Undergrad vs. Grad School GPA Forum

[bb615]

Hi guys! Anyone have insight as to whether an undergrad or grad school GPA is weighed more heavily in the admissions process? Or is it context dependent?

My undergrad GPA was meh (3.7 or 3., but I got a 4.0 in grad school. Both degrees were from top 5 schools, and I took about a year off in between undergrad & grad.

[Lawdup]

Undergrad is what matters. This is what is used for school rankings, not grad school rankings, so law schools give little to no weight to grad school GPAs in the admissions process. The LSAC also only uses your undergrad grades for the purposes of computing your LSAC GPA when you apply to law schools.

[polareagle]

Hi guys! Anyone have insight as to whether an undergrad or grad school GPA is weighed more heavily in the admissions process? Or is it context dependent?

My undergrad GPA was meh (3.7 or 3., but I got a 4.0 in grad school. Both degrees were from top 5 schools, and I took about a year off in between undergrad & grad.

Without question, your undergrad GPA is far, far, far, far, FAR more important. Your grad school GPA is what's called a "soft" factor--it goes into the smorgasbord of things that add to or detract from your application like extracurriculars, work experience, etc. You undergrad GPA, along with your LSAT score, are the key metrics that will determine where you get in. Also note, your LSAC gpa (the one law schools will look at) may well be calculated differently from the way your undergrad calculated it. Google "LSAC GPA calculator" to get a sense of what yours is.

[007sean]

An A- GPA from a top 5 school with rigorous course selection and major is excellent. Not Meh.
Hopefully, you did not major in finger painting, juice drinking or similar ...
Undergrad GPA is what counts. But the grad school record will seriously enhance your appeal.

[nixy]

But the grad school record will seriously slightly enhance your appeal.

Unless you were in a seriously tough quantitative/hard science field, it's pretty routine to get 4.0s in grad school. It's good in comparison with someone without a 4.0 in grad school, but it doesn't generally move the needle significantly.

[cavalier1138]

Just to reiterate: Grad school GPA is meaningless. The degree is helpful in admissions (as mentioned, it's only a slight boost), but program standards vary so widely that law schools just don't pay attention to that GPA.