When you discuss law school applications, the question of which schools are “splitter-friendly” comes up pretty often, and it’s not really an easy question to answer. Are we looking for schools to which a high percentage of splitters are admitted relative to non-splitter applicants? Schools that seem to value an applicant’s LSAT score much more than his/her GPA? How about schools that are willing to go really low on the GPA scale to nab those high LSAT scores?
There is actually a lot of overlap between those questions, but they’re not all the same thing. There is a ton of anecdotal evidence out there, but the point of this blog is to try to get to the bottom of what the numbers themselves can tell us. With the “splitter friendly” question, it’s not all that easy.
By the way, if you’re not sure what a “splitter” is, then make sure to check out Dave Killoran’s post that breaks it all down: What are Splitters, Reverse Splitters, and Super Splitters? And, if you know what all of those terms are and know you are actually a Reverse Splitter, see our article about Reverse Splitter Friendly schools.
How to Rank Schools
What I have done here is try to create an index number that incorporates information to answer our questions. The table below shows the index and the data used to compute it. I have to stress that because there is so little data available, and especially little data available on URM applicants, the following applies to non-URM applicants only. It is based entirely on non-URM applicant data. Unfortunately, I had to exclude URM data because it can really skew the overall picture. I also excluded any schools I did not feel that I had sufficient data-points for analysis.
Categories
- LSAT Bump. A number from my own regression analysis, and indicates the % increase in the likelihood of admission for each additional LSAT point an applicant has.
- GPA Bump. The GPA equivalent of the LSAT bump (the % increase for each .10 GPA).
- LSAT/GPA Differential. To measure the relative importance of the two, we divide the LSAT Bump by the GPA Bump. The higher the number, the more relative weight the LSAT has.
- Non-Splitter GPA.The average GPA of admitted non-splitter applicants.
- Splitter GPA. The average GPA of admitted splitter applicants.
- GPA Differential. Simply put, this is the difference between the previous two categories, and gives an indication of how much lower on GPA a school will go compared with its average in order to chase high LSAT scores.
- Splitter Success. % of splitter applicants in the data who were accepted.
- Non-Splitter Success. % of the non-splitter applicants in the data who were accepted.
- Splitter vs. Non Success. This is Splitter Success divided by Non-Splitter Success, and gives us a measure of how splitters fare vs. their non-splitter counterparts. If a school admits splitters at a higher percentage than non-splitter, the number will be greater than 1 (and if the opposite is true, it will be less than one). The higher the number, the greater indication that the school is splitter-friendly.
- Index. This is the number I devised to take into account the salient data from the other categories. It is simply (GPA Differential + LSAT/GPA Differential) * Splitter vs Non Success. The higher the number, the more splitter-friendly a school is.
Talking Numbers
The mean index number for the schools included is 1.85, so I set that as a benchmark, and then broke the schools down into five categories:
- Very Splitter Friendly: These schools have an index number that is more than two standard deviations above the mean. (Blue)
- Splitter Friendly: These schools have an index number that is between one and two standard deviations above mean. (Green)
- Neutral-Friendly: These schools have an index number that is between the mean and one standard deviation above.
- Neutral-Unfriendly: These schools have an index number that is between the mean and one standard deviation below.
- Splitter Unfriendly: These schools have an index number that is more than one standard deviation below the mean.
Stanford and Berkeley were more than two standard deviations below the mean, as you can see. The neutral-friendly and neutral-unfriendly categories make me a little squeamish. Since they are all within one standard deviation of the mean, they’re all pretty average. In the end, I decided it was better to distinguish between the above-average and below-average middle, just to give readers a relative comparison.
Indexing in Order of USNWR Ranking
Remember, this is categorizing schools by their relationships with each other. As you can see, there’s not a whole lot of splitter love. In the grand scheme of things, going on in the Top 14, and in general, there is a lot more towards the middle/bottom of the Top 100. Still, just as we can compare all the schools among themselves, we can isolate the Top 14 and do the same thing. And since someone is surely interested in how that shakes out, why don’t we just do it right now?
