Compiling the Undergraduate Academic Record
The Ontario law schools receive applications from applicants who attended universities with various grading systems. The admission committees at the law schools attempt to give each applicant equal consideration.
OLSAS uses the Undergraduate Grade Conversion Table to compile academic records in a uniform manner and equate the various grading systems.
We include only university undergraduate credit courses from Canadian and American universities in the OLSAS grade point average (GPA). We usually do not include diploma or certificate programs.
Calculating Your GPA
OLSAS uses a 4.0 scale. We will convert your grades using the Undergraduate Grade Conversion Table and the scale noted for your university in the table. Do not attempt to reconcile alpha grades to any of the percentage scales.
The law schools equate university work based on the Ontario traditional academic year system. For universities operating in the semester system, 2 semesters are combined as the equivalent of an academic year (i.e., semesters 1 and 2 are combined for first year; semesters 3 and 4 for second year). Co-op semesters are grouped similarly.
Each law school may use a different GPA than OLSAS calculates in the undergraduate academic record, based on its own admission criteria. Refer to each law school’s requirements in the OLSAS Application Guide for more information.
We include the following in GPA calculations:
- Where both letter and percentage grades are reported on the transcript, we will use the percentage grade, with the exception of the University of British Columbia, where we will use letter grades.
- All courses and marks, including failed, incomplete, repeated and supplementary courses, and courses extra to degree requirements.
We do not include the following in GPA calculations:
- “Challenge for credit” courses.
- Courses a specific grade is not given for (e.g., a “Pass” grade).
We process grades from countries other than Canada and the US as non-convertible. We will forward the transcript to the law schools you applied to for evaluation.
Full courses are given a weight of 2. Half courses are given a weight of 1.
Calculating the Cumulative Average
We calculate the cumulative average by adding all the course lengths and converted grades and dividing the total course lengths into the total OLSAS values from the conversion table.
Note: The cumulative average is not an “average of the averages”.
Verifying the Application Data
Beginning in December, you will have access to your OLSAS GPA calculation in the Document Tracking section of your application.
You are responsible for reporting any required changes to your academic record to OLSAS.
Communicate any questions or concerns about your GPA to OLSAS via Secure Applicant Messaging (SAM), within your application.
Course Durations
- Duration F – Used when you have the equivalent of a minimum of 3 full-time courses or 6 half courses. Two consecutive semesters are grouped together as “full time”.
- Duration H – Used for attendance in a single semester, a minimum of 3 half courses is required.
- Duration S – Used to group all courses taken as part-time, summer school and/or intersession in a particular calendar year.
Providing Transcripts for Graduate Studies
Each law school uses its own admission criteria to review and assess applicants’ academic records for graduate study.
For more information, refer to the requirements section for each law school in the OLSAS application or contact the law schools directly.
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