For those who sat out to retake LSAT... Forum

[goblue91750]

Hey TLS so this is my first post so I am really sorry if this is a bad place to post this but I'm looking for some "year off" advice. I wasn't really happy with my admissions this cycle and would like to apply again next year.

LSAC GPA- 3.75, Political Science major from a top-40 university.

LSAT- 157

Long story short even though I have wanted to go to law school for a long time I did not really know anything about it until after I applied. I do not want to let me GPA go to waste since it is pretty solid. To be honest I did not take the LSAT as seriously as I should have (I never took an actual PT). I want to retake and shoot for getting some cash from some of the better California schools. I want to work/live in the San Diego/OC area (not Los Angeles). I know USD places well in San Diego but I would really like to shoot for Berkeley.

My main question to the TLS community is for people who took a year off with Majors such as mine (poli sci, history, etc.). What kind of jobs did you guys get with those degrees? I planned on pursuing some form of higher education going into college and never really thought I would be searching for a job with just a BA.

PS- how high an LSAT would I need for Stanford? I know I am under the median for GPA so I am guessing I would need a 175+?

[bk1]

I had a useless humanities major. I got a job as a paper pusher at a small firm. Then again, your GPA is about 1.0 higher than mine was so you can probably find something better than I did.

[Nelson]

If you want to be different and not go the law firm slave route, then try an "exciting" year or two in publishing or journalism.

[Lovely Ludwig Van]

I took the year-off-and-retake route and I think it's worked out pretty well. If you didn't take any PT's at all and the real thing was your first try, then definitely definitely retake.

My first PT was a 160, then I studied my ass off for 3 months and took 30 PT's, and got a 170. I got into two of CCN and $$ at several of MVPDNCG, and still didn't think it was safe enough to go to law school given ITE (I know, call me paranoid). So I decided to take a year off, restudy, retake, and get some WE. It was probably the best thing I ever did. I've been able to knock off a good chunk of my UG debt, increase my LSAT score, get some real world experience, improve my chances of doing well at OCI/EIP, get into a school with an LRAP that will take care of my educational debt regardless of whether I do well at OCI/EIP, and just chill for a while.

So I guess life lessons here are: 1) ITE, the schools you get into/the scholarship $ you get offered matters more than ever, 2) the most significant factor in determining the schools you get into/the scholarship $ you get offered is your LSAT score, 3) the LSAT is a studyable test, 4) most if not all schools (I think it is in fact "all schools," but YMMV) will readily ignore multiple LSAT scores, and 5) investing a little into improving your LSAT score can improve your future by a lot.

As far as getting a job after graduation, I was also a Poli Sci major at a T25 university with next to no work/internship experience during UG, and I had no trouble getting offers for paralegal jobs, teaching overseas, 9-5 desk jockey, etc. I decided to do AmeriCorps because I wanted travel and get the hell out of LA for a while, and it just so happened that there was an AmeriCorps opening with a nonprofit legal center out of state. Really, if you have a 3.7x from a decent UG, you should be able to get something as long as you put in the effort.

HTH

[fruitoftheloom]

If you have any interest in civil law you can be an insurance adjuster. I know my company just requires a BA (in anything) to be qualified. It's interesting (depending on what line of insurance you do). I feel like I'll have a leg up when I eventually get to OCI (retaking and applying next year) because I've negotiated large losses and handled those claims.

[pupshaw]

Re: Stanford, I have your exact GPA and a 177 and got dinged. There is probably no LSAT that would make you a safe admit there. Berkeley is difficult to predict as well, but if you get into the high 160s you should have a great shot at UCLA and/or USC, which I assume place very well in OC/SD.

[mushybrain]

I didn't take the time off because of the LSAT, but I have spent four years working while figuring out what I would do next. I have had a few jobs, but I am currently a supervisor at a doc support services department in biglaw.