For the Top 14, I kept the categories and color-coding the same but based everything off the mean index score of just the T14, which was 1.29 (much lower than the overall average). Here are the results:
Northwestern and UVA are the only schools we could call splitter friendly (again, compared only to the other Top 14 schools), and Columbia, NYU, Penn, Michigan, Duke, and Georgetown all fall on the friendly side of average. This – combined with the relative splitter-unfriendliness of the California schools, more or less confirms the conventional wisdom you hear thrown around, but I guess I should stress once again that there’s really not a whole lot of splitter friendliness in the T14 (outside Northwestern and UVA, I’d say).
As always, please keep in mind that this analysis is based on numbers taken from publicly available applicant-reported data (which I have cleaned to make as accurate as possible), and does not come from the law schools themselves. In other words, I wouldn’t look at any of the numbers in this table as perfect representations of reality, but it does make for interesting comparison and reflection, and hopefully is of some use to those pondering applying to law schools.
moncia says
Hi Dave,
I am a “super-splitter” with a GPA above 2.0 and an LSAT score of 178. I received this low GPA over ten years ago due to mental health issues, although I do not have a formal diagnosis. At that time, I was also dealing with significant challenges in my family life.
Now, I have earned a PhD in humanities and law. Additionally, I have several experiences in court and legal firms, as well as in-house work experience, though none of them are famous. I am wondering if my experience and PhD can compensate for my low GPA. What is your best estimation of my chances?
Will says
3.04 GPA 175 LSAT. Realistic options?
I’m 31 years old I intend to apply to law schools for fall of 2025 as soon as the admissions cycle starts in September of 2024.
I am taking the LSAT on June 7th. So I don’t actually have a 175. I have taken 12 or more full timed practice tests simulating testing conditions, only taking a single break of 10 minutes after the second section. My scores have been steadily increasing as I continue studying and taking full PTs.
In early March, I took PT 66 on Khan Academy completely raw to see if law school could be an option for me and score a 151. Scoring in the 50 percentile encouraged me to pursue studying for the LSAT, and so I began studying.
After 4 weeks of focused studying, the first full PT I took was a 170. As I have continued studying that has steadily increased. Yesterday I took PT 90+ and scored a 175. Today I took PT 72 and scored a 174.
I understand that this far from guarantees me a high score on test day. But for the sake of discussion let’s assume I get a 175 (I actually hope to keep improving and score higher, the gains have been steady and I am not finished putting in work)
I’ve already submitted my transcripts to LSAC and ordered the CAS report my weighted GPA is 3.04.
Is 10+ years in the workforce and a (potentially) high LSAT score enough to overcome the low GPA?
I have been a professional indoor skydiving instructor and coach since I was a junior in college (partially contributing to my low GPA 😭🤣). In this industry, attention to detail and good decision making are paramount to delivering a world-class experience and, most importantly, to maintaining a safe environment to prevent serious injury or death. I have traveled to China and Japan in this industry working contracts through my employer for their corporate partner Royal Caribbean Cruises to train their staff in the wind tunnel (on massive RC cruise ships — super cool experience). My career has allowed me the create opportunities to live in Dallas, TX, San Diego, CA, Belgium/Luxembourg, and (currently) Houston, TX.
Is my story interesting enough to help pull up the GPA?
What would my realistic top options be for law school?
Dave Killoran says
Hey Will,
Assuming you pull around a 175, there are schools that will definitely want that score on their ledger. Realistically most of those schools will be in mid-20s ranking into the 30s (using USNews rankings here), but those are still many very good schools.
Your essays won’t make up for your GPA–GPA is a hard number that they have to account for–but your story can sway sschools that might be on the border, so it will help!
Thanks!
Jacob says
Hi Dave,
Thanks for putting this together — really informative! I had a few questions about your process:
1. You have “Splitter Success” and “Non-Splitter Success”, both of which seem to be very high, even at the T14. My assumption is that “splitters” are anyone at or above 75th LSAT and at or below 25th GPA, while “non-splitters” are everyone within a certain range of both median LSAT and GPA — so someone who is below both 25ths is not a “non-splitter”, rather they were excluded from the data set (hence why acceptance rates are so high). If this is the case, how did you distinguish between someone whose GPA and LSAT are in between the 25th and 50th and in between the 50th and 75th, respectively? What is the cutoff for splitters, non-splitters, and those excluded from the data set?
