Transcript conversion woes

[Venetia]

This rant/question is addressed to applicants from British/Irish universities and international students who had to get their transcripts 'converted' by a credential company. One of my schools asked me to use a credential company to convert my transcripts from a UK (undergraduate) and an Irish (graduate) university into the US GPA system. It was a long expensive process which I won't get into here, but it was completed and the conversion sent to the school requesting it.

Today I got my copy of their analysis through the post (I live abroad, so it took a while to get here), and had a major freak-out. Their conclusions are significantly lower than what I expected! I don't think I'm being big-headed here; I was near the top of my graduating class, and the results they've given me place me more in the middle (in the low 3.0 range). I've sent them an email asking them to explain their process, but I really don't think much will change, seeing as they're the experts and I'm somewhat biased. So I'm really bummed.

I'm wondering if anyone else had this problem with transcript conversion, and did they manage to find a solution? And to those aware of the UK system- I had a high 2.1, and they've translated it as a 3.0. Am I wrong in thinking this is a little low?

There. Rant over. Sorry, it got a little long...at the moment I'm just thanking God that I only sent this thing off to one school. For a while I was considering sending it to all of them!

[tem11]

I'd agree that a 3.0 is fairly low for a high 2.1. I would imagine it would be around a 3.4-3.6. I hope everything works out!

[alexis]

I'd agree that a 3.0 is fairly low for a high 2.1. I would imagine it would be around a 3.4-3.6. I hope everything works out!

Agreed- from what I understand, a 2:1 would be translated to about a 3.5. Closer to 3.0 is way off. I could see that maybe if it was a really low 2:1, but definitely not a high 2:1.

I'm kind of surprised you have to get your transcript converted, I thought US universities were generally familiar with the British grading system, and since everything is already in English, it just really isn't necessary. UK schools also usually send an explanation for international students which explains their grading.

Maybe you can try using another company and send those to your programs as well? Although it sounds like an expensive process, which is unfortunate. I never had to convert my UK transcripts so unfortunately I don't know much about it. It just seems really weird to me that the faculty will see your transcript, see that you got, say, a 68 in a course, and have NO IDEA what that means and actually think that is a 3.0.

Edited January 17, 2010 by alexis

[Rory]

Exact same thing happened to me. High 2.1 translated to a B. I asked my department if they had a UK/US conversion table, which they did. For my department (maybe its different for others), my 2.1 was, according to them, a US A-minus. For the schools that required the formal grade conversion, I sent in a separate note explaining the grading system of my department specifically, and the names and contact info for my advisors who could attest that my GPA was more of an A- than a B. We will see how well that works out.

[Ziz]

I was always under the impression that a mid-2:1 was 3.5, a high 2:1 was a 3.7 and a first was 3.8+.

I have no idea how to convert mine either, but I wasn't asked to do it. I'm from a Canadian undergrad that uses percentages but those percentages are lower than the US ones, but not as low as the UK. I'm afraid the US schools are going to use their conversion tables and I'll end up with a GPA that puts me in the middle too, when really I was top 10% at least.

[Venetia]

Wow, thanks for all the quick responses! I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking this is fishy, and the fact that others have had similar experiences is somewhat troubling- it's such an expensive process, and they are professionals, so you'd think it would go smoothly. To be fair, everyone I've spoken to on the phone has been nothing but friendly and helpful.

@alexis- none of my other schools needed conversions, so it is unusual. Also, my undergrad transcript comes with a guide to converting the marks, and they put me at almost a 3.7! So hopefully my school will look at that as well as this official report. I was thinking of getting another company to do it too, but it takes ages unless you put in a rush order (which I did the first time), and that gets very expensive very quickly. Also, it's so late in the game I doubt it would help.

@rory- that was a good idea on your part to send a note along with it- in my case, one of the universities has already told me they have no clue about translation, and I think to send them a note at this late point would make me sound like a bit of a whiner .

@ziz- I wish you were doing the conversions! I would love a 3.7 !

I hope the adcoms take all of our situations into account- I think they will, seeing as they get so many international applications. Fingers crossed!

[a fragrant plant]

I earned 68% for most of my courses in the UK (postgraduate). Based on the conversion table provided by the University of Chicago my US GPA is 3.6+. I believe that other universities will use a more-or-less similar scale. To me a 2:1 should be between 3.4-3.6. I can confidently say that this credential company is not very reliable.

Instead of paying for another credential company, I'd suggest you contact this university to see if they have a UK/US conversion chart in its admission office. You can convert your grade based on the information they give you. That way you know for sure.

Edited January 17, 2010 by peanuttheanthro

[Venetia]

@peanuttheanthro- I checked with the university initially and they were the ones that demanded to conversion; they even recommended the company! So I will give them a call, but I get the impression that they don't have a conversion guide...

[pangur-ban]

It might also be worth noting that the cut-off for admission to graduate school in the UK seems to be a 2.2 frequently, and the cut-off GPA in the US seems to be 3.0, so it might make sense to equate the two. I second the above posters that a high 2.1 should be in the neighbourhood of a 3.5 or so.

[tem11]

Shame you have to go through this, as this company is really not giving you an appropriate score. As someone else mentioned, my UK transcript was supplemented with a conversion chart.

[Deleted]

I completely understand your problem. I have transcripts from two countries, non being the UK and the rule of thumb for grading is that the grades' distribution should be pretty much a gaussian. I have the feeling that this is not at all the case in the US where more than a third of the students get an A at a given exam. Plus, in the UK, you would get a C with 50% while it would be a D in the US, 60% would be a B in the UK but a C in the US... So it is really frustrating when you have like yourself in the high 60s% = B in the UK which would have been an A in US grading.

I hope adcoms take this into account

[Tam]

Ormalv, you're a little off in your US grading numbers. In general the correspondence with grades goes like this:

90-100: A (4 pts)

80-90: B (3 pts)

70-79: C (2 pts)

60-69: D (1 pt)

< 60: F (0 pts)

Some schools have plusses and minuses as well.

[Deleted]

Ormalv, you're a little off in your US grading numbers. In general the correspondence with grades goes like this:

90-100: A (4 pts)

80-90: B (3 pts)

70-79: C (2 pts)

60-69: D (1 pt)

< 60: F (0 pts)

Some schools have plusses and minuses as well.

Ok, sorry about that. However, that means that a grade which would give you a B in the UK (60-69) and which would considered an acceptable score there (2:1) would be converted into a D in the US...

[Deleted]

sorry, I double posted

Edited January 19, 2010 by ORmalv

[Tam]

Right, yes, it's even worse than you thought. But, the OP's unfortunate experience aside, hopefully most people in a position to be comparing grades are aware of this.

[Deleted]

Right, yes, it's even worse than you thought. But, the OP's unfortunate experience aside, hopefully most people in a position to be comparing grades are aware of this.

I think you must be right, they have have years of experience with the process and a pretty big set of past applicants and students to be able to correctly assess most countries' specificities. It is still very frustrating and cause of unnecessary anxiety for international students. And God knows grad school applicants really don't need any added anxiety.