Failed to Drop Classes Impact Forum

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gobears2009

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Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by gobears2009 » Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:24 pm

Hey --

Here's my situation.

I was a transfer student. Split my academic career between a community college and a university.

My community college GPA since I graduated is immaculate. It's about a 3.9 in total. I took a few courses at community college in high school and didn't do as well so my total community college GPA is a little lower. I was immature in high school and didn't care about school. I graduated high school with a very low GPA. Just to give you a sense of the type of student I was in high school. But since high school, it's all high.

In my second semester of community college -- in 2007 -- I had enrolled in a summer session at a local university. Signed up for 4 classes. In April, a couple months before the classes had started, I dropped. Well, I thought I had dropped them. This is my problem. Turns out I didn't properly drop so I remained enrolled and received grades. 4 F's. Ouch.

I later transferred to Berkeley. My GPA from the grades that I took at Berkeley alone is a 3.9. So, here are the way my GPA stats roll out. If you calculate everything including a few of the courses that I botched while I was a student in high school and the 4 F's, my GPA (LSAC) is a 3.51. If you calculate everything except those 4 F's it's about a 3.78 (this includes some of those courses I took in high school). Then, if you calculate my LSAC GPA for courses AFTER high school and all ATTEMPTED coursework, it's a 3.9

My question for you guys is this: How do you think the admissions committee (specifically at Berkeley Law) is going to evaluate my GPA? Do you think my GPA is really going to hurt my chances at Boalt? Berkeley's where I want to go more than any other place. What do you guys think?

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law4vus

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by law4vus » Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:28 pm

gobears2009 wrote: My question for you guys is this: How do you think the admissions committee (specifically at Berkeley Law) is going to evaluate my GPA? Do you think my GPA is really going to hurt my chances at Boalt? Berkeley's where I want to go more than any other place. What do you guys think?
They're going to evaluate using your LSAC GPA unless you can go to the CC and plead your case to get those grades removed. As for it hurting your chances at Boalt - that's going to depend on your LSAT score but they do tend to like high GPAs at Berkeley.

See if you can get retroactive drops from the community college first.

gobears2009

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by gobears2009 » Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:48 pm

Thanks for your prompt reply. I'll look into that.

One thing, though: You mention that Boalt likes exceptionally high GPAs. I kind of feel like I have an exceptionally high GPA. Realistically, all of the attempted coursework after high school for me yielded an average GPA of 3.9. It's not like my GPA is a 3.5 because of academic reasons.

Thoughts?

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rinkrat19

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by rinkrat19 » Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:50 pm

gobears2009 wrote:Thanks for your prompt reply. I'll look into that.

One thing, though: You mention that Boalt likes exceptionally high GPAs. I kind of feel like I have an exceptionally high GPA. Realistically, all of the attempted coursework after high school for me yielded an average GPA of 3.9. It's not like my GPA is a 3.5 because of academic reasons.

Thoughts?
Law schools have to use the cumulative LSAC GPA to calculate their medians to report to USNWR for the rankings, so that's what they really care about. They'll take a glance at the upward trend and it might give you the nod over an applicant with identical numbers and soft factors but a constant 3.78 instead of some CC Fs and almost straight As later, but that's really it.

3.78 is just over median at Boalt, which means you still have a good shot, especially if your LSAT is also over median. But it's not "exceptionally high" for Boalt.

ryemanhattan

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by ryemanhattan » Mon Oct 31, 2011 10:58 pm

You'll obviously want to write an addendum regarding gpa. Berkeley will care about your lsac gpa but you've got a great argument for them not giving it too much weight. I'll be writing them a somewhat similar addendum, to explain my 2.92, if that makes you feel any better.

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law4vus

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by law4vus » Mon Oct 31, 2011 11:58 pm

gobears2009 wrote: One thing, though: You mention that Boalt likes exceptionally high GPAs. I kind of feel like I have an exceptionally high GPA. Realistically, all of the attempted coursework after high school for me yielded an average GPA of 3.9. It's not like my GPA is a 3.5 because of academic reasons.
To be frank, it doesn't really matter.

Law schools report the LSAC GPA to USNews for rankings purposes. They don't massage your LSAC GPA to reflect what it "should" have been given mitigating factors.

I'm sure Berkeley has applicants with a 3.78, high LSAT score WITHOUT all of the circumstances surrounding it. Why would they risk taking you and lowering their numbers when they could take someone with a higher LSAC GPA?

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happyshapy

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Re: Failed to Drop Classes Impact

Post by happyshapy » Tue Nov 01, 2011 12:13 am

gobears2009 wrote:Hey --

Here's my situation.

I was a transfer student. Split my academic career between a community college and a university.

My community college GPA since I graduated is immaculate. It's about a 3.9 in total. I took a few courses at community college in high school and didn't do as well so my total community college GPA is a little lower. I was immature in high school and didn't care about school. I graduated high school with a very low GPA. Just to give you a sense of the type of student I was in high school. But since high school, it's all high.

In my second semester of community college -- in 2007 -- I had enrolled in a summer session at a local university. Signed up for 4 classes. In April, a couple months before the classes had started, I dropped. Well, I thought I had dropped them. This is my problem. Turns out I didn't properly drop so I remained enrolled and received grades. 4 F's. Ouch.

I later transferred to Berkeley. My GPA from the grades that I took at Berkeley alone is a 3.9. So, here are the way my GPA stats roll out. If you calculate everything including a few of the courses that I botched while I was a student in high school and the 4 F's, my GPA (LSAC) is a 3.51. If you calculate everything except those 4 F's it's about a 3.78 (this includes some of those courses I took in high school). Then, if you calculate my LSAC GPA for courses AFTER high school and all ATTEMPTED coursework, it's a 3.9

My question for you guys is this: How do you think the admissions committee (specifically at Berkeley Law) is going to evaluate my GPA? Do you think my GPA is really going to hurt my chances at Boalt? Berkeley's where I want to go more than any other place. What do you guys think?
I think you need to write an addendum that doesn't make it sound like you're trying to gloss over where you've failed. I think adcoms are really going to look at you funny if you say you thought you dropped the classes but really didn't. I mean that seems pretty hard to do and very careless on your part. I think you're upward trend says something great, especially since you went to Berkeley undergrad and did very well.

I'm really confused on your stats though...you say you went to community college after college? Schools really don't care that much about grades after your undergrad degree. And how did you transfer to Berkeley with a horrible high school GPA and four Fs in community college??

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