2. Second, if I am interpreting this right, many schools consider 1-2 points more on the LSAT to be equal to a 0.1 increase in GPA (0.5 to 1 in the LSAT/GPA Differential category). If this is true, wow!! LSAT really does matter more. Continuing from that, it also looks like Splitter GPA is really low — far below most 25ths. I assume this number is the average GPA of admitted applicants who were at or above the LSAT 75th, but this seems almost too good to be true. For example, could someone with a 175 GPA really get into Penn with a 3.37?
3. Finally, “Non-Splitter GPA” is below the median for most of the schools. Since it is an average as opposed to a median, that means that GPAs below the median are further below, on average, than GPAs above the median are above it. Can we interpret this to mean that schools do not care all that much about accepting an applicant whose GPA is far below the median compared to an applicant who is only slightly below the median?
I think those are all my questions, lol. As you may have guessed, I am a splitter myself. Thanks in advance for your help, and for putting this spreadsheet together!
Dave Killoran says
Hi Jacob,
Thanks for the message. I’m not actually the person who put this together, and as it was a few years ago they have moved on now. So unfortunately I can’t fully address your questions here as I did not assemble or process the data set.
However, in response to #2 and #3, it is known that LSAT outweighs GPA at every school, which is why the offset there is real. It’s also the case that with medians, being above or below them doesn’t matter–once you exceed the number, you are simply above/below it. It is why a 180 doesn’t mean more than a 178 to every school; statistically they work the same for them.
Equally importantly, how this works each year changes at every school. If last year our school was a little light on high GPAs but strong on LSATs, we could use reverse splitters to raise that GPA. But, what if this year it is that we are great on GPA medians but need to raise the LSAT median? Then we use splitters to do so. So conditions change yearly, which makes things unpredictable in the specific.
In the case of your Penn student, could they get in? Yes, but the chances are that there’s another splitter out there with a 175 and a 3.6 who they’d take instead. Statistically they might know that both GPAs are below the median and so don’t change things, but the actual performance in the classroom says the 3.6 outperformed the 3.37 and they will most definitely take that into account. And thus we see that while it’s possible for extreme splitters to be accepted at top schools, the competition element typically makes it less likely.
Thanks!
PowerScore Test Prep says
That has been fixed! 🙂 Thanks!
dominic says
Thanks so much for the breakdown and advice. I suppose the actionable takeaway is to send out 15-20 applications to favorable schools for big law. I’m sifting through schools on the website you linked. I’m hoping to find a breakdown that shows things like “What % of applicants attempted to enter Biglaw vs. how may made it”. Or what a schools median salary is per state( after looking I don’t think the site you linked shows this). I know some top ranked schools have low salaries, North Carolina(no.25) comes to mind. Maybe this is due to graduates staying in the area, If I had gone to such a school I’m wondering what my big law outlooks would be like.
Little update in case you’re interested: to my surprise I ended up scoring a 171 on the February LSAT while thinking I would score in the mid 160s. I scored the 171 while I felt super sluggish, unprepared, and hadn’t taken a practice test in weeks. This tells me I can squeeze out a few more points, maybe a 174+
I’m actually applying this Fall instead, and with fingers crossed I’m betting the 2022-2023 cycle is going to be much better for applicants. The “Corona stay at home and study craze” is coming to an end, and the numbers are starting to show that with LSAT scores. Also, schools had time to adapt their infrastructure to higher student bodies, and once application counts deflate they may want to maintain the elevated student counts. This would favorably shift the ratio of applicants and acceptances. I know that was a lot of theory crafting, but who knows what will happen. Maybe the Ukraine situation will inspire a surge of applicants who want to get into international politics haha.
Dave Killoran says
Hey Dominic,
Unfortunately, while the questions you ask about data are great, you won’t find that info out there. All the data at LST is drawn from the ABA 509 disclosures, which is where the law schools report all statistical info on admissions and employment. And the answers to the questions you asked are not in there :/ You will be able to see some of the state placement data, which unsurprisingly confirms that the top state for UNC grads is indeed North Carolina, with 93 of 199 UNC grads staying in-state. So, you’ll get a broad feel for outcomes, but no the specific data that you (and me as well) would love to have!
Congrats on the 171! And that’s good news on the 174+ possibility because every point counts. It will also help support the narrative that you are bright and that the GPA is more a reflection of academic explorations than of ability. And I agree with you: next cycle should be better than this one as we slowly work our way back to a more “normal” state of admissions affairs.
