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My GPA is dropping from about a 3.7 to a 3.5, a HUGE drop when it comes to the top 20. All my plans are pretty much completely screwed for the application process. Why does the damn LSAC bureaucracy screw students over like this? It seems like everyone I talk to gets a significant grade drop.

Depends on your situation. Most unexpected drops come due to poor community college grades.

Personally, LSDAS's A+ policy saved my application so I really think this can go either way.

My school (University of Utah) doesn't use A+'s, and I have a community college math grade of a D from my junior year in High School that is literally dropping my GPA an entire .1
I'm just finding it extremely unfair, and not actually indicative of my academic performance.

It worked to my advantage by about .05. But I can understand how people would be upset when it penalizes you.

coldshoulder wrote:My school (University of Utah) doesn't use A+'s, and I have a community college math grade of a D from my junior year in High School that is literally dropping my GPA an entire .1
I'm just finding it extremely unfair, and not actually indicative of my academic performance.

Overall, LSDAS is fine with me. My legit 3.8 shouldn't be on par with someone else getting a GPA that high through grade forgiveness and things like that. But I do agree that there are some problems with the system, like penalizing your situation for a pre-college grade.

A 3.5 does not screw you at all. Just get a great LSAT score. I know it sucks, but you're not in that bad of shape.

Yeah, it just significantly limits my reach. I was looking for a 3.7 plus 168-170 for Cornell/Michigan/Georgetown, now I'm going to be looking top 50. A white male with no outstanding softs.

coldshoulder wrote:Yeah, it just significantly limits my reach. I was looking for a 3.7 plus 168-170 for Cornell/Michigan/Georgetown, now I'm going to be looking top 50. A white male with no outstanding softs.

This is flat out false. A 168/3.5 will get you into many T20s with scholarship money. A 170/3.5 could get you into most of the lower half of the T14.

Seriously, in the words of the great Walter Sobchak, "Nothing is fucked, Dude."

Cheers to spending the next three months of my life preparing for the LSAT!
Thanks, sir.

coldshoulder wrote:Yeah, it just significantly limits my reach. I was looking for a 3.7 plus 168-170 for Cornell/Michigan/Georgetown, now I'm going to be looking top 50. A white male with no outstanding softs.

Plenty of people break the T-14 with that GPA, including one of my friends who got into NYU with a 3.55 (he did get a 177 fwiw). Don't lose hope yet! Just let it remind you that you need to KILL that LSAT!

coldshoulder wrote:Cheers to spending the next three months of my life preparing for the LSAT!
Thanks, sir.

No problem. And you should be dedicating those 3 months to the LSAT either way. Most important test of your life up to this point, by a landslide.

Good luck.

bhan87 wrote:Depends on your situation. Most unexpected drops come due to poor community college grades.Personally, LSDAS's A+ policy saved my application so I really think this can go either way.

3.94 turned into a 3.49

FML. or rather, FMLS

girlonfire wrote:

bhan87 wrote:Depends on your situation. Most unexpected drops come due to poor community college grades.Personally, LSDAS's A+ policy saved my application so I really think this can go either way.

3.94 turned into a 3.49

FML. or rather, FMLS

Man, that's messed up.

prezidentv8 wrote:

girlonfire wrote:

bhan87 wrote:Depends on your situation. Most unexpected drops come due to poor community college grades.Personally, LSDAS's A+ policy saved my application so I really think this can go either way.

3.94 turned into a 3.49

FML. or rather, FMLS

Man, that's messed up.

Thats what i get for having too much fun in community college and not taking my liberal arts degree too seriously... I graduated w my AA w a 3.02. I blame the weed
I havent gotten anything lower than an A- in two effing years... that's gotta count for something... I've heard that many schools look kindly on an upward trend in transcripts.. I really hope thats true.

Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

beachbum wrote:Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

"Strong upward trend" is a term that never fails to make me laugh on TLS lol

LSACpwned

FeelTheHeat wrote:

beachbum wrote:Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

"Strong upward trend" is a term that never fails to make me laugh on TLS lol

Why's that?

...

beachbum wrote:

FeelTheHeat wrote:

beachbum wrote:Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

"Strong upward trend" is a term that never fails to make me laugh on TLS lol

Why's that?

Its like opinions and assholes...

LSAC has the difficult but necessary job of standardizing GPAs/transcripts in a way that makes sense, and I think the system they have is a good one.Someone who gets good grades all through college should have a better GPA than someone who did poorly; you can't only count the grades you like or else everyone would have a 4.0 and GPAs would be worthless as a measurement of undergrad performance.

Bildungsroman wrote:LSAC has the difficult but necessary job of standardizing GPAs/transcripts in a way that makes sense, and I think the system they have is a good one.Someone who gets good grades all through college should have a better GPA than someone who did poorly; you can't only count the grades you like or else everyone would have a 4.0 and GPAs would be worthless as a measurement of undergrad performance.

I agree with this. It fucked me, but it doesn't mean its a poor system.

Bildungsroman wrote:LSAC has the difficult but necessary job of standardizing GPAs/transcripts in a way that makes sense, and I think the system they have is a good one.Someone who gets good grades all through college should have a better GPA than someone who did poorly; you can't only count the grades you like or else everyone would have a 4.0 and GPAs would be worthless as a measurement of undergrad performance.

+1.

Although I do think there are flaws, like counting a community college course you took as a junior in high school, I do agree with your general point. I have little sympathy for those who whine about bad grades in community college/freshman year/whenever. It's not LSAC's fault for someone being lazy or doing poorly their first few years.

Now the engineering folks on a harsh curve, that's who I really feel bad for!

prezidentv8 wrote:

girlonfire wrote:

bhan87 wrote:Depends on your situation. Most unexpected drops come due to poor community college grades.Personally, LSDAS's A+ policy saved my application so I really think this can go either way.

3.94 turned into a 3.49

FML. or rather, FMLS

Man, that's messed up.

Try uGPA 3.96 (magna cum laude) to LDAS GPA 3.22

Trying to bank on my URM status at this point.

FeelTheHeat wrote:

beachbum wrote:

FeelTheHeat wrote:

beachbum wrote:Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

"Strong upward trend" is a term that never fails to make me laugh on TLS lol

Why's that?

Its like opinions and assholes...

disagree. not everyone has one.
classes get harder as u continue ur education, and many ppl have the opposite trend. Also, senioritis sets in, and ppl begin to focus on job searching, grad school, etc, or just get lazy and grades suffer. Just sayin...

beachbum wrote:Meh, I have a 3.49 and I turned out all right. Cowboy up for that LSAT and you'll be all right, too.

I also have a strong upward trend, and it seemed to get me over the hump at my top-choice school. You're probably gonna take a hit with scholarship prospects, but in terms of acceptances, all is certainly not lost.

Not to be a buzzkill, but I haven't seen any difference between my 'strong upward trend' double major gpa and the same in an easy major. Maybe it takes you over that hump, but it could just as easily be anything else.