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Do GPA cut-offs for class rank generally remain the same from semester to semester? For instance, say a 3.50 GPA made you 10/1xx in the class after first semester. Is it common for that 3.50 GPA to be number ten in the class after second semester grades, or is it not unusual to see something like 3.45 or 3.55 be the GPA of number ten following second semester?

I am no mathematics expert, but this seems mathematically possible. I just want to know if anyone has knowledge that this is commonplace, unheard of, or a little of both. Perhaps a raconteur can regale us with some tales.

I don't know about 1st vs. 2nd semester, but I have seen a trend in the grade %s increasing between years.

Ie, 1L year a 3.02 was median. Now it's around 3.11.

The cutoffs are almost always going to move down from the first semester of 1L to the full-year average. So, if you were a 3.50 and were ranked 10/1xx after the fall, you will likely be higher than 10th if you keep the 3.50 for the year. It's just a statistical phenomenon called regression to the mean. Of course, as the last post mentioned, the grades usually go up for 2L & 3L years, because there is no curve or the curve is allowed to be higher.