Should You Put Your GPA on Your Resume

You should put your GPA on your resume when it is strong and you are early in your career, and skip it when the number is low or experience now leads. Weigh the benefit of showing academic strength against the space it uses. For law school, admissions read the LSAC-recalculated GPA, not the resume figure.

By Ali Unar, Founder, Lovare Institut; JD/MSFS Candidate, Georgetown University. Last updated August 2026. Every figure on this page was verified in August 2026 against the sources listed below.

Should you include your GPA on your resume?

Include your GPA when it is a genuine strength and you are a student or recent graduate; otherwise leave it off. A resume is a marketing document, so every line should earn its place, and a strong GPA earns it while a weak one usually does not. GPA is optional, and omitting it is common and unremarkable.

Pros and cons of listing your GPA

Weigh the trade-off directly before deciding.

• Pro: a strong GPA signals diligence when you have limited work experience.
• Pro: some employers, scholarships, and programs expect or request it.
• Con: a modest GPA can distract from stronger parts of your resume.
• Con: for experienced candidates it occupies space that results should fill.

Does your field or stage change the answer?

Career stage matters more than field. Recent graduates in most fields benefit from listing a solid GPA, while seasoned professionals rarely gain from it regardless of industry. Some competitive early-career tracks in finance, consulting, and similar fields do weight GPA more heavily, so include a strong number where it is expected.

What to do instead when your GPA is low

When your GPA is low, replace it with evidence that carries more weight: internships, projects, leadership, and measurable results. A labeled major GPA can substitute when it is honestly higher. For law school, remember that admissions use the LSAC-recalculated GPA, so strengthening your LSAT and the rest of your file often does more than any resume choice.

Frequently asked questions

Does pass/fail affect GPA?

Usually not. A Pass has no grade points, so a pass/fail course leaves the GPA you would put on a resume unchanged. The course still appears on your transcript, and for law school LSAC follows its own rules, generally excluding a plain Pass from the recalculated undergraduate GPA.

How does LSAC calculate GPA?

LSAC recalculates your undergraduate GPA through the Credential Assembly Service, converting all graded work to a standard 4.0 scale and including failed and repeated courses. That figure can differ from your resume or transcript GPA, and it is the number law schools compare to their published medians in admissions.

What GPA do you need for law school?

There is no single required GPA; competitiveness depends on each school's medians. Meeting or beating a target school's median makes you competitive, and a resume GPA is separate from the LSAC-recalculated figure admissions use. Plan around the recalculated number and support it with a strong LSAT.

Does listing GPA help or hurt an experienced candidate?

For an experienced candidate, listing a GPA usually neither helps much nor is expected, and a years-old grade average can crowd out stronger evidence like results and promotions. Most professionals with a solid track record leave it off. Include it only if a specific employer or program requests it.