Good luck and please keep me posted on how things go!
Dominic says
Hi Dave, Jon,
I was considering just posting this question to reddit, but the Law School Admissions world has changed drastically in the past couple of years, and I figured you guys would be have better info.
My main goals are to maximize my employment outcomes for Big Law while staying in California–although I’m not totally opposed to leaving if the opportunity for Big Law is worth the move. I studied Biochemistry in college, so at this point I’m pretty focused on patent law although that’s subject to change as well.
Here are the current numbers: 2.95 GPA, 168 LSAT
I MAY be able to talk to my college and have two C’s changed to Pass/No Pass which would bring my CAS GPA to around 3.02. I ended up taking Differential Equations and Multivariable Calculus purely because I enjoyed them, they had no impact on whether or not I would graduate.
I also have two attempts left on the LSAT, and will realistically score around 172, no higher.
If it’s not too much to ask, what you think my options are looking like in both scenarios, [168 LSAT, 2.95 GPA] and [172 LSAT, 3.02] ? I’ll add I worked in Tech for a year where I traveled the country and worked with business professionals.
Praying my Biochem Degree will help me here. I’d really like to attend the T-20, even if it means applying to all 20 of them.
Thanks in advance
Dave Killoran says
Hi Dominic,
Thanks for the message! In your case, the two scenarios are so similar as to really not require double chancing here, and splitters also cannot be reliably chanced since the situation changes each year at each school.
The above aside, Biglaw hiring out of law school is rather hierarchical, and is reflected in the rankings. https://www.lawschooltransparency.com/reports/states allows you to burrow into California biglaw employment rates, and you can very quickly see that the top performers are the major T14 schools, followed by a mix of the T25 and the major non-T14 California schools like UCLA, USC, and UCI. So, for you it’s either to shoot into the T25, or to go to one of those other California schools and do well enough to get on the biglaw radar. UC Davis, for example, posted 18.5% of their grads into national firms (and 5.3% into clerkships, so almost a quarter of the class went into a top job).
The difficulty, as you might expect, is in your GPA. Whether it’s 2.95 or 3.02, you are below the 25th% GPA median at every school in the T125 or so (and maybe down to T150 with last year’s updates). In other words, you are already facing a steep uphill climb. And with the upward pressure from last year’s number increases, and the expected scramble by law schools to attempt to maintain last year’s numbers, it’s going to be a challenge even with a 172.
So, we know that’s the bad news. The good news is that at many of those schools your current and expected LSAT will be above the 75th% median. Using Davis again, their 75th is 164, so your score will be a help to them, and that’s a plus. And your major and patent law intentions don’t hurt either.
Overall, I personally think T20 is going to be very difficult this year for all applicants, and your GPA is really going to hurt you there, but you never know. USC runs a 3.61 GPA at the 25th and a 168 LSAT at the 75th, so if they really needed help on the LSAT side and had a real wealth of high GPAs, who knows. And that’s really the moral of the story here: chancing splitters is nearly impossible because each year the landscape changes, and the needs of individual schools are invisible to everyone during the cycle. This is why we tell splitters to apply to more schools than average in the hopes of linking up with that one school who needs what they have. That might not be a school in the T20, but as you can see from the stats, that in no way locks you out of biglaw.
Thanks!
Anna says
Hi Dave,
I’m a Business Admin Major with a focus in Business law and have a uGPA of 2.98, with my degree GPA being 3.14. I’m aiming for a 172+ LSAT score. What are my chances within the T14? I’ve been told to pepper the bottom half of the T14’s as a T6 would be super tough. Im a first gen student and URM, have legal work experience and have had an upwards trend in grades for the past year, earning me a spot on the Dean’s list. The reason that I don’t have a stellar GPA would be personal issues and taking care of someone with a mental disorder my whole life, so I’ve never really been able to focus on school and grades. I’m considering having my application professionally polished to ensure that my resume, personal statement and diversity statement are written correctly. Do I have a good chance at any T14 school. I’d really appreciate your advice, thanks!
Anna says
Scratch that- thought I was a URM, but I’m not. I’m a woman who sought religious/political asylum in the US due to being a minority in a country that I’d rather not name.
Dave Killoran says
Hi Anna,
Thanks for the message as well as the update. If you were to apply with a 172 and a 2.98, your chances at the T14 are not great. It’s not the LSAT there, but the GPA, and competition these past two cycles has been brutal.
