For Students Entering University of Wisconsin Law School in September 2005 and thereafter.

Letter Grades

Students who entered the University of Wisconsin Law School in September 2005 or thereafter receive letter grades for most law school courses. The grading scale ranges from A+ to F. For purposes of calculating student grade point averages, letter grades are converted to numerical equivalents according to the following conversion table:

 

Grades of S or U 

In the following courses, the instructor may elect to give a grade of S (Satisfactory) or U (Unsatisfactory) in lieu of letter grades: Trial Advocacy; Appellate Advocacy; Lawyering Skills; Advanced Legal Writing; and seminars in which the enrollment is less than 20 students and the principal basis for the grade is a paper or class presentation.

Grades of S or U must be given in lieu of letter grades for Law Journal, Moot Court, Directed Reading and Directed Research.  Clinical courses are graded on the basis of S+, S, S-, and U. S+ can be awarded to no more than 15% of the students in each clinical program. Grades of S, S+, S- and U are not taken into account in computing a student's GPA.

For information on grading systems prior to 2005, contact the Law School Registrar at registrar@law.wisc.edu.

 

COVID-19 Disruption Policy 

The Law School adopted a comprehensive pass-fail policy for the Spring 2020 semester due to the COVID-19 disruption. Under the policy, most courses which would have had regular letter grades but for the disruption used the following grades instead: Satisfactory-Disruption ("SD") or Unsatisfactory-Disruption ("UD"). Note: Trusts & Estates I from Spring 2020 was excluded from the policy, because the course ended prior to COVID-19 disrupting campus operations.

 

Standing

The Law School does not make available students' class rank (except to assist those seeking highly competitive judicial clerkships and fellowships). Instead, we provide tables relating grade averages to approximate position in the class. The tables are re-calculated after each Fall and Spring semester. See the table below.

The following table was produced on June 4, 2024, incorporating the new Law School Rule 2.07 Average Grade policy consistent with Law School Rule 2.02 Class Standing. The columns are divided based on total credits completed, not just on letter-graded credits. Include transferred credits and classes for which you've received credit towards your JD degree in total credits. 

NOTE: If a GPA is the same for more than one % bands, use the highest rank available. For example, in the 18-33 credits column, the 2% and 3% bands are the same GPA (3.99) so those students with a GPA of 3.99 and above may report that they are in the top 2%.

If you are a student who has any question concerning how to express your class rank in any application materials, please contact the Office of Career and Professional Development. 

Standing	0-17 Credits	18-33 Credits	34-45 Credits	46-60 Credits	60-79 Credits	80+ Credits
TOP	4.16	4.19	4.06	4.06	4.02	4.03
5%	3.94	3.91	3.91	3.92	3.9	3.83
10%	3.86	3.86	3.85	3.79	3.85	3.77
15%	3.78	3.77	3.75	3.72	3.75	3.69
20%	3.7	3.68	3.71	3.67	3.69	3.6
25%	3.63	3.63	3.65	3.59	3.61	3.55
30%	3.59	3.57	3.57	3.55	3.56	3.49
35%	3.51	3.53	3.52	3.5	3.51	3.43
40%	3.43	3.48	3.43	3.46	3.48	3.38
45%	3.41	3.41	3.38	3.41	3.44	3.29
50%	3.35	3.38	3.32	3.36	3.41	3.24

  

Top 10%

Standing	0-17 Credits	18-33 Credits	34-45 Credits	46-60 Credits	60-79 Credits	80+ Credits
TOP	4.16	4.19	4.06	4.06	4.02	4.03
1%	4.08	4.04	4.06	4.06	4.02	4
2%	4.08	4	4.02	4.02	4.01	3.94
3%	4	3.98	3.96	3.97	3.95	3.91
4%	3.98	3.96	3.92	3.95	3.94	3.87
5%	3.94	3.91	3.91	3.92	3.9	3.83
6%	3.92	3.9	3.9	3.91	3.9	3.81
7%	3.92	3.89	3.87	3.89	3.89	3.8
8%	3.9	3.87	3.87	3.87	3.87	3.79
9%	3.86	3.87	3.86	3.85	3.86	3.79
10%	3.86	3.86	3.85	3.79	3.85	3.77