A method is disclosed for enhancing downlink link adaptation (DLLA) for spectral efficiency maximization, comprising: providing an outer loop link adaptation (OLLA) routine with a first path for a first transmission mode and a second path for a second transmission mode; modifying, upon receiving a retransmit message for a first transmission with the first transmission mode, a first offset coefficient; modifying, upon receiving a second retransmit message for a second transmission with the second transmission mode, a second offset coefficient; and calculating a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) offset for the first transmission based on the first offset coefficient.