Addendum?

[jrb0911]

Good morning:
I graduated with my undergraduate degree in 2010 and received a 3.49 GPA. During my freshman year of college, I received a "D" in Chemistry and retook the course the following semester and received an "A" in which the lower grade was "replaced." The lower grade for the course does show up on my transcript; however, is not factored into my GPA. Should I develop an addendum to explain this grade? The rest of my grades are all As and Bs. In addition, after completing my undergraduate degree, I completed 5 non-degree courses at the local community college. One of the courses, I decided to drop; however, upon obtaining my transcript last month, this course was still listed on my transcript as an "F." I discovered that I did not correctly drop the course. In all of the other courses I received As. Although this does not factor into my GPA, should I still develop an addendum for this? Any insight is appreciated.
Thanks!!

[Nikki Siclunov]

Hi jrb0911,

Thanks for your questions. The answer, unfortunately, is YES on both counts. If the D and the F show up on your transcript, then the LSAC will most likely factor them in as 1.0 and 0.0, respectively, when calculating your UGPA. The fact that these grades are not factored in your college-issued GPA does not matter: your UGPA is not necessarily the same as your GPA.

The LSAC policies related to transcript summarization can be accessed here:

http://www.lsac.org/aboutlsac/policies/ ... marization

Here's what you should do: first, work with your Registrar's office to try and have these grades removed. If they refuse, have your school send in your transcript to LSAC, and then check to see how they interpreted your grades. If they factor them in the manner in which I suspect they will, then write an addendum explaining both grades. It would also help if someone at your school (an administrator, a dean, etc.) corroborates your story and explains the circumstances that led you to receive these grades.

Let me know if this answers your question.

Thanks!

[Dave Killoran]

Let me weigh in with the unhappy news that if the grade appears on the transcript, it will be included in your GPA by LSAC. I've dealt with this frustrating policy for years, and it's ironclad: grades on the transcript are automatically factored in. This is so despite the fact that you retook the course and received a higher grade (that gets factored too, at least). This leads to an outcome where your college-reported UGPA is one thing, and LSAC says it's another.

You can't fight LSAC on this, so Nikki is spot on with his advice to approach the registrar at your school. Perhaps you can appeal the inclusion of the grade and have it removed.

I also agree that you should include the addendum.

Good luck!

[jrb0911]

Hi again:
I have already developed an addendum so this information helps. To my understanding, courses that are completed after you complete your undergraduate degree are not factored into your UGPA. Is that not correct? I know that the schools will be able to see the transcript but I was under the impression that those grades would not be calculated.
Thanks!!

[Dave Killoran]

Yes, that is correct. I didn't see that the F came in after your undergrad (my error, I mostly focused on Nikki's comments in my reply), so that won't be in your UGPA. That's good news! The D will still be factored as it was from freshman year.

Thanks!