In your shoes, and knowing your uGPA is unchangeable, I would attempt to get that LSAT score up as high as possible and hope that a school really needs a splitter to shape up their LSAT numbers. Then I’d add an addendum about the GPA and attempt to explain to them (without making excuses) why it doesn’t reflect your ability. But for now you should worry less about which schools you might get into, a focus on your SLAT results–that will have a huge effect here 🙂
Thanks!
Anna says
Thanks for the response, Dave! I appreciate the honesty. I know that I’m asking about a hypothetical score, but a 170+ is really my only option. If I were to obtain a high score, say 175, would I have a chance at a T14, T20? I know that with extreme splitter applications come waitlisted and unpredictable results. I just want to know that with a polished application and a high (hypothetical) score, would there by any way to have a decent shot? I’d also have a 2 year gap-year before entering, as I know that it’s good to put some distance between a low GPA and law school. I apologize if I’m asking the same question again or sound redundant, I’m just really anxious! Thanks.
Dave Killoran says
Hi Anna,
Every point counts at that level, and so 175 would certainly be better for your chances than 172 🙂 Again, though, it’s a matter of the specifics of the cycle, and of finding a school that is in particular need of a high LSAT score who also doesn’t care about a sub-3.0 GPA since their GPA averages would be strong enough at that point (and, to be hones, that’s not many schools at the level we are talking about, and it will come at a point later in any given cycle). I can see a T25 school taking a shot, but even with a 175 I’d rate your T14 chances as low, regrettably.
All you can do here is control what is in front of you: the LSAT. Focus all your energies on that, and then on your apps, then let’s see what happens!
Thanks!
Josh Simpson says
This is great information, thanks for putting it together! I was wondering if you had any info on the University of Louisville. No worries if not, I thought I would inquire. I was also wondering what the lowest GPA was you have seen get into law school and what the LSAT score(s) was/were that went along with it. Simply put, I did not do well in my undergrad. I got off to a really rocky start. There are a number of reasons, but mostly I just wasn’t focused. I took time off and then went back to finish my undergrad. After returning, my grades were significantly better. My university transcript shows an upward trend, but my transcript summary on my LSAC account kind of flattens that increase out (I think due to how many years I was enrolled in my undergrad).
Sorry to go off on a tangent, just wanted to provide some additional information. I am taking the upcoming LSAT and have shown (what I think to be) considerable improvement. I took the official test in 2019 and scored a 147 after just a month of studying. Since then, I buckled down and put many months of study in and my practice test scores are around 160 with a high score of 164. I’m worried that even if I match that on the official test, it just won’t be enough and this has all been for nothing, and I won’t be able to become a lawyer. I’m not sure what to do that’s within my control. Any insight you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance for your help!
Dave Killoran says
Hi Josh,
Thanks for the message! UofL is not a school I have very much specific experience with, so I waited to reply to you here in hopes I’d run into a few more applicants there this cycle and gather some more data. That has happened, but not at a high rate, so be forewarned that limited data can skew results 🙂
Let’s say you scored a 160. You’d be over their 75th percentile LSAT and firmly in they admit target group. So, get that score–or higher–and it will go a long way to erasing whatever GPA you have.
On that GPA, their 25th percentile is 3.35, and I’m assuming you are below that, and in the 2s somewhere (side note to all other readers: this is why I need actual numbers to make reliable estimates and guesses; it’s very hard to make assessments along a long scale of unknowns since 2.3 is way different than 2.9, for example!). That said, let’s say you are in the low 2s. The data out there suggests they have indeed accepted GPAs as low as 2.1 in multiple prior years. Whether that holds up this year remains to be seen, but the better you score on your LSAT, the better chance you have of being another person with a sub-25th percentile GPA who gets in. And, just to make this point: if they are your top choice, tell them so in a Why X essay. they’ll want to know that!
Thanks!
Cody says
I had a 2.86 GPA in undergrad. It’s been six year now since I graduated school and now I work at one of the big four tech companies. I got a 165 on my LSAT in June, but let’s say I retake it and get a 179/180. Do you think I would have a shot at Stanford or Berkeley?
I would write a gpa addendum as I clearly struggled in undergrad but have addressed many of the underlying reasons.
