International student or not an international student?

mikesben

Hello everyone!

I'm student born with an American passport, grew up outside of the United States, and attended an accredited University outside of North America which offered courses in English(had a faculty that taught courses in English which I was enrolled in). Will I count as an international student in my application for law school? Also, is it true that my GPA will have little bearing on my evaluation for admission? I hear GPA is weighted much less heavily for international students, and that a third party institution 'translates' scores before sending them to lsac. I'm not sure about this so I would appreciate if someone could confirm!

Any input would be greatly appreciated!

mikesben

and just to clarify, I still have my American passport!

cheers!

Relentless

Hi there, I don't think your passport will have a bearing - You will need to send your transcripts to LSAC. They will translate the scores to an American standard and give you a rating. So, yes you will count as an international applicant for law school as you don't have an American GPA.

Your passport will be useful when you look for jobs post JD - Assuming you have plans to find a job in the US after your studies.

Selene Steelman

Former admissions officer here. For admissions purposes, you will be considered an international candidate because you received your undergraduate degree from an institution outside the US. Your academic credentials will be evaluated by LSAC but your grades will not be converted to a 4.0 scale and your cumulative GPA will not be incorporated in the law school's GPA numbers for ranking and reporting purposes. Your LSAT score will be included. The admissions committee will still look at your academic performance to determine your potential to succeed in the classroom amongst your colleagues. Good luck!