How much does a grade trend matter? Forum

[isuperserial]

In my case, freshman year I attended a mediocre university and got a 3.2 first semester, 3.3 second. I transfered to Michigan State for sophomore year where I got a 3.6 first semester and a 3.7 second semester. I'm fairly confident that I can continue this grade trend into my junior and senior years.

So my question is this - Are my subpar grades from freshman year going to be lessened in impact by the upward grade trend? Am I still probably not a viable candidate for T14 even if I get 3.7s for the rest of my undergrad?

Thanks guys!

[rinkrat19]

Slightly more than your favorite color.

[kwais]

it means nada. Just get As and you'll be eligible for the lower half of the T14 at least. HYSB are gone

[isuperserial]

Yeah, thanks for being honest. I figured HYSB were out, I was thinking more of Michigan or Cornell. I took a second look at the graphs and it looks like for Michigan and Cornell they care a hell of a lot more that you got a 170 or more on your LSAT than your GPA, so long as it's over 3.5. So I'm feeling pretty good nonetheless.

[bobbyh1919]

If you had a good reason for struggling early on, then an addendum would certainly help. If you just were being lazy and then realized "oh shit I better start trying harder," then you shouldn't mention the upward trend. They won't care about it much either way.

[badaboom61]

All that matters is the final number on that LSAC report; they don't really care what combination you used to get there.

[UnamSanctam]

In my case, freshman year I attended a mediocre university and got a 3.2 first semester, 3.3 second. I transfered to Michigan State for sophomore year where I got a 3.6 first semester and a 3.7 second semester. I'm fairly confident that I can continue this grade trend into my junior and senior years.

So my question is this - Are my subpar grades from freshman year going to be lessened in impact by the upward grade trend? Am I still probably not a viable candidate for T14 even if I get 3.7s for the rest of my undergrad?

Thanks guys!

Out of pure curiosity, which mediocre university did you transfer from?

[Stupe]

Three semesters into college I switched majors from Biology to English after having a terrible time. I thought I wanted to be a physical therapist because that's what my mom encouraged me to do. Completely bombed my third semester and had an overall GPA of 2.98 after it. I'm now entering my senior year, I've been taking 17-20 hours per semester in order to graduate on time after the major-change, and my GPA is 3.50. I expect to graduate with a 3.6+. I talked to the head of the admissions department at the University of Tennessee about writing an addendum about this, and she said definitely.


Should I? I think I could spin it into a positive because my I've only made one 'B' since I switched majors and I've taken a healthy courseload. I just don't want law schools to think the worst, which would be "He couldn't hang it in Biology so he switched to an easy major." Which is completely true, now that I think about it. English is a breeze. Addendum or no addendum?

[isuperserial]

In my case, freshman year I attended a mediocre university and got a 3.2 first semester, 3.3 second. I transfered to Michigan State for sophomore year where I got a 3.6 first semester and a 3.7 second semester. I'm fairly confident that I can continue this grade trend into my junior and senior years.

So my question is this - Are my subpar grades from freshman year going to be lessened in impact by the upward grade trend? Am I still probably not a viable candidate for T14 even if I get 3.7s for the rest of my undergrad?

Thanks guys!

Out of pure curiosity, which mediocre university did you transfer from?

I hate to say it on the off chance that someone on here is actually from there and gets mad. I guess in that case I'll preface this by saying that I had a great time there and learned a lot in my freshman year. I don't regret attending at all, and I wouldn't be where I am today without that experience. I went to Western Michigan University.

Three semesters into college I switched majors from Biology to English after having a terrible time. I thought I wanted to be a physical therapist because that's what my mom encouraged me to do. Completely bombed my third semester and had an overall GPA of 2.98 after it. I'm now entering my senior year, I've been taking 17-20 hours per semester in order to graduate on time after the major-change, and my GPA is 3.50. I expect to graduate with a 3.6+. I talked to the head of the admissions department at the University of Tennessee about writing an addendum about this, and she said definitely.


Should I? I think I could spin it into a positive because my I've only made one 'B' since I switched majors and I've taken a healthy courseload. I just don't want law schools to think the worst, which would be "He couldn't hang it in Biology so he switched to an easy major." Which is completely true, now that I think about it. English is a breeze. Addendum or no addendum?

If you really want answers, I suggest posting separately. Unfortunately I'm a bit of a newbie, so I can't offer any credible advice. Good luck!

[Nova]

Three semesters into college I switched majors from Biology to English after having a terrible time. I thought I wanted to be a physical therapist because that's what my mom encouraged me to do. Completely bombed my third semester and had an overall GPA of 2.98 after it. I'm now entering my senior year, I've been taking 17-20 hours per semester in order to graduate on time after the major-change, and my GPA is 3.50. I expect to graduate with a 3.6+. I talked to the head of the admissions department at the University of Tennessee about writing an addendum about this, and she said definitely.


Should I? I think I could spin it into a positive because my I've only made one 'B' since I switched majors and I've taken a healthy courseload. I just don't want law schools to think the worst, which would be "He couldn't hang it in Biology so he switched to an easy major." Which is completely true, now that I think about it. English is a breeze. Addendum or no addendum?

You do realize that English, along with other Liberal Arts, are the typical track to law school, right?