Dave Killoran says
Hi Cody,
I’ll speak honestly, but please don’t hold it against me 🙂 At those two schools, I don’t think you’d have a viable shot even with that LSAT increase. Stanford is just super elite, and their numbers are always at the top. Having any strike against you makes it tough there, but you have a sub-3.0 GPA and I think they’d see it as disqualifying–they just have too many other people applying who have no weaknesses.
At Berkeley the problem is that this is a law school well-known to emphasize GPA more than any other school in the T14. And so you are on the wrong end of the stick there.
You’d likely see some mixed success in the T10-T15 range, and then increasing success to the T20, before it would really open and you’d see a lot of acceptances at the T20 and below. Given your work history and GPA addendum, one can never say never, but it’s a very long shot at those two.
Thanks!
Cody says
Hi Dave,
Thank you so much for your honesty! I appreciate it. I’m also a queer person of color and would apply for Berkeley binding early decision. With that being said, would have greater than a super slim chance!?
Based on what you’re saying, I’m starting to think that UC Hastings might be the best fit. I really want to stay in the bay area, but I don’t have to. Would it be worth the blood, sweat, and tears of getting my score up from 165 to the high 170s in order to get more scholarship money at Hastings? This would probably require me to put off going to law school until 2022.
I could also kick butt and try to transfer to Berkeley after one year at Hastings.
Thank you!!
Cody
Dave Killoran says
Hey Cody,
Thanks for the reply and extra info–it helps! Both these factors increase your chances, so that helps. Your ED app would likely get kicked to the regular pool, but it would ride along with you as a positive from there (schools love commitment signals). If your GPA addendum was compelling enough, they might take a chance.
Either way, working on that LSAT is the surest way to get return on your investment in this whole process. Schools literally pay for increased LSAT scores, and so while it is surely a lot of time and effort to push that score up, it’s usually worth tens of thousands of dollars in financial offers. Sounds like a winner, right? Well, not if it pushes you back an entire year. At that point, there’s real questions about the most financially beneficial route (although in your case, if you keep your tech job while studying it may be an easier decision for you).
As far as transferring, my guidelines there is: don’t attend a school unless you’d be happy graduating. Yes, transferring is an option, but law school can be an unusual and challenging environment, and if things don’t go well you want to be happy with your degree. That aside, check the 509 Report from Berkeley for this year:
43 Transfers in, 11 from Hastings
That’s not bad! So, that is a totally viable route here.
I’d weigh the time needed for that LSAT score vs the extra year, and then whether you’d be happy if you ended up graduating from Hastings. The higher LSAT score would financially pay for itself, but the extra year might be too high a life cost for you.
If you don’t mind, please keep me posted on what you decide to do. I’m interested!
Thanks!
Sarah says
Hi, I’ve seen your helpful responses for splitters. I just wanted to know how a 3.3/3.4 Science major with a 173/174 would be in regards to the Top 10/Top 5 schools. I also have an addendum explaining the unexpected loss of my father from cancer at the start of my program. How are splitters who’ve had loss/family barriers considered, is there a difference in the outcome. Lastly how is a low gpa analyzed if the applicant also has a Masters (Urban Planning + Public Health) from the same undergraduate program (UCLA). Greatly appreciate your insight and assistance!
PowerScore Test Prep says
Hi Sarah,
Thank you for your comment! We would encourage you to utilize one of our favorite resources for researching data on nearly all of the ABA-approved schools in North America: LSAC’s LSAT/GPA Calculator. This tool allows you to input your undergraduate GPA and your highest LSAT score and get feedback on where each stands relative to attendees at individual schools, as well as your likely odds of duplicating that result on those figures.
The higher your numbers are above the 75th percentile, your chances are (numerically speaking) high. At that point, your job is to make sure your softs (personal statement, résumé, letters of recommendation, any addenda and supplemental essays) are good enough that they don’t hinder you. Also, how your addendum will be interpreted will vary from law school to law school, but we would encourage you to view our blog What’s the Deal with Addenda? to ensure that your addendum is effective. We also offer Law School Admissions consulting and you can find more about our packages here: https://www.powerscore.com/lsat/law-school-admissions/.
