counts as an F worth 0.00. Pick NP for it and the calculator scores it that way.
Quarter hours × .67. LSAC multiplies quarter hours by .67 to get semester hours; tick My school uses quarter credits in Options to do the same.
Every attempt counts. If your college replaced a failed grade with a retake, LSAC still counts both. An F and then a B in a 3-credit course average to 1.50 for those 6 credits.
Every college counts. Grades from each undergraduate school you attended join the LSAC GPA, including community college and transfer courses. Enter them in the year you took them.
Minus grades lose a little more. LSAC’s A− is 3.67, not 3.7, so a transcript of straight A− grades comes out at 3.67 here.
Frequently asked questions
What is an A+ worth on LSAC?
LSAC counts an A+ as 4.33, even if your college gives it 4.0. That can push your LSAC GPA above 4.0.
Does LSAC count retaken classes?
Yes, LSAC counts every grade on your transcript, including the first attempt at a retaken course. Grade replacement at your college doesn’t change that.
Do graduate school grades count in my LSAC GPA?
No, graduate and professional courses stay out of your LSAC GPA. So do undergraduate courses taken after your first bachelor’s degree.
Why is my LSAC GPA different from my college GPA?
LSAC converts every grade to its own 4.33 scale and counts all attempts at every college you attended. Your college may cap A+ at 4.0, replace retaken grades or leave transfer grades out.
Do community college grades count for LSAC?
Yes, LSAC includes undergraduate grades from every school you attended before your first bachelor’s degree. Add those courses to the calculator in the year you took them.
Sources
- Transcript SummarizationLaw School Admission Council
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