USC vs Ride Out T14 WL vs Retake/Reapply *UPDATED* Forum

[str8yolked]

The schools you are considering
USC - COA ~150K

WL/Held at UVA, NU, Michigan, UCLA.
Still haven't heard from NYU.

How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
I'm extremely fortunate that my parents have saved money to pay for my education and have explicitly stated that I do not need to pay them back.

Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
No ties to anywhere. Would like to work in DC = Cali = Asia > NYU = Chicago

Your general career goals
Biglaw in any of the above stated places.

Your LSAT/GPA numbers
I'm a super splitter with a 2.X/17X and have taken the LSAT 3 times.

Going to ride out all the WLs. Right now leaning towards USC for CA biglaw/Asia.
Thanks!

Edit: Did I underperform for my numbers?

Edit 2: I will be able to be to retake the Oct 2014 exam and have it count (Oct 2012 was the first LSAT I took). Also, I have not graduated yet and can potentially raise my GPA above 3.0 if I take an extra year of school. Would getting my GPA above 3.0 make a world of difference? If I get off a T14 WL, should I take it or reapply next year?

[El Principe]

I mean if you really want Cali, USC.

However, I'll say retake. And I say that as generally the last person to suggest retake, but UCLA, UC Berkeley and Stanford all have better biglaw numbers.

Texas is a good price, but not for what you want.
Forget WUSTL.
Why did you apply to UMN with these goals?
Vandy is WAY too expensive.

But if I was blessed enough to be able to have my education paid off by my parents w/o having to pay back, I'd at least make sure I'd get my money's worth.

TL;DR: Retake >>>> USC/UCLA >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> everything else.

EDIT: I never catch those "I took the LSAT thrice" disclaimers, so in that case, USC. Be prepared to hit the floor running because I think they're around 35% big law/fedclerk.

[McAvoy]

Couple things:

- Were you recently cloned in a lab somewhere? You must have *some* ties to a region?
- So your parents will pay for your entire COA regardless of where you go?

If #2 is the case, it comes down to what region you want to work in, as these are all regional schools.

If you want to live in California, then obviously pick USC. If you don't want to live in Minnesota, don't go there. If you don't want to live in the Midwest or the South, don't go to WUSTL or Vandy. If you don't want to live in Texas, don't go to UT.

Where is GTown on this list? If you got in Vandy and Texas, you should have had a good shot there. If your parents have a crapton of money and you want to live in DC, that seems like a perfect situation for you. If you're in the top ~20% at Vandy or UT, you have a pretty decent shot at DC, but it's not worth that risk, and Vandy is not worth that money (even if it's free money).

[str8yolked]

Why did you apply to UMN with these goals?

I blanketed the T20.

Couple things:

- Were you recently cloned in a lab somewhere? You must have *some* ties to a region?

- So your parents will pay for your entire COA regardless of where you go?

Where is GTown on this list?

I'm an international (Canadian) student so no ties to anywhere in the US.

Parents are paying for the entire COA regardless of where I go, but I want to save them as much as possible. If I get biglaw then I will probably pay them back over the years, but they aren't expecting me to.

Rejected at GTown

[Winston1984]

Why is anyone voting UT? He has it paid for and wants California. USC hands down. Ride those waitlists though, especially since your folks are footing the bill.

[McAvoy]

Why did you apply to UMN with these goals?

I blanketed the T20.

Couple things:

- Were you recently cloned in a lab somewhere? You must have *some* ties to a region?

- So your parents will pay for your entire COA regardless of where you go?

Where is GTown on this list?

I'm an international (Canadian) student so no ties to anywhere in the US.

Parents are paying for the entire COA regardless of where I go, but I want to save them as much as possible. If I get biglaw then I will probably pay them back over the years, but they aren't expecting me to.

Rejected at GTown

Sorry to hear about GTown; condolences.

Have you ever been to Minnesota? Assuming the cold doesn't bother you as a Canadian, Minneapolis is a fantastic place to live. Will you get "biglaw"? No, but small/midlaw is a better gig in the Midwest, and COL is cheap as shit. If you truly want to save your parents some coin, it's not a bad option to look at, 'cause that's not a very appealing price for USC.

[str8yolked]

Why did you apply to UMN with these goals?

I blanketed the T20.

Couple things:

- Were you recently cloned in a lab somewhere? You must have *some* ties to a region?

- So your parents will pay for your entire COA regardless of where you go?

Where is GTown on this list?

I'm an international (Canadian) student so no ties to anywhere in the US.

Parents are paying for the entire COA regardless of where I go, but I want to save them as much as possible. If I get biglaw then I will probably pay them back over the years, but they aren't expecting me to.

Rejected at GTown

Sorry to hear about GTown; condolences.

Have you ever been to Minnesota? Assuming the cold doesn't bother you as a Canadian, Minneapolis is a fantastic place to live. Will you get "biglaw"? No, but small/midlaw is a better gig in the Midwest, and COL is cheap as shit. If you truly want to save your parents some coin, it's not a bad option to look at, 'cause that's not a very appealing price for USC.

I definitely don't want to live in Minnesota so I guess that rules out UMN.

Do you guys think I underperformed this cycle?

[McAvoy]

Maybe. Was it a 2.0 or a 2.9?

Really, you have hit the biological jackpot in life. You got the raw intelligence to get a 170, and you were born to loaded, generous parents. Do whatever the hell you want, you can't make a "bad" decision here.

[str8yolked]

Maybe. Was it a 2.0 or a 2.9?

Really, you have hit the biological jackpot in life. You got the raw intelligence to get a 170, and you were born to loaded, generous parents. Do whatever the hell you want, you can't make a "bad" decision here.

Around 2.9. Would you suggest taking an extra year of school to get my GPA above 3.0 and also retaking (I updated the OP)?

[McAvoy]

Assuming you're a senior (or maybe a fifth-year senior if you took the LSAT two years ago), there are pretty diminishing returns for you to take another year to game your GPA (when it's low & not URM). You're going to be well below everywhere's 25 no matter what you do. If your LSAT is a 170 or 171, then maybe a bump into the 175 range would help.

If you're unhappy with USC, I would take off the cycle, retake, graduate and get some work experience. Then ED to GTown, and if they hold you then ED to UVA, then samsies to Duke. EDing to one of these is expensive as shit, but you can afford it, and any will get you DC, and their respective ED timelines give you a shot at each.

[str8yolked]

Assuming you're a senior (or maybe a fifth-year senior if you took the LSAT two years ago), there are pretty diminishing returns for you to take another year to game your GPA (when it's low & not URM). You're going to be well below everywhere's 25 no matter what you do. If your LSAT is a 170 or 171, then maybe a bump into the 175 range would help.

If you're unhappy with USC, I would take off the cycle, retake, graduate and get some work experience. Then ED to GTown, and if they hold you then ED to UVA, then samsies to Duke. EDing to one of these is expensive as shit, but you can afford it, and any will get you DC, and their respective ED timelines give you a shot at each.

I think I'm going to retake. Even though my parents are paying for my education I'd like to save them as much as possible.

You think a years worth of WE > getting my GPA above 3.0?

[McAvoy]

Assuming you're a senior (or maybe a fifth-year senior if you took the LSAT two years ago), there are pretty diminishing returns for you to take another year to game your GPA (when it's low & not URM). You're going to be well below everywhere's 25 no matter what you do. If your LSAT is a 170 or 171, then maybe a bump into the 175 range would help.

If you're unhappy with USC, I would take off the cycle, retake, graduate and get some work experience. Then ED to GTown, and if they hold you then ED to UVA, then samsies to Duke. EDing to one of these is expensive as shit, but you can afford it, and any will get you DC, and their respective ED timelines give you a shot at each.

I think I'm going to retake. Even though my parents are paying for my education I'd like to save them as much as possible.

You think a years worth of WE > getting my GPA above 3.0?

For life and for getting a job out of law school? Definitely. For getting into law school? Probably a crapshoot. Also note that, if saving your parents money is key, you are almost certainly not going to get a *good* scholarship at a T14, even if you get a 180 on retake. You typically have to be above both medians for that to happen. If saving them money is really important, then the list of schools in front of you won't be much different next year, nor will the scholarship levels. Good luck!

Also... You could always, like, have them pay half and take out loans for the other half, if you really wanted to save them money.