When it comes to the primary GPA that law schools look at, it’s your undergrad GPA. A grad GPA is nice, but it doesn’t replace or get combined with the UGPA. Please note that a low UGPA will not be boosted by a high grad GPA and a low grad GPA won’t bring down a high UGPA. However, although generally speaking a high grad school or professional school GPA will not really strengthen a low UGPA, we do believe that it can soften the blow a bit (in some cases). A high graduate school GPA can also show law schools that you can handle work at the graduate level, even if you didn’t perform so well in college.
Also worth noting, we believe that, unlike your undergraduate GPA, it does matter where you got your graduate degree. It also matters how you performed in it. Graduate schools are often considered to be lenient graders, meaning everyone does at least somewhat well. So, if you’ve got a smattering of Cs, Ds, or Fs, it will look even worse than it normally would. Another important factor is what your degree is in. The more prestigious the university (and the better regarded the graduate program is within that university), the better. Those with graduate degrees from lesser-known or less well-regarded institutions may not really reap the benefits they’re looking for during the law school admissions process.
Thank you!
Bobby says
Hi Dave, I graduated with a 3.0 GPA but I haven’t taken the LSAT yet. If I’m able to score 179 or 180 what will my options be?
PowerScore Test Prep says
Hi Bobby!
Thanks for the question! We would encourage you to utilize one of our favorite resources for researching data on nearly all of the ABA-approved schools in North America: LSAC’s LSAT/GPA Calculator. This tool allows you to input your undergraduate GPA and your highest LSAT score (or the score you’re realistically aiming for), and get feedback on where each stands relative to attendees at individual schools, as well as your likely odds of duplicating that result on those figures.
If your numbers are at or above the 75th percentile, your chances are (numerically-speaking) high. At that point, your job is to make sure your softs (personal statement, résumé, letters of recommendation, any addenda and supplemental essays) are good enough that they don’t hinder you.
Thank you!
Katherine says
Hello! I have a question concerning my GPA… so it’s my last semester as a BA Public Health at UHawaii. But as of right now my overall GPA (on a 4.0 scale) is around 3.0-3.2, trying to balance 3 jobs, clubs, and school didn’t really work in my favor. But, I’m planning to take my LSAT sometime in Fall. On my mock LSAT I scored a 172. I’m hoping to improve that score by going to a live LSAT prep course. Also I’m hoping to raise my GPA my last semester since I am only taking easy classes.
Is there a chance to get into any Law schools in California? I am also wondering if you have any stats for University of Hawaii at Manoa as well for splitters? I interned for their MLP program and I enjoyed it a lot.
Dave Killoran says
Hi Katherine,
Thanks for the message! We don’t have stats for all schools because in many cases, the enrollment information we had wasn’t enough to draw a viable sample from. So, for UH, I’d talk to them directly about your situation. You would be surprised at how helpful law school staff can be when talking to prospective students, especially ones they know are serious about the school. However, looking over their recent stats, the good news is that at 3.0 and 170 you’d be a near-lock for UH 🙂
As far as California, there are many, many options there. Places like Golden Gate, Hastings, Loyoloa Marymount, Pepperdine, San Diego, Santa Clara, and Southwestern would all be schools where you would be overwhelmingly likely to get in. At schools like Irvine and Davis you would have a middling chance, and at Berkeley, Stanford, USC, and UCLA you would be a longshot. It really depends on the school and the nature of the applicant pool that year. Either way, you’d have plenty of options!
Keep working on that GPA and lock that LSAT score in the 170s–that’s the real key to success here! High LSAT scores are valued more than high GPAs, so that’s your ticket as far as admissions success.
Thanks and good luck!
Jen says
I noticed that the content of this article is a near exact copy of the one on this blog from 2013, but with updated charts:
http://admissionsbythenumbers.blogspot.com/2013/07/which-schools-are-splitter-friendly-non.html
Unless the blog author gave permission for Powerscore to repost their work without credit, I think a link to the original article would be nice.
Dave Killoran says
Hi Jen,
Thanks for the message! These articles are actually different (look at the numbers in the tables), but even so, you may have missed that the author of that article is the same person who wrote this article 🙂 That’s why all the comments are addressed to “Daniel.” We saw that original article, contacted him and asked him to write updated versions for our site, and then compensated him for this updated article and others! We would never take credit for someone else’s work, and this is all above board, and we own this content 100% 🙂
Thanks!