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Taking a year off is always a good idea. Working as a legal aid will give you some experience and perspective on whether a career in law is right for you.

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Apply this year and be sure to include your public interest experience in your PS. CUNY values "softs" more than you think.

If you want to go to CUNY and have already taken the LSAT, then I don't see the harm in applying this year. Send in an app, and if you get in then go. And if not, take the year off to work and study for the LSAT, and aim on going next year.

Basically there's no harm in applying this year if that's where you know you want to eventually go.

wait it out a year. retake to get some scholarship money. But most importantly spend your year networking in the community you want to work in. Use your job as a legal aid to meet lawyers, have lunch with them, develop relationships. I cannot emphasize this enough. Remember you're not doing it to get jobs but to get to know people and allow people to get to know you. You'll be floored at how willing most lawyers are to go to bat for someone they know. Come job time in law school you'll be miles ahead of most of your class because of this.

Wait, work, retake. GL!

dr123 wrote:Well, I graduated in winter '09 so I've been out of school for a bit now that's one of the reasons why I want to apply this cycle

If you haven't done anything especially interesting/productive in the interim, this might actually be more of a reason to wait it out than to rush ahead. You've already got a gap, but do you have something worth mentioning to fill it with? If not, the relevant work experience definitely can't hurt.

TLSanders wrote:

dr123 wrote:Well, I graduated in winter '09 so I've been out of school for a bit now that's one of the reasons why I want to apply this cycle

If you haven't done anything especially interesting/productive in the interim, this might actually be more of a reason to wait it out than to rush ahead. You've already got a gap, but do you have something worth mentioning to fill it with? If not, the relevant work experience definitely can't hurt.

I am starting a job on tuesday as a legal aid at non prof that provides legal rep to the disadvantaged and I used to work at an environmental non profit. I'm thinking it will give me a good idea of what the field I want to go into is really (pub interest) and look good on an app, esp to CUNY, no? Anyways I'm pretty much set on retaking and applying next cycle, it's too late now and I feel if I have a head start and send out my apps the day they post on LSAC I'll be in much better shape

EDIT: I was wondering if anyone knows if it is difficult to get a job outside of PI from CUNY? I am about 90% sure PI work is what I want to do, but things change as you get older and I want to have some degree of flexibility

If you want degree flexibility outside PI, allow me to be the first of many to suggest you look elsewhere from CUNY.

If you have the option to wait a year AND get legal experience AND boost your LSAT score - take it! Seriously, you don't want to go to CUNY, not w/o a full ride scholarship.

I didn't start LS until I was 26. There are quite a few people older than me in my class. Take the year, get WE and work on that LSAT.

Yea I figure it's for the best and since my job is through americorps I'll have around 10k towards school if I wait to apply

Instead of going to a school with a PI focus, would it perhaps be better to go for a JD/MPA program. (Like I said I'm damn near positive PI/Non-prof work is what I want to do, but I don't want to be limited)