LSAC GPA Calculator — Calculate LSAC GPA / How LSAC Calculates GPA
This tool helps applicants calculate LSAC GPA (also called CAS GPA) quickly and accurately. It follows LSAC’s rules: convert letter grades to LSAC numeric values, count all eligible credits (including repeated attempts if both appear), treat failing notations as zeros, and omit course notations like plain “W” that LSAC ignores. The tool explains every step and shows a breakdown per course.
Enter Your Undergraduate Courses
Detailed Breakdown
| Course | Credits | Grade | LSAC Value | Quality Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | - | - |
How does LSAC calculate GPA?
The Law School Admission Council (LSAC) calculates a standardized GPA, often called the CAS GPA, to provide law schools with a uniform measure for comparing applicants from different undergraduate institutions. This process can be confusing because it often results in a GPA that is different from the one on your transcript. This **LSAC GPA calculator** automates the process, but understanding *how* it's done is key.
LSAC's method involves three main steps:
- Converting Grades to a Standard Scale: LSAC ignores your school's own GPA scale (e.g., a 12-point scale or a scale where A+ is 4.0). Instead, it converts every letter grade you've received into its own standardized numeric value.
- Including All Attempted Credits: Unlike many universities that may replace a failing grade with the grade from a repeated attempt, LSAC includes *both* attempts in its calculation if they appear on your transcript. This is a common reason why an LSAC GPA is lower than a university GPA.
- Treating Failing Grades Uniformly: Any grade that your school considers failing, including "No Credit" (NC) or "No Pass" (NP) grades, will be converted to a 0.00 by LSAC and factored into your GPA. However, standard "Withdraw" (W) grades are typically ignored.
How to Calculate LSAC GPA (Step-by-Step)
You can manually estimate your LSAC GPA using the same formula as our calculator. Follow these steps:
Step 1: Convert Each Grade to its LSAC Numeric Value
Use the official LSAC conversion table. Our calculator uses this standard mapping:
| Letter Grade | LSAC Numeric Value |
|---|---|
| A+ | 4.33 or 4.00 (selectable) |
| A | 4.00 |
| A- | 3.67 |
| B+ | 3.33 |
| B | 3.00 |
| B- | 2.67 |
| C+ | 2.33 |
| C | 2.00 |
| C- | 1.67 |
| D+ | 1.33 |
| D | 1.00 |
| F, NP, NC, WF | 0.00 |
Step 2: Calculate Quality Points for Each Course
For each course, multiply the LSAC numeric value by the number of credit hours for that course.
Formula: Quality Points = LSAC Numeric Value × Credit Hours
Step 3: Sum Your Totals
Add up the Quality Points from all of your courses to get your Total Quality Points. Then, add up all the Credit Hours to get your Total Credit Hours.
Step 4: Compute the Final LSAC GPA
Divide your Total Quality Points by your Total Credit Hours. The result is your estimated LSAC GPA.
Formula: LSAC GPA = Total Quality Points / Total Credit Hours
Special Note on Quarter Systems: If your school uses a quarter system, you must convert your credits to semester equivalents first. LSAC considers one quarter hour to be two-thirds of a semester hour. So, multiply all quarter credits by (2/3) before using them in the calculation.
Why Your LSAC GPA Might Differ From Your University GPA
This is the most common question from law school applicants. If your transcript says 3.8, why might the **LSAC calculate a GPA** of 3.65? Here are the primary reasons:
- Repeated Courses: This is the biggest factor. Your university may have a "grade forgiveness" policy where a repeated course's new grade replaces the old one. LSAC does not do this. If both the initial 'F' and the repeated 'A' are on your transcript, LSAC includes both in the calculation, which will pull your GPA down.
- A+ Grades: Some universities cap their GPA at 4.0, even for an A+. If you select the A+ = 4.33 option, LSAC's calculation may actually result in a *higher* GPA than your transcript shows.
- Failing Grades: A "No Pass" (NP) grade might not affect your university GPA, but LSAC will treat it as an F (0.00) and include it, lowering your score.
- Incomplete Grades: If an "Incomplete" grade automatically becomes an "F" on your school's transcript after a certain period, LSAC will treat it as an F, even if you never officially received that grade.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: How does the LSAC calculate GPA?
A: LSAC converts every grade from every undergraduate institution you attended into a standard 4.0 scale, includes almost all courses (including repeats and failures), sums the quality points, and divides by the total number of credit hours to get a single, cumulative GPA.
Q: Why is my LSAC GPA different from my university GPA?
A: The main reasons are LSAC's policies on repeated courses (they count all attempts), their standardized grade conversion scale (which might differ from your school's), and their treatment of failing grades like "No Pass" as a 0.00.
Q: Does LSAC include repeated courses in the GPA calculation?
A: Yes. If both the original attempt and the repeated attempt appear on your official transcript with credits and a grade, LSAC will include both in the calculation. This is a crucial difference from many undergraduate institutions.
AI Explanation
This tool features an "Explain My Results" button that uses AI to provide a plain-English summary of why your calculated LSAC GPA differs from a typical university GPA, based on the courses you entered. To protect privacy and secure API credentials, this feature uses a secure proxy endpoint. All data is processed in real-time